1,721,045 research outputs found
Cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels in Dorsal Unpaired Median neurons of Locusta migratoria
No full textThe economic and agricultural importance of locusts can easily be underestimated, given
the widespread use of insecticides. However, areas in Africa and in Asia are frequently affected by
locust swarms, causing devastating consequences to the local food security. Unfortunately, contrary
to intuition, the wide use of broad-spectrum insecticides can increase the probability, duration
and stability of locust outbreaks. Locusts and insects in general are highly adaptable, developing
resistance to a wide range of insecticides and thus raising the need for the development of
improved and novel antiparasitic drugs both more species-selective and more potent. Established
target sites for insecticides are the members of the cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels. They
mediate important aspects of behaviour through fast inhibitory neurotransmission. In insects, the
cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels are composed of the glutamate-gated chloride channel
(GluCI), the y-amino butyric-gated chloride channels (GABACI) and histamine-gated chloride channel
(HisCI). They are excellent candidates for the development and design of new insecticidal
compounds, and it is for this reason that our work has been concentrated on these receptors. In
addition, the functional implication of cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels in dorsal unpaired
median (DUM) neurons deserved our attention. Efferent DUM neurons exert a variety of myo- and
neuromodulatory effects and are involved in numerous behavioural aspects such as flying, jumping
and walking. It is therefore plausible to assume that the cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels
could have modulatory effect on the excitability of DUM neurons, altering various aspects of the
locust physiology and behaviour. Moreover, this work may provide new insight into the diversity of
the cys-loop LGIC superfamily in different organisms and provide a better understanding of these
channels in general
The objectives
The main objective is to obtain a more detailed insight in the distribution, structure and
functional properties of these cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channels on the cell surface of
locust metathoracic DUM neurons. This was done using electrophysiological methods and molecular
biological methods
The functional expression of the glutamate-gated chloride channel, the GABA-gated chloride channel
and the histamine-gate chloride channels will be studied and pharmacologically characterized, using
the patch clamp techniques. The intention is to establish the DUM neuron as a viable in vitro model
for the study of members of these cys-loop ligand gated chloride channel, in order to screen for
compounds (i.e. toxins, drugs, insecticides,...) targeting these particular channels.
The identification of putative cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channel subunits will be attempted,
using a degenerate RT-PCR and RACE strategy. The sequencing results will allow the comparison of
these channels from different insect species and enhance our understanding of the cys-loop
ligand-gated chloride channel functional genomics. Because the glutamate-gated chloride channels
are exclusively present in invertebrates and thus form excellent targets for the development of
more selective insecticides, our research will be mainly focused on this channel.
The identified cys-loop ligand-gated chloride channel subunits will be cloned and their functional
expression in a heterologous system, such as the Xenopus laevis oocytes will be studied. The aim is
to obtain a reliable in vitro model for the study of kinetics, biophysics and pharmacology of a
single receptor type, without the interference of other receptor channels. These in vitro models
can be exploited to design new pharmacological tools used in research or new drugs for specific
diseases, and for screening of toxins acting on yet unknown targets
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
Author-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.
No full textAuthor-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.</p
Author Under Sail The Imagination of Jack London, 1893-1902
No full textIn Author Under Sail, Jay Williams offers the first complete literary biography of Jack London as a professional writer engaged in the labor of writing. It examines the authorial imagination in London's work, the use of imagination in both his fiction and nonfiction, and the ways he defined imagination in the creative process in his business dealings with his publishers, editors, and agents. In this first volume of a two-volume biography, Williams traverses the years 1893 to 1902, from London's "Story of a Typhoon" to The People of the Abyss. The Jack London who emerges in the pages of Author Under Sail is a writer whose partnership with publishers, most notably his productive alliance with George Brett of Macmillan, was one of the most formative in American literary history. London pioneered many author models during the heyday of realism and naturalism, blurring the boundaries of these popular genres by focusing on absorption and theatricality and the representation of the seen and unseen. London created an impassioned, sincere, and extremely personal realism unlike that of other American writers of the time. Author Under Sail is a literary tour de force that reveals the full range of London as writer, creative citizen, and entrepreneur at the same time it sheds light on the maverick side of machine-age literature.Intro -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. Spirit Truth -- 2. From Absorption to Theatricality and Back Again -- 3. "I Will Build a New Present" -- 4. Sons as Authors -- 5. Fathers as Publishers -- 6. The Daughter as Author -- 7. Lovers as Authors -- 8. At Sea with the Family -- 9. Yellow News, Yellow Stories -- 10. The Return Home -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index -- About Jay WilliamsIn Author Under Sail, Jay Williams offers the first complete literary biography of Jack London as a professional writer engaged in the labor of writing. It examines the authorial imagination in London's work, the use of imagination in both his fiction and nonfiction, and the ways he defined imagination in the creative process in his business dealings with his publishers, editors, and agents. In this first volume of a two-volume biography, Williams traverses the years 1893 to 1902, from London's "Story of a Typhoon" to The People of the Abyss. The Jack London who emerges in the pages of Author Under Sail is a writer whose partnership with publishers, most notably his productive alliance with George Brett of Macmillan, was one of the most formative in American literary history. London pioneered many author models during the heyday of realism and naturalism, blurring the boundaries of these popular genres by focusing on absorption and theatricality and the representation of the seen and unseen. London created an impassioned, sincere, and extremely personal realism unlike that of other American writers of the time. Author Under Sail is a literary tour de force that reveals the full range of London as writer, creative citizen, and entrepreneur at the same time it sheds light on the maverick side of machine-age literature.Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, YYYY. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries
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