Sufficient Energy (sufficient + energy)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


A microfluidic study of mechanisms in the electrophoresis of supercoiled DNA

ELECTROPHORESIS, Issue 12 2008
Dammika P. Manage
Abstract In this work, microfluidic chips were used to study the electrophoresis of supercoiled DNA (SC DNA) in agarose. This system allowed us to study the electrophoretic and trapping behaviours of SC DNA of various lengths, at various fields and separation distances. Near a critical electric field the DNA is trapped such that the concentration falls exponentially with distance. The trapping of such circular DNA has been explained in terms of the ,lobster trap' or ,impalement' model where shorter fibres become trapping sites at higher fields, leading to an ongoing (and gradual) increase in trapping with increasing field. By contrast, the present study suggests that under some circumstances the traps have a barrier such that only when the DNA has sufficient energy (at high enough fields) can it become trapped, leading to a sudden transition in behaviours at the critical field. We propose an ,activated impalement' mechanism of trapping in which only at sufficiently high fields is the SC DNA impaled and trapped for long times. The critical electric field appears to be inversely proportional to the length of the DNA molecule, suggesting that the force required to impale the SC DNA is constant. [source]


Modelling plumes of overland flow from logging tracks

HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 12 2002
P. B. Hairsine
Abstract Most land-based forestry systems use extensive networks of unsealed tracks to access the timber resource. These tracks are normally drained by constructing cross-banks, or water bars, across the tracks immediately following logging. Cross-banks serve three functions in controlling sediment movement within forestry compartments: 1.they define the specific catchment area of the snig track (also known as skid trails) so that the overland flow does not develop sufficient energy to cause gullies, and sheet and rill erosion is reduced; 2.they induce some sediment deposition as flow velocity reduces at the cross-bank; 3.they redirect overland flow into the adjacent general harvesting area (GHA) so that further sediment deposition may take place. This paper describes a simple model that predicts the third of these functions in which the rate of runoff from the track is combined with spatial attributes of the track and stream network. Predictions of the extent of the overland flow plumes and the volume of water delivered to streams is probabilistically presented for a range of rainfall-event scenarios with rainfall intensity, time since logging and compartment layout as model inputs. Generic equations guiding the trade-off between intercross-bank length and flow path distance from cross-bank outlet to the stream network needed for infiltration of track runoff are derived. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


SEDIMENTARY IMPRINT OF MICROCYSTIS AERUGINOSA (CYANOBACTERIA) BLOOMS IN GRANGENT RESERVOIR (LOIRE, FRANCE),

JOURNAL OF PHYCOLOGY, Issue 3 2007
Delphine Latour
Analysis of a sediment core taken from the Grangent reservoir in 2004 showed the presence of high concentrations of Microcystis aeruginosa Kütz. colonies at the sediment surface (250 colonies,·,mL sediment,1) and also at depths of 25,35 cm (2300 colonies·mL sediment,1) and 70 cm (600 colonies,·,mL sediment,1). Measurements of radioactive isotopes (7Be, 137Cs, and 241Am) along with photographic analysis of the core were used to date the deep layers: the layer located at ,30 cm dates from summer 2003, and that located at ,70 cm from 1990 to 1991. The physiological and morphological conditions of those benthic colonies were compared with those of planktonic colonies using several techniques (environmental scanning electron microscopy [ESEM], TEM, DNA markers, cellular esterases, and toxins). The ESEM observations showed that, as these colonies age, peripheral cells disappear, with no cells remaining in the mucilage of the deepest colonies (70 cm), an indication of the survival thresholds of these organisms. In the benthic phase, the physiological conditions (enzyme activity, cell division, and intracellular toxins) and ultrastructure (particularly the gas vesicles) of the cells surviving in the heart of the colony are comparable to those of the planktonic form, with all the potential needed for growth. Maintaining cellular integrity requires a process that can provide sufficient energy and is expressed in the reduced, but still existing, enzymatic activity that we measured, which is equivalent to a quiescent state. [source]


The Effect of Diet on the Energy Budget of the Brown Sea Cucumber, Stichopus mollis (Hutton)

JOURNAL OF THE WORLD AQUACULTURE SOCIETY, Issue 2 2009
Kimberley H. Maxwell
This study investigated the ability of the brown sea cucumber, Stichopus (Australostichopus) mollis, to grow on diets made from aquaculture waste. Weight-standardized rates (ingestion, assimilation, respiration, ammonia excretion, and fecal excretion) of small (juvenile), medium (mature), and large (mature) sea cucumbers were measured and energy budgets constructed to quantify their growth rates when offered three different diets at 14, 16, and 18 C. Three types of diet were offered: uneaten abalone food (diet A) and two types of abalone feces, one where abalone were fed 50% Macrocystis pyrifera and 50% Undaria pinnatifida macroalgae (diet B) and the other where abalone were fed 25% M. pyrifera, 25% U. pinnatifida, and 50% Adam & Amos Abalone Food, where the latter is an industry standard diet (diet C). The organic contents of the diets were much higher than natural sediments and varied such that diet A (76.40%) > diet B (54.50%) > diet C (37.00%). Diet had a significant effect on S. mollis ingestion rates, assimilation efficiencies, and consequently energy budgets and growth rates. Greater quantities of organic matter (OM) from diet A and diet B were ingested and assimilated by the sea cucumbers compared with the OM in diet C. The energy budgets indicated that after taking routine metabolism into account, all sizes of sea cucumbers had energy to allocate to growth when offered diet A and diet B, but only juveniles had energy to allocate to growth when offered diet C. Fecal excretion rates when offered diet A and diet C at 14 C were greater than those at 18 C, but neither was significantly different from that at 16 C. Ammonia excretion rates increased nonlinearly with temperature for small and medium sea cucumbers but not for large sea cucumbers. Weight-standardized respiration rates increased with temperature and unexpectedly with animal size, which may have been because of the narrow weight range of test animals biasing the results. These results suggest that industry standard type abalone waste lacks sufficient energy to meet the metabolic requirements of mature sea cucumbers but that growing juveniles on these wastes appears to be feasible and warrants further investigation. [source]


The effects of thermal conduction on the intracluster medium of the Virgo cluster

MONTHLY NOTICES OF THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY, Issue 1 2005
Edward C. D. Pope
ABSTRACT Thermal conduction has been suggested as a possible mechanism by which sufficient energy is supplied to the central regions of galaxy clusters to balance the effect of radiative cooling. Recent high-resolution observations of the nearby Virgo cluster make it an ideal subject for an attempt to reproduce the properties of the cluster by numerical simulations, because most of the defining parameters are comparatively well known. Here, we present the results of a simulated high-resolution, 3D Virgo cluster for different values of thermal conductivity ( times the full Spitzer value). Starting from an initially isothermal cluster atmosphere, we allow the cluster to evolve freely over time-scales of roughly 1.3,4.7 × 109 yr. Our results show that thermal conductivity at the Spitzer value can increase the central intracluster medium (ICM) radiative cooling time by a factor of roughly 3.6. In addition, for larger values of thermal conductivity, the simulated temperature and density profiles match the observations significantly better than for the lower values. However, no physically meaningful value of thermal conductivity was able to postpone the cooling catastrophe (characterized by a rapid increase in the central density) for longer than a fraction of the Hubble time nor explain the absence of a strong cooling flow in the Virgo cluster today. We also calculate the effective adiabatic index of the cluster gas for both simulation and observational data and compare the values with theoretical expectations. Using this method, it appears that the Virgo cluster is being heated in the cluster centre by a mechanism other than thermal conductivity. Based on this and our simulations, it is also likely that the thermal conductivity is suppressed by a factor of at least 10 and probably more. Thus, we suggest that thermal conductivity, if present at all, has the effect of slowing down the evolution of the ICM, by radiative cooling, but only by a factor of a few. [source]


Porous polymer monolith for surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry of small molecules

RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY, Issue 13 2004
Dominic S. Peterson
Porous poly(butyl methacrylate- co -ethylene dimethacrylate), poly(benzyl methacrylate- co -ethylene dimethacrylate), and poly(styrene- co -divinylbenzene) monoliths have been prepared on the top of standard sample plates used for matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry and the modified plates were used for laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (LDI-MS). The hydrophobic porous surface of these monoliths enables the transfer of sufficient energy to the analyte to induce desorption and ionization prior to TOFMS analysis. Both UV and thermally initiated polymerization using a mask or circular openings in a thin gasket have been used to define spot locations matching those of the MALDI plates. The desorption/ionization ability of the monolithic materials depends on the applied laser power, the solvent used for sample preparation, and the pore size of the monoliths. The monolithic matrices are very stable and can be used even after long storage times in a typical laboratory environment without observing any deterioration of their properties. The performance of the monolithic material is demonstrated with the mass analysis of several small molecules including drugs, explosives, and acid labile compounds. The macroporous spots also enable the archiving of samples. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Clinical acidosis in a Gippsland dairy herd

AUSTRALIAN VETERINARY JOURNAL, Issue 6 2005
E. BRAMLEY
Objective: To report on spontaneous clinical and subclinical acidosis in a large dairy herd, to evaluate the diets and feeding strategies involved, and to report on measures of rumen function in the cows affected. Design: A Gippsland dairy herd was sampled as part of a wider randomised cross-sectional study that examined the prevalence, risk factors for, and effects of, acidosis on rumen function of dairy cattle. Three herds on the farm were involved in the study: the transition herd (cows 3 weeks prior to calving), the very fresh lactating herd (1sufficient energy and protein for maintenance of cows of this live weight in late gestation. The diet fed to the very fresh herd was low in effective fibre and contained an excessive content of non-structural carbohydrate in the form of processed, rapidly fermentable grain. The sudden change from the transition diet to the diet fed to the very fresh herd probably also precipitated the outbreak of acidosis. This case report provides unique detail, including information on diets and rumen parameters, of an outbreak of acidosis in a pasture-fed herd. [source]


Effects of 100 GHz radiation on alkaline phosphatase activity and antigen,antibody interaction,

BIOELECTROMAGNETICS, Issue 3 2009
A. Homenko
Abstract Equipment that generates microwave radiation (MWR) spanning the frequency range of 300 MHz,100 GHz is becoming more common. While MWR lacks sufficient energy to break chemical bonds, the disagreement as to whether MWR exposure is detrimental to cellular dysfunction may be difficult to clarify using complex systems such as whole animals, cells, or cell extracts. Recently, the high frequency range of terahertz (THz) radiation has been explored and sources of radiation and its detectors have been developed. THz radiation is associated with the frequency interval from 100 GHz to 20 THz and constitutes the next frontier in imaging science and technology. In the present study, we investigated the effect of radiation in the low frequency THz range (100 GHz) on two defined molecular interactions. First, the interaction of soluble or immobilized calf alkaline phosphatase with the substrate p -nitrophenylphosphate and second, the interaction between an antibody (mouse monoclonal anti-DNP) and its antigen (DNP). Irradiation of enzyme either prior to addition of substrate or during the enzymatic reaction resulted in small but significant reductions in enzyme activity. These differences were not observed if the enzyme had previously been immobilized onto plastic microwells. Exposure of immobilized antigen to radiation did not influence the ability of the antigen to interact with antibody. However, irradiation appeared to decrease the stability of previously formed antigen,antibody complexes. Our data suggest that 100 GHz radiation can induce small but statistically significant alterations in the characteristics of these two types of biomolecular interactions. Bioelectromagnetics 30:167,175, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]


Photostimulated Reduction Processes in a Titania Hybrid Metal,Organic Framework

CHEMPHYSCHEM, Issue 11 2010
Aron Walsh Dr.
Lights, camera, action! A hybrid material derived from TiO2 is found to have remarkable defect chemistry: optical excitations larger than the band gap have sufficient energy to reduce titanium, accompanied by oxygen loss (see figure). New states introduced in the electronic gap are responsible for the material,s photochromicity. The future looks bright for photoactive metal,organic frameworks. [source]