From the simple discovery in 1962 that resorbing tadpole tail expressed an enzyme (MMP) that could degrade collagen gels, matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) research has advanced to discover more than ...twenty distinct vertebrate MMPs and four specific inhibitors (TIMPS), a veritable family of enzymes involved in many physiological and pathological processes. In Matrix Metalloproteinase Protocols, leading experts detail proven laboratory techniques for the study of MMPs. The methods include those for the expression and purification of MMPs and TIMPs, for the detection of MMPs and TIMPs at both the protein and mRNA levels, and for the assay of MMP and TIMP activities in a wide variety of circumstances. Each method includes step-by-step instructions and notes on variant applications and pitfalls to avoid. A selective overview of the MMP arena spells out where the field has been, where it is, and where it is going. Comprehensive and highly practical, Matrix Metalloproteinase Protocols brings together the long and hard-earned experience of master experimentalists that will allow not only novices to get up to speed quickly, but also add to the repertoire of successful techniques in expert laboratories.
Balikbayan boxes sent by OFW's abroad are delivered by freight forwarders to their rightful recipients. But before arriving at the recipient's residence these packages pass through a series of ...transfers and transactions (foreign forwarder, shipping company, Bureau of Customs, local forwarder, etc.). In every transaction and transfer, the balikbayan box is vulnerable to different circumstances. The security of the items inside is at stake. I-Box (Innovated Balikbayan box Operation Express) is an innovation to the common delivery system that tracks and monitors the condition of the balikbayan box for secured delivery thus solving the flaws of the normal delivery system. A point to point implementation of this design enhances the monitoring and tracking of the boxes. The realized design uses RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags to monitor and track the exact location of the box that is unique to every box making the identification of the box non-reproducible.
Water storage plays an important role in mitigating heat and flooding in urban areas. Assessment of the capacity of cities to store water remains challenging due to the extreme heterogeneity of the ...urban surface. Traditionally, effective storage has been estimated from runoff. Here, we present a novel approach to estimate water storage capacity from recession rates of evaporation during precipitation-free periods. We test this approach for cities at neighborhood scale with eddy-covariance latent heat flux observations from thirteen contrasting sites with different local climate zones, vegetation cover and characteristics, and climates. We find effective water storage capacities to vary between 1.3-28.4 mm corresponding to e-folding timescales of 1.8-20.1 days. According to our results, urban water storage capacity is at least one order of magnitude smaller than the observed values for natural ecosystems, resulting in an evaporation regime characterised by extreme water limitation.
Water storage plays an important role in mitigating heat and flooding in urban areas. Assessment of the capacity of cities to store water remains challenging due to the extreme heterogeneity of the ...urban surface. Traditionally, effective storage has been estimated from runoff. Here, we present a novel approach to estimate water storage capacity from recession rates of evaporation during precipitation-free periods. We test this approach for cities at neighborhood scale with eddy-covariance latent heat flux observations from thirteen contrasting sites with different local climate zones, vegetation cover and characteristics, and climates. We find effective water storage capacities to vary between 1.5 and 20 mm corresponding to e-folding timescales of 2.5 to 12 days. According to our results, urban water storage capacity is at least one order of magnitude smaller than the observed values for natural ecosystems, resulting in an evaporation regime characterised by extreme water limitation.
We present a draft assembly of the genome of European pear (Pyrus communis) `Bartlett'. Our assembly was developed employing second generation sequencing technology (Roche 454), from single-end, 2 ...kb, and 7 kb insert paired-end reads using Newbler (version 2.7). It contains 142,083 scaffolds greater than 499 bases (maximum scaffold length of 1.2 Mb) and covers a total of 577.3 Mb, representing most of the expected 600 Mb Pyrus genome. A total of 829,823 putative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected using re-sequencing of `Louise Bonne de Jersey' and `Old Home'. A total of 2,279 genetically mapped SNP markers anchor 171 Mb of the assembled genome. Ab initio gene prediction combined with prediction based on homology searching detected 43,419 putative gene models. Of these, 1219 proteins (556 clusters) are unique to European pear compared to 12 other sequenced plant genomes. Analysis of the expansin gene family provided an example of the quality of the gene prediction and an insight into the relationships among one class of cell wall related genes that control fruit softening in both European pear and apple (Malusxdomestica). The `Bartlett' genome assembly v1.0 (http://www.rosaceae.org/species/pyrus/pyrus_communis/genome_v1.0) is an invaluable tool for identifying the genetic control of key horticultural traits in pear and will enable the wide application of marker-assisted and genomic selection that will enhance the speed and efficiency of pear cultivar development.
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