...Introduction The profound importance for microorganisms to operate at a maximum efficiency has lead to adaptations allowing for groups of processes to be functional when resources are available, while on the contrary remaining “dormant” when not in need. This has been accomplished at the molecular level by configuring clusters of genes together on the genome into operons that elicit a processive response in the presence of a specific metabolite. The Lac operon is responsible for the cleaving of the disaccharide lactose into two products. A myriad of components control the expression of the Lac operon when two conditions are met. First, the substrate, lactose, must be present. Second, no better substrate for example, glucose, is present (2). The three structural genes in the Lac operon are lacZ, lacY, and lacA. The gene lacZ encodes the tetramer, ß-galactosidase, which is responsible for hydrolyzing the ß-1,4 glycosidic linkage between galactose and glucose in lactose. The transport of lactose into the cell via the enzyme lactose permease is encoded by the gene lacY. The lacA gene encodes the enzyme, galactoside transacetylase, a trimer that transfers an acetyl group from acetyl-CoA to galactosides. Activation of these genes is dependent on the activity of a promoter and three operators based on the nutritional and environmental conditions available to the cell. The lac operon is a negatively controlled inducible operon that utilizes the product of the regulator gene lacI, to...
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...Introduction: The purpose of this experiment was to successfully transform pGLO plasmid into E.Coli cells. In the first segment of this laboratory exercise, one had to carry out a restriction digest. Restriction digestion is the process of cutting DNA molecules into smaller pieces with special enzymes such as, BamH1 and EcoR1. One had to determine which of the two plasmids, A or B, were pGLO or pWEB. A plasmid is a small circular DNA strand in the cytoplasm of a bacterium (Isite, 2013). In order to determine that, one had to use BamH1 and EcoR1 on two tubes each one with plasmid A and the other with plasmid B to observe the cuts made by each enzyme. The hypothesis for this segment of the laboratory exercise states that pGLO was plasmid B, and pWEB was plasmid A. PGLO is a plasmid which contains green fluorescent protein (GFP). GFP is found in the Aquarius Victoria jelly fish. These jelly fish have a bioluminescent protein that emits blue light. GFP converts the blue light into green light, and that is why these jelly fish emit green light. The pGLO was inserted into E.coli by using transformation. Transformation is the process of transferring genetic material between microbial cells (Tu 2008). Bacterial cells need to be in a state of competency prior to transformation (Isite 2013). Some bacteria naturally achieve this stage when nutrients and oxygen are low (Isite 2013). In the laboratory, bacteria were artificially induced with calcium chloride to be competent for transformation...
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...The Effects of Calorie Restriction on Aging by Jessica Swantek Introduction For ages, humans have been searching for ways to counteract the aging process. The legendary fountain of youth generated much attention in the past, and more recently, thousands of dollars have been spent each year on creams, pills, plastic surgery, and various forms of therapy designed to make one look and feel younger. So far nothing has been proven to reverse or even retard human aging, but scientists are finally catching a glimpse as to a dietary manipulation technique that might work. Preliminary Experimentation In the 1930s, Clive McCay, a scientist at the laboratories at Cornell University, experimented on his rats by feeding them less than they would ordinarily take for themselves, but without depriving them of nutrition to the point of starvation. He found that the food-deprived rats lived considerably longer than expected for a standard rat's life span, and about 33 percent longer than his control group of rats, which were fed as much as they wanted to eat (Weindruch 46). McCay didn't fully understand his results, and although published, they were generally disregarded by the science world (Man Immortal). Years later, Roy Walford, a nutritionist working at the University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, came across the documentation of McCay's experiments, and, using modern technology and mice instead of rats, picked up where McCay had left off (Man Immortal). Walford found...
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...The Effects of Calorie Restriction on Aging by christiano Introduction For ages, humans have been searching for ways to counteract the aging process. The legendary fountain of youth generated much attention in the past, and more recently, thousands of dollars have been spent each year on creams, pills, plastic surgery, and various forms of therapy designed to make one look and feel younger. So far nothing has been proven to reverse or even retard human aging, but scientists are finally catching a glimpse as to a dietary manipulation technique that might work. Preliminary Experimentation In the 1930s, Clive McCay, a scientist at the laboratories at Cornell University, experimented on his rats by feeding them less than they would ordinarily take for themselves, but without depriving them of nutrition to the point of starvation. He found that the food-deprived rats lived considerably longer than expected for a standard rat's life span, and about 33 percent longer than his control group of rats, which were fed as much as they wanted to eat (Weindruch 46). McCay didn't fully understand his results, and although published, they were generally disregarded by the science world (Man Immortal). Years later, Roy Walford, a nutritionist working at the University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, came across the documentation of McCay's experiments, and, using modern technology and mice instead of rats, picked up where McCay had left off (Man Immortal). Walford found that...
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...calories are minimalized to a couple hundred calories and on the other day you would eat as normal. This diet is particularly best for weight loss due to longer periods of food restriction. The next fasting approach is called the Warrior Diet, which is based on the concept of fasting for 20 hours and promotes eating one large, healthy meal at the end of the day (Simmons). “It claims that this pattern of eating is in sync with humans’ circadian rhythm and will promote general health while ‘removing harmful toxins from the body’” (Simmons 2014). The fasting period allows you to consume small snacks such as fruits and veggies and some high protein snacks or shakes. The common factor among each one of the fasting diets is calorie restriction, which eventually leads to weight loss. Because meals are limited to a certain timeframe, ideally the calorie consumption is going to be less when following a proper diet. Eliminating multiple meals throughout the day until mealtime or “feeding” time is going to reduce added calories to one's diet. The restrictive diet helps reduce the risk factors associated with being overweight and obese such as certain cancers and diabetes (Patterson 2015). Overall fasting is not going to be the most beneficial way to lose weight by itself. Other factors such as calorie restriction and increased metabolism contribute to weight loss. For individuals who are looking for significant weight loss fasting may not be the best plan. In fasting, reducing the eating...
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...Cloning and expression of α-Amylase gene from Bacillus subtilis in Pichia pastoris and Escherichia coli. Introduction Enzyme is a type of catalyst that present in living organisms used for many biotechnological functions in various industrial processing. It has a special characteristic that allows the chemical reaction to speed up without being altered, thus significantly improve the industrial productivity (Roy et al. 2012). Among various enzymes available in market, α-amylase has received a special attention in commercial production due to its widely used applications. α-Amylase contributed to 50% of the world enzyme production and has a great importance in many industries such as in food processing, laundry and also in pharmaceutical (Asgher et al. 2007). α-Amylase enzyme acts on α-1,4 glycosidic bonds in starch substrate backbone leading to the formation of soluble maltodextrins, glucose and maltose (Vidyalakshmi et al. 2009). This characteristic is extremely useful especially in industries that require the hydroxylation of starch such as the production of sugar syrups. The α-amylase enzyme can be obtained from various sources such as plants animals and microbes (Ahmed et al. 2011). However, the naturally occurring enzyme is still insufficient to support all the industrial production and therefore, it is crucial to find a new alternative sources, which is cost-efficient and high yield capacity to meet the supply demand (Yin et al. 2003). In industries, the microbial...
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...traits are influenced by things like their genotype or their specific environment. Genomic markers can allow for a more direct comparison of closely related individuals (Ansari and Khan, 2012). In our case we focus on DNA extraction. The two basic parts of a DNA extraction procedure include the breaking of the cell walls to expose the DNA and the use of enzymes to remove contaminants. The DNA is analyzed for purity by taking the absorbance. The pure DNA is then visualized by gel electrophoresis. The DNA extraction of plant seeds is difficult because of their cell wall. The method used to break the cell wall includes grinding the seeds with liquid nitrogen. The addition of DNAzol is used to isolate genomic DNA (Chomczynski et al. 1997). Restriction enzymes are necessary to fragment patterns of the DNA and in turn making it easier to analyze the DNA through gel electrophoresis. BACKGROUND The purpose of our experiment is to extract the DNA from pepper seeds to be able to compare and contrast the similarities in their DNA. The extraction of DNA from a plant is slightly more difficult than that of mammals. This is due to the presence of a rigid cell wall. To overcome this problem, the pepper seeds are grinded using liquid nitrogen (Manen, Jean-François, 2005). The liquid nitrogen facilitates the pulverization of the seeds by flash freezing them and causes the outer shell to become fragile. Plant DNAzol is a guanidine thiocyanate and detergent...
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...never had a good relationship. Her jealously towards the victim was well known and they were seen in public one week prior to the incident arguing, which raises a red flag. Background The victim was a cheerleader in college and she was an honor student. She was murdered by multiple stabs and the guilty suspect disposed of the body in a dumpster near the library. Luckily, there was a trail of blood left at the scene and there was a blood sample that was connected to one of the suspects. The suspects narrowed down to her half sister who was very jealous of her and her ex-boyfriend. Similar to the procedure done in forensics the samples of the crime scene blood, the blood of suspect A and the blood of suspect B were combined with restriction enzymes and put through gel electrophoresis to determine which suspect’s blood matched the blood found at the crime scene. Results __Wide Range Marker / __Crime / / __Crime-Enz / / / __Suspect A / / / / __Suspect A-Enz / / / / / __Suspect B / / / / / / __Suspect B-Enz / / / / / / / __EL...
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... Nearly half of Americans come in contact with or personally know an individual who has anorexia. In fact, I am sure each one of us knows someone or knows of someone who has an eating disorder. My oldest sister has anorexia and I have sorrowfully watched her struggle daily with it. It happened gradually and without warning when she was only 12. She kept a journal of her daily calorie intake, and one of her entries read that she only had a small handful of nuts and bite of a brownie that day. Like my sister, anorexia is a growing problem among young women. Throughout this speech, you will learn of some aspects of this eating disorder such as its causes, preventions, and effects. Some signs and symptoms include the denial of hunger, withdrawal from usual activities and friends, refusal to eat certain foods or any food at all, and frequent comments about feeling “fat” even though dramatic weight loss is occurring. Many consequences happen as a result of Anorexia, such as an abnormally slow heart right and low blood pressure, reduction of bone density, muscle loss and weakness, severe dehydration which can lead to kidney failure, fainting and fatigue, dry hair and skin as well as hair loss, and the growth of a thin layer of hair covering the whole body called Lanugo, which is the body’s attempt to keep itself warm. Nearly 5% of all women worldwide suffer from Anorexia Nervosa, 90% of which are women between the ages of 15 and 24. Anorexia is a severe eating disorder characterized...
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...addresses both legal and illegal insider trading applicable, but not limited, to corporate executives, directors, employees, friends and family of insiders, people who are privy to information as a result of working for a firm that has inside information due to interaction with the corporation (SEC, n.d.). The SEC governs securities, but the same guidelines can be applied to other forms of monetary investment or gambling where one party has knowledge that unfairly provides an opportunity to make a more informed decision than other participants. Insider Trading Limits and Pete Rose The Pete Rose case is an example of illegal betting with inside information. Pete Rose should refrain from betting on the success of his team because he has information about the players, opponents, and game plan that other betting parties do not. Further, there could be arrangements made with the other team to play differently and receive monetary compensation, compromising trust and integrity of the sport (Klosterman, 2014). Punishments should be more severe for betting on a loss since the ability to create the loss by intentional poor performance, for...
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...The SEC addresses both legal and illegal insider trading applicable, but not limited, to corporate executives, directors, employees, friends and family of insiders, people who are privy to information as a result of working for a firm that has inside information due to interaction with the corporation (SEC, n.d.). The SEC governs securities, but the same guidelines can be applied to other forms of monetary investment or gambling where one party has knowledge that unfairly provides an opportunity to make a more informed decision than other participants. Insider Trading Limits and Pete Rose The Pete Rose case is an example of illegal betting with inside information. Pete Rose should not be allowed to profit from betting on the success of his team because he has information about the players, opponents, and game plan that other betting parties do not. Further, there could be arrangements made with the other team to play differently and receive monetary compensation, compromising trust and integrity of the sport (Klosterman, 2014). Punishments should be more severe for betting on a loss since the ability to create the loss by poor performance, for example, is easier. Even with required disclosure and laws in place to deter insider gambling and...
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...High-Frequency Trading Remi Charpin MBA student BADM 580 June 28, 2010 Prepared for Professor Charles Alvis Financial Markets Seminar Table of Contents List of Illustrations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Problem Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Background Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Discussion of Findings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Strategies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Key Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Pros. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....
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...state and Washington DC, June 2011 trends of the 2011 state and trends of the 2011 Environment Department This report was prepared by a World Bank team comprising of Nicholas Linacre, Alexandre Kossoy and Philippe Ambrosi, with important contributions from Manelle Aït Sahlia, Veronique Bishop, Benoît Bosquet, Christophe de Gouvello, Taisei Matsuki and Monali Ranade. 2 | State and Trends of the Carbon Market 2010 New Approach for the 2011 Report With the goal of providing a comprehensive discussion of the issues that most affected the carbon market in 2010, the authors of last year’s report have restructured State and Trends of the Carbon Market for 2011. The report still provides an overview of the size and reach of the carbon markets, as well as the evolution of the Kyoto flexibility mechanisms, and offers potential supply/demand scenarios for coming years. However, it no longer includes a detailed breakdown of carbon transactions, as in previous years. Instead, the report provides a more in-depth analytical discussion of the regulation and policy issues that will guide future carbon market development. The findings and opinions expressed in this report are the sole responsibility of the authors and should not be cited without permission. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank Group, its Executive Directors, the countries they represent or of any of the participants in the carbon funds or facilities managed by the World Bank. The World Bank does...
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...Dennis 1 Synopsis Decisions are made every day. The choices people make are often swayed one way or another by outside forces or by those that frame decisions and their choices. Nudge focuses on decisions and how they are made. Half of Nudge covers decisions and how their choices are framed and how we as people can better understand why choices are set up the way they are, how to make an optimal decision, and how to nudge others toward making optimal decisions. The second half of Nudge illustrates how the same concepts and principles can be used, are being used, should be used, and how to better utilize them to nudge public policy. Thaler and Sunstein (2009, p. 6) detail two terms that must be explained in order to understand the points made throughout the book. The first, ‘nudge’ is “any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people’s behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives.” They go on to say “To count as a mere nudge, the intervention must be easy and cheap to avoid. Nudges are not mandates.” The second term used throughout Nudge is ‘choice architect’ (Thaler & Sunstein, 2009, p. 3), defined by the authors as someone that “has the responsibility for organizing the context in which people make decisions.” Choice architects arrange choices for other people and nudge others toward making decisions that will be at the optimum benefit. A choice architect will favor one option over another and take...
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...Insider trading is the trading of a corporation's stock or other securities (e.g. bonds or stock options) by individuals with potential access to non-public information about the company. Such a trade is motivated by the possibility of generating extraordinary gain with the help of nonpublic information (information not yet made public). It gives the trader an unfair advantage over other traders in the same security. insiders are defined as a company's officers, directors and any beneficial owners of more than ten percent of a class of the company's equity securities ------------------------------------------------------------2--------------------------------------------------------------------------- It is important to distinguish between a STAKEHOLDER and a SHAREHOLDER. They sound the same – but the difference is crucial! Shareholders hold shares in the company – that is they own part of it. Stakeholders have an interest in the company but do not own it (unless they are shareholders). Often the aims and objectives of the stakeholders are not the same as shareholders and they come into conflict. The conflict often arises because while shareholders want short-term profits, the other stakeholders’ desires tend to cost money and reduce profits. The owners often have to balance their own wishes against those of the other stakeholders or risk losing their ability to generate future profits (e.g. the workers may go on strike or the customers refuse to buy the company’s products)...
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