Not all biofilms are equal: The hyper-biofilm of P. aeruginosa

December turned out to be a rather hectic month for several reasons, so I decided to take a break from blogging. Now the holidays are over, I will back to regular blogging for 2013!

In a previous post I wrote about how two-component systems evolved in bacteria while dying out in animals, so for this week I thought I?d give a recent example of work on a two-component system in Pseudomonas?aeruginosa. P. aeruginosa is a dangerous human pathogen that is particularly notorious for forming biofilms ? a large bacterial city, consisting of lots of bacteria all held together within a sticky mess.

P. Aeruginosa from wikimedia commons.

P.? aeruginosa has a large number of two-component systems, many of which are involved in managing the transition from the free-floating planktonic state to the colony-based community lifestyles of the biofilm. In particular the researchers were looking at a system labelled ?PprAB? where PprA is the sensor (which recieves the input) and PprB is the reciever (which creates the output by turning on certain genes).

Activating this PprAB system switches the bacteria from free-living single cells to a large multi-cellular biofilm. PprB activation is also associated with increased?susceptibility?to antibiotics and reduced virulence. As most biofilms are incredibly antibiotic resistant and usually increase?virulence, the researchers decided to take a closer look at the PprAB system and what it was activating.

In order to do this, the researchers used a mutant strain of the bacteria labelled PprBK which constantly expressed PprB. They compared the growth of this strain to a normal wild type bacteria labelled PAO1.?They found that the cells constantly expressing PprB (the PprBK strain) formed biofilms a lot faster than the wild type,with cells clumping together after just one day:

Biofilm formation after one day - wild-type cells on the left, PprB expressing cells on the right, which are already starting to clump! Image from the reference.

They also tested the virulence of the two strains in human HeLa cells using an LDH release assay. The more LDH is released, the more the human cells are damaged and dying. The graph below shows the effects of both strains on cell death over the course of three hours, with the wild-type PAO1 far more virulent and leading to more cell death:

Statistical differences evaluated using a t-test (*:<0.05, **:<0.0.01, ***:<0.001). Image from the reference below.

Another observation that the researchers made was that this biofilm is more susceptible to the antibiotic?tobramycin. Several of the genes that the PprAB system activates are used to increase the permeability of the cell membrane (to allow signal molecules in so all the cells can talk to each other and form a biofilm at the same time) and to change the composition of the cell matrix. it looks like trying to form a biofilm quickly makes each cell more permeable, allowing antibiotic molecules easier access inside. The speed of biofilm formation may also be related to the loss of?virulence?- rather than forming a coordinated attack, the cells are just trying to build a city as quickly as possible.

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Reference:?de Bentzmann S, Giraud C, Bernard CS, Calderon V, Ewald F, et al. (2012) Unique Biofilm Signature, Drug Susceptibility and Decreased Virulence in?Drosophila through thePseudomonas aeruginosa Two-Component System PprAB. PLoS Pathog 8(11): e1003052. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1003052

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=4074b91a4ced09d00f3eb7c9789fc117

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Disney Patents Hint At Future Game Consoles | Geeky Gadgets

The video game console market seems pretty full with Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo battling it out. Then you have independent consoles like the Ouya and GameStick. Now according to a patent uncovered by Patently Apple, it looks like Disney might be getting into the video game console market.

The patent suggests that Disney?s gaming console will focus on providing a 3D augmented reality experience, similar to the Nintendo 3DS, except with more support for AR experiences. The patent describes taking a picture of a mug, being able to animate the mug and then viewing it within the device so that it looks like a cartoon character.

It seems like it will be a handheld device. This could be interesting if it ever surfaces.

Source Ubergizmo

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Source: http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/disney-patents-hint-at-future-game-consoles-06-01-2013/

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S.C. woman, oldest living U.S. citizen, dies at 114

A 114-year-old South Carolina woman who was the oldest living U.S. citizen has died, two of her daughters said Saturday.

Mamie Rearden of Edgefield, who held the title as the country's oldest person for about two weeks, died Wednesday at a hospital in Augusta, Ga., said Sara Rearden of Burtonsville, Md., and Janie Ruth Osborne of Edgefield. They said their mother broke her hip after a fall about three weeks ago.

Gerontology Research Group, which verifies age information for Guinness World Records, listed Mamie Rearden as the oldest living American after last month's passing of 115-year-old Dina Manfredini of Iowa. Rearden's Sept. 7, 1898, birth was recorded in the 1900 U.S. Census, the group's Robert Young said.

Rearden was more than a year younger than the world's oldest person, 115-year-old Jiroemon Kimura of Japan.

"My mom was not president of the bank or anything, but she was very instrumental in raising a family and being a community person," said Sara Rearden, her youngest child. "Everybody can't go be president of a bank or president of a college, but we feel just as proud of her in her role as housewife and particularly as mother and homemaker."

Mamie Rearden, who was married to her husband Oacy for 59 years until his death in 1979, raised 11 children, 10 of whom survive, Sara Rearden said. She lived in the family homestead with a son and a daughter on land that had been in the family since her father's accumulation of acreage made him one of the area's largest black landowners.

Her father sent her off to earn a teaching certificate at Bettis Academy on the far side of the county, spending an entire day on a loaded wagon to reach the school along dirt roads, her daughter said. She taught for several years until becoming pregnant with her third child.

In the mid-1960s at age 65, when some settled into retirement, she learned to drive a car for the first time and started volunteering for an Edgefield County program that had her driving to the end of remote rural roads to find children whose parents were keeping them home from school, Sara Rearden said.

Mamie Rearden always counseled that her children should treat others as they wanted to be treated and that included never gossiping or speaking ill of others. When asked about a preacher's uninspiring sermon, her daughter recalled her mother saying: "'Well, it came from the Bible.' She never would bad-mouth them."

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Emery Dalesio can be reached at http://twitter.com/emerydalesio

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/sc-woman-oldest-living-us-citizen-dies-114-192041113.html

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Barney Frank: ?Coach, put me in? as Kerry?s successor

Barney Frank (Alex Wong/Getty Images)Maybe we haven't seen the last of Barney Frank in the halls of Congress.

Frank, who retired this week after 32 years in the House, revealed on Friday that he told Gov. Deval Patrick he would be interested in serving temporarily as Massachusetts Democratic Sen. John Kerry's successor.

"I've told the governor that I would now like, frankly, to do that because I would like to be a part of that," Frank said on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" on Friday.

President Barack Obama last month nominated Kerry as the next U.S. secretary of state. After Senate confirmation, Kerry will resign his seat, which will be temporarily filled by an appointed senator until a special election is held.

And according to Frank, even though he rejected the idea of serving as interim senator as recently as a few weeks ago, the former House Financial Services chairman said he's coming around to the idea now that the "fiscal cliff" deal has left Congress with unfinished economic business.

"That deal now means that February, March and April are going to be among the most important months in American financial history," he said, suggesting the appointment would put him in prime position to participate.

"It's only a three-month period. I wouldn't want to do anything more?I don't want to run again," he said. "Coach, put me in."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/barney-frank-coach-put-kerry-successor-141447794--election.html

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Academy Announces Scientific and Technical Achievement Honorees

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will honor nine scientific and technical achievements at this year's Scientific and Technical Awards Presentation, the Academy said Thursday.

This year's presentation is scheduled February 9 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

Among the honorees will be J.P. Lewis, Matt Cordner and Nickson Fong, who invented the Pose Space Deformation technique, which developed into an essential technique in creating computer-generated characters.

Lawrence Kesteloot, Drew Olbrich and Daniel Wexler will also be lauded for their creation of the Light system for computer graphics lighting at PDI/DreamWorks.

Portions of the Scientific and Technical Awards Presentation will be included in the Oscar telecast.

The honorees are:

Technical Achievement Award (Academy Certificate)

>>J.P. Lewis, Matt Cordner and Nickson Fong for the invention and publication of the Pose Space Deformation technique.

Pose Space Deformation (PSD) introduced the use of novel sparse data interpolation techniques to the task of shape interpolation. The controllability and ease of achieving artistic intent have led to PSD being a foundational technique in the creation of computer-generated characters.

>>Lawrence Kesteloot, Drew Olbrich and Daniel Wexler for the creation of the Light system for computer graphics lighting at PDI/DreamWorks.

Virtually unchanged from its original incarnation over 15 years ago, Light is still in continuous use due to its emphasis on interactive responsiveness, final - quality interactive render preview, scalable architecture and powerful user-configurable spreadsheet interface.

>>Steve LaVietes, Brian Hall and Jeremy Selan for the creation of the Katana computer graphics scene management and lighting software at Sony Pictures Imageworks.

Katana's unique design, featuring a deferred evaluation procedural node-graph, provides a highly efficient lighting and rendering workflow. It allows artists to non - destructively edit scenes too complex to fit into computer memory, at scales ranging from a single object up to an entire detailed city.

>>Theodore Kim, Nils Thuerey, Markus Gross and Doug James for the invention, publication and dissemination of Wavelet Turbulence software.

This technique allowed for fast, art-directable creation of highly detailed gas simulation, making it easier for the artist to control the appearance these effects in the final image.

>>Richard Mall for the design and development of the Matthews Max Menace Arm.

Highly sophisticated and well-engineered, the Max Menace Arm is a safe and adjustable device that allows rapid, precise positioning of lighting fixtures, cameras or accessories. On-set or on location, this compact and highly portable structure is often used where access is limited due to restrictions on attaching equipment to existing surfaces.

Scientific and Engineering Award (Academy Plaque)

>>Simon Clutterbuck, James Jacobs and Dr. Richard Dorling for the development of the Tissue Physically-Based Character Simulation Framework.

This framework faithfully and robustly simulates the effects of anatomical structures underlying a character's skin. The resulting dynamic and secondary motions provide a new level of realism to computer-generated creatures.

>>Dr. Philip McLauchlan, Allan Jaenicke, John-Paul Smith and Ross Shain for the creation of the Mocha planar tracking and rotoscoping software at Imagineer Systems Ltd.

Mocha provides robust planar-tracking even when there are no clearly defined points in the image. Its effectiveness, ease of use, and ability to exchange rotoscoping data with other image processing tools have resulted in widespread adoption of the software in the visual effects industry.

>>Joe Murtha, William Frederick and Jim Markland of Anton/Bauer, Inc. for the design and creation of the CINE VCLX Portable Power System.

The CINE VCLX provides extended run-times and flexibility, allowing users to power cameras and other supplementary equipment required for production. This high-capacity battery system is also matched to the high-demand, always-on digital cinema cameras.

Academy Award of Merit (Oscar Statuette)

>>Cooke Optics Limited for their continuing innovation in the design, development and manufacture of advanced camera lenses that have helped define the look of motion pictures over the last century.

Since their first series of motion picture lenses, Cooke Optics has continued to create optical innovations decade after decade. Producing what is commonly referred to as the "Cooke Look," these lenses have often been the lens of choice for creative cinematographers worldwide.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/academy-announces-scientific-technical-achievement-honorees-195629984.html

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Source: http://www.denverautorepairblog.com/2012/12/auto-repair-denver-80210.html

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