• Title/Summary/Keyword: State of Virginia

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Cytokine mRNA Expression in the Small Intestine of Weanling Pigs Fed Diets Supplemented with Specialized Protein or Peptide Sources

  • Zhao, J.;Harper, A.F.;Webb, K.E. Jr.;Kuehn, L.A.;Gilbert, E.;Xiao, X.;Wong, E.A.
    • Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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    • v.21 no.12
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    • pp.1800-1806
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    • 2008
  • Cytokines play a central role in the mucosal immune response and are involved in regulation of nutrient absorption, metabolism and animal growth. This study investigated the effect of diet manipulation with specialized protein or peptide sources on expression of cytokine (IL-1, IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-${\alpha}$) mRNA abundance in different intestinal regions and at different ages post-weaning in piglets. A total of 48 (17 days of age, $6.16{\pm}0.34kg\;BW$) weanling pigs were fed either a corn-soy/whey protein basal diet, the basal diet supplemented with spray-dried plasma protein (SDPP), or the basal diet supplemented with $Peptiva^{(R)}$, a hydrolyzed marine plant protein. A fourth treatment group was fed the SDPP diet, but the feed intake level was limited (SDPP-LF). Pigs were killed at 3 and 10 d, and intestinal cytokine mRNA was measured by real-time PCR using the relative quantification method. The SDPP-LF group exhibited an increased TNF-${\alpha}$ mRNA abundance compared with the ad libitum SDPP group (p<0.05). The TNF-${\alpha}$ and IL-10 mRNA abundance increased from the proximal to distal part of the intestine, and the mRNA abundance was greater (p<0.01) in the distal intestine as compared with the proximal and middle intestine. The cytokines IL-1-${\beta}$, IL-10 and TNF-${\alpha}$ mRNA abundance also increased from d3 to d10 postweaning (p<0.01). In summary, restricted feeding increased the TNF-${\alpha}$ mRNA abundance in the small intestine, however neither SDPP nor peptide supplementation affected cytokine mRNA expression. Abundance of mRNA for most cytokines examined in this study increased with age post-weaning, suggesting that during 10 d after weaning the mucosal immune system is still under development.

Interleukin-4, Oxidative Stress, Vascular Inflammation and Atherosclerosis

  • Lee, Yong-Woo;Kim, Paul H.;Lee, Won-Hee;Hirani, Anjali A.
    • Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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    • v.18 no.2
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    • pp.135-144
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    • 2010
  • The pro-oxidative and pro-inflammatory pathways in vascular endothelium have been implicated in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis. In fact, inflammatory responses in vascular endothelium are primarily regulated through oxidative stress-mediated signaling pathways leading to overexpression of pro-inflammatory mediators. Enhanced expression of cytokines, chemokines and adhesion molecules in endothelial cells and their close interactions facilitate recruiting and adhering blood leukocytes to vessel wall, and subsequently stimulate transendothelial migration, which are thought to be critical early pathologic events in atherogenesis. Although interleukin-4 (IL-4) was traditionally considered as an anti-inflammatory cytokine, recent in vitro and in vivo studies have provided robust evidence that IL-4 exerts pro-inflammatory effects on vascular endothelium and may play a critical role in the development of atherosclerosis. The cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for IL-4-induced atherosclerosis, however, remain largely unknown. The present review focuses on the distinct sources of IL-4-mediated reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation as well as the pivotal role of ROS in IL-4-induced vascular inflammation. These studies will provide novel insights into a clear delineation of the oxidative mechanisms of IL-4-mediated stimulation of vascular inflammation and subsequent development of atherosclerosis. It will also contribute to novel therapeutic approaches for atherosclerosis specifically targeted against pro-oxidative and pro-inflammatory pathways in vascular endothelium.

GREEN CONSTRUCTION: U.S. CONSTRUCTION RELATED COMPANIES' STATUS AND PERCPETION

  • Yong Han Ahn;Annie R. Pearce;Kihong Ku
    • International conference on construction engineering and project management
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    • 2009.05a
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    • pp.263-271
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    • 2009
  • This study reveals the status, perceptions, and future directions associated with green building within construction-related companies. A survey research method was used to capture current experience levels and capabilities of companies with regard to green construction. Expectations and perceptions about the future of the construction industry with regard to green building were obtained from construction-related companies recruiting from the Myers-Lawson School of Construction at Virginia Tech from 2006 and 2008. The findings of this study support the growing importance of green building as a component of the whole construction market and provide a benchmark against which to measure future changes in the industry over time.

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Forest Resources Statistics of the State of Virginia in USA (미국 버지니아 주 산림자원통계 고찰)

  • Choi, Jung-Kee;Burkhart, Harold E.
    • Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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    • v.22 no.1
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    • pp.1-12
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    • 2006
  • This study was carried out to compile year 2001 forest resource statistics for the State of Virginia. USA. Virginia has 15.8 million acres (6.4 million ha) of forested 1and, accounting for 62% of the landcover with non-industrial private forest landowners owning 77% of the forested area. Deciduous forests make up 78% of Virginia's forests. Total tree volume is 26.5 billion cubic ft, of which average volume per acre is $1.677ft^3/ac(117m^3/ha)$. The overall annual volume of roundwood output is $543\;million\;ft^3$. Tree growth exceeds removals by $271\;million\;ft^3$ each year for all species statewide. Average net forest land loss in Virginia is 20,000 acre (8,094 ha) per year. In 1999, the forest products industry contributed over $25.4 billion to Virginia's economy while providing over 248,000 jobs. Among forest industries logging contributes to the economy at over $863 million/yr; timber accounts for the greatest amount (28%) of the total market value of Virginia's agricultural crops. Revenue received from stumpage by landowners exceeded $345 million/yr. In their entirety. Virginia's forests provide over $30.5 billion in annual return. including $3 billion for recreation and $1.9 billion for carbon sequestation and pollution control.

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Two Phenolic Amides from Cocculus diversifolius

  • Kim, Youn-Chul;Kingston, David G.I
    • Korean Journal of Pharmacognosy
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    • v.26 no.3
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    • pp.273-275
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    • 1995
  • Two phenolic amides were isolated from the stem of Cocculus diversifolius (Menispermaceae) and identified as N-trans-feruloyl tyramine and N-trans-feruloyl 3-methyldopamine by spectroscopic methods.

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Service ORiented Computing EnviRonment (SORCER) for deterministic global and stochastic aircraft design optimization: part 1

  • Raghunath, Chaitra;Watson, Layne T.;Jrad, Mohamed;Kapania, Rakesh K.;Kolonay, Raymond M.
    • Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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    • v.4 no.3
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    • pp.297-316
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    • 2017
  • With rapid growth in the complexity of large scale engineering systems, the application of multidisciplinary analysis and design optimization (MDO) in the engineering design process has garnered much attention. MDO addresses the challenge of integrating several different disciplines into the design process. Primary challenges of MDO include computational expense and poor scalability. The introduction of a distributed, collaborative computational environment results in better utilization of available computational resources, reducing the time to solution, and enhancing scalability. SORCER, a Java-based network-centric computing platform, enables analyses and design studies in a distributed collaborative computing environment. Two different optimization algorithms widely used in multidisciplinary engineering design-VTDIRECT95 and QNSTOP-are implemented on a SORCER grid. VTDIRECT95, a Fortran 95 implementation of D. R. Jones' algorithm DIRECT, is a highly parallelizable derivative-free deterministic global optimization algorithm. QNSTOP is a parallel quasi-Newton algorithm for stochastic optimization problems. The purpose of integrating VTDIRECT95 and QNSTOP into the SORCER framework is to provide load balancing among computational resources, resulting in a dynamically scalable process. Further, the federated computing paradigm implemented by SORCER manages distributed services in real time, thereby significantly speeding up the design process. Part 1 covers SORCER and the algorithms, Part 2 presents results for aircraft panel design with curvilinear stiffeners.

Service ORiented Computing EnviRonment (SORCER) for deterministic global and stochastic aircraft design optimization: part 2

  • Raghunath, Chaitra;Watson, Layne T.;Jrad, Mohamed;Kapania, Rakesh K.;Kolonay, Raymond M.
    • Advances in aircraft and spacecraft science
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    • v.4 no.3
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    • pp.317-334
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    • 2017
  • With rapid growth in the complexity of large scale engineering systems, the application of multidisciplinary analysis and design optimization (MDO) in the engineering design process has garnered much attention. MDO addresses the challenge of integrating several different disciplines into the design process. Primary challenges of MDO include computational expense and poor scalability. The introduction of a distributed, collaborative computational environment results in better utilization of available computational resources, reducing the time to solution, and enhancing scalability. SORCER, a Java-based network-centric computing platform, enables analyses and design studies in a distributed collaborative computing environment. Two different optimization algorithms widely used in multidisciplinary engineering design-VTDIRECT95 and QNSTOP-are implemented on a SORCER grid. VTDIRECT95, a Fortran 95 implementation of D. R. Jones' algorithm DIRECT, is a highly parallelizable derivative-free deterministic global optimization algorithm. QNSTOP is a parallel quasi-Newton algorithm for stochastic optimization problems. The purpose of integrating VTDIRECT95 and QNSTOP into the SORCER framework is to provide load balancing among computational resources, resulting in a dynamically scalable process. Further, the federated computing paradigm implemented by SORCER manages distributed services in real time, thereby significantly speeding up the design process. Part 1 covers SORCER and the algorithms, Part 2 presents results for aircraft panel design with curvilinear stiffeners.