University of Massachusetts Amherst

About: University of Massachusetts Amherst is a education organization based out in Amherst Center, Massachusetts, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Galaxy. The organization has 37274 authors who have published 83965 publications receiving 3834996 citations. The organization is also known as: UMass Amherst & Massachusetts State College.

Cleaning up with genomics: applying molecular biology to bioremediation

Abstract: Bioremediation has the potential to restore contaminated environments inexpensively yet effectively, but a lack of information about the factors controlling the growth and metabolism of microorganisms in polluted environments often limits its implementation. However, rapid advances in the understanding of bioremediation are on the horizon. Researchers now have the ability to culture microorganisms that are important in bioremediation and can evaluate their physiology using a combination of genome-enabled experimental and modelling techniques. In addition, new environmental genomic techniques offer the possibility for similar studies on as-yet-uncultured organisms. Combining models that can predict the activity of microorganisms that are involved in bioremediation with existing geochemical and hydrological models should transform bioremediation from a largely empirical practice into a science.

Sex Differences in the Brain: The Not So Inconvenient Truth

Abstract: ### Introduction In 2001 the Institute of Medicine, a branch of the National Academy of Sciences in the U.S.A., concluded that many aspects of both normal and pathological brain functioning exhibit important yet poorly understood sex differences ([Wizemann and Pardu, 2001][1]). Ten years later, the

Timing of thyroid hormone action in the developing brain: clinical observations and experimental findings.

Abstract: The original concept of the critical period of thyroid hormone (TH) action on brain development was proposed to identify the postnatal period during which TH supplement must be provided to a child with congenital hypothyroidism to prevent mental retardation. As neuropsychological tools have become more sensitive, it has become apparent that even mild TH insufficiency in humans can produce measurable deficits in very specific neuropsychological functions, and that the specific consequences of TH deficiency depends on the precise developmental timing of the deficiency. Models of maternal hypothyroidism, hypothyroxinaemia and congenital hyperthyroidism have provided these insights. If the TH deficiency occurs early in pregnancy, the offspring display problems in visual attention, visual processing (i.e. acuity and strabismus) and gross motor skills. If it occurs later in pregnancy, children are at additional risk of subnormal visual (i.e. contrast sensitivity) and visuospatial skills, as well as slower response speeds and fine motor deficits. Finally, if TH insufficiency occurs after birth, language and memory skills are most predominantly affected. Although the experimental literature lags behind clinical studies in providing a mechanistic explanation for each of these observations, recent studies confirm that the specific action of TH on brain development depends upon developmental timing, and studies informing us about molecular mechanisms of TH action are generating hypotheses concerning possible mechanisms to account for these pleiotropic actions.

Microwave Synthesis of Nanoporous Materials

Abstract: Studies in the last decade suggest that microwave energy may have a unique ability to influence chemical processes. These include chemical and materials syntheses as well as separations. Specifically, recent studies have documented a significantly reduced time for fabricating zeolites, mixed oxide and mesoporous molecular sieves by employing microwave energy. In many cases, microwave syntheses have proven to synthesize new nanoporous structures. By reducing the times by over an order of magnitude, continuous production would be possible to replace batch synthesis. This lowering of the cost would make more nanoporous materials readily available for many chemical, environmental, and biological applications. Further, microwave syntheses have often proven to create more uniform (defect-free) products than from conventional hydrothermal synthesis. However, the mechanism and engineering for the enhanced rates of syntheses are unknown. We review the many studies that have demonstrated the enhanced syntheses of nanoporous oxides and analyze the proposals to explain differences in microwave reactions. Finally, the microwave reactor engineering is discussed, as it explains the discrepancies between many microwave studies.