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To inform a community-based ocean zoning initiative, we conducted an intensive ecological assessment of the marine ecosystems of Barbuda, West Indies. We conducted 116 fish and 108 benthic surveys around the island, and measured the abundance and size structure of lobsters and conch at 52 and 35 sites, respectively. We found that both coral cover and fish biomass were similar to or lower than levels observed across the greater Caribbean; live coral cover and abundance of fishery target species, such as large snappers and groupers, was generally low. However, Barbuda lacks many of the high-relief forereef areas where similar work has been conducted in other Caribbean locations. The distribution of lobsters was patchy, making it difficult to quantify density at the island scale. However, the maximum size of lobsters was generally larger than in other locations in the Caribbean and similar to the maximum size reported 40 years ago. While the lobster population has clearly been heavily exploited, our data suggest that it is not as overexploited as in much of the rest of the Caribbean. Surveys of Barbuda's Codrington Lagoon revealed many juvenile lobsters, but none of legal size (95 mm carapace length), suggesting that the lagoon functions primarily as nursery habitat. Conch abundance and size on Barbuda were similar to that of other Caribbean islands. Our data suggest that many of the regional threats observed on other Caribbean islands are present on Barbuda, but some resources-particularly lobster and conch-may be less overexploited than on other Caribbean islands. Local management has the potential to provide sustainability for at least some of the island's marine resources. We show that a rapid, thorough ecological assessment can reveal clear conservation opportunities and facilitate rapid conservation action by providing the foundation for a community-driven policymaking process at the island scale.

Direct observations were made in June 2009 and 2010 of newly recruited young-of-year (YOY) Sphyraena barracuda (Great Barracuda; 50–80 mm total length) occuring on “live bottom” sub-tropical reefs off the southeast US at depths of 18–25 m. Counts of YOY fish from roving diver surveys along multiple reefs with under-cut ledges ranged from 0–122 individuals, indicating patchy distributions at the scale of individual reefs. Individual fish occured in groups of 2–20+, primarily along the undercut side of ledges, where dense schools of Haemulon aurolineatum (Tomtate), Decapterus punctatus (Round Scad), Decapterus macarellus (Mackeral Scad), Stenotomus chrysops (Scup), and Atherinid sp. (silverside) were concentrated. Groups of YOY Great Barracuda attacked, captured and consumed YOY Tomtate and Silverside that occured in schools in the water column adjacent to (just above the sediment-water interface) and directly above the undercut edge of the reefs. Prey reacted during attacks by reducing nearest neighbor distances and retreating to the reef edge, where they were subsequently attacked by the demersal piscivores Centropristis striata (Black Sea Bass), Centropristis ocyurus (Bank Sea Bass), and Mycteroperca phenax (Scamp Grouper). That groups of YOY piscivores, at sizes close to settlement, can assume such a functional role in regards to driving such species interactions suggests greater attention should be given to the roles played by the wider diversity of YOY piscivores recruiting to reef communities.

Severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) is a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by peripheral neutropenia, an accumulation of promyelocytes in the bone marrow, and a marked predisposition to myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). A subset of cases have been associated with heterozygous germline mutations in the ELA2 gene encoding neutrophil elastase (NE), a neutral serine protease expressed at the promyelocytic stage of granulocytic differentiation. Despite compelling genetic evidence, the biochemical mechanism(s) by which ELA2 mutations contribute to the pathogenesis of SCN remain unclear. In light of the functional heterogeneity of NE mutant proteins, we hypothesized that these mutations cause the production of misfolded NE, the induction of the unfolded protein response (UPR), and the subsequent apoptosis of granulocytic precursors. To test this hypothesis, two complementary approaches were employed. First, targeted transgenic (\"knock-in\") mice carrying mutations in the murine Ela2 gene were generated to study the effects of mutant Ela2 expression in vivo. Second, a transient transfection assay was employed in human myeloid cell lines and primary promyelocytic cells to study the immediate effects of high level human ELA2 gene expression in human myeloid cells. The expression of murine V72M NE in murine myeloid cells did not impair granulopoiesis in vivo or in vitro. However, transient high-level expression of mutant human ELA2 in both human myeloid cell lines and primary cells robustly induced the UPR and significantly decreased cell viability. Collectively, these data provide compelling evidence for a role of the unfolded protein response in the pathogenesis of SCN.

The unimolecular heterolysis of covalent σ-bonds is integral to many chemical transformations, including S N 1-, E1- and 1,2-migration reactions. To a first approximation, the unequal redistribution of electron density during bond heterolysis is governed by the difference in polarity of the two departing bonding partners 1 – 3 . This means that if a σ-bond consists of two identical groups (that is, symmetric σ-bonds), its unimolecular fission from the S 0 , S 1 , or T 1 states only occurs homolytically after thermal or photochemical activation 1 – 7 . To force symmetric σ-bonds into heterolytic manifolds, co-activation by bimolecular noncovalent interactions is necessary 4 . These tactics are only applicable to σ-bond constituents susceptible to such polarizing effects, and often suffer from inefficient chemoselectivity in polyfunctional molecules. Here we report the net heterolysis of symmetric and homopolar σ-bonds (that is, those with similar electronegativity and equal leaving group ability 3 ) by means of stimulated doublet–doublet electron transfer (SDET). As exemplified by Se–Se and C–Se σ-bonds, symmetric and homopolar bonds initially undergo thermal homolysis, followed by photochemically SDET, eventually leading to net heterolysis. Two key factors make this process feasible and synthetically valuable: (1) photoexcitation probably occurs in only one of the incipient radical pair members, thus leading to coincidental symmetry breaking 8 and consequently net heterolysis even of symmetric σ-bonds. (2) If non-identical radicals are formed, each radical may be excited at different wavelengths, thus rendering the net heterolysis highly chemospecific and orthogonal to conventional heterolyses. This feature is demonstrated in a series of atypical S N 1 reactions, in which selenides show SDET-induced nucleofugalities 3 rivalling those of more electronegative halides or diazoniums. Net heterolysis of symmetric and homopolar σ-bonds by stimulated doublet–doublet electron transfer is reported in a series of atypical S N 1 reactions, in which selenides show SDET-induced nucleofugalities rivalling those of more electronegative halides or diazoniums.

Three hundred and fifty years ago, Roger Williams launched one of the world's first great experiments in religious toleration. Insisting that religion be separated from civil power, he founded Rhode Island, a colony that welcomed people of many faiths. Though stark forms of intolerance persisted, Williams' commitments to faith and liberty of conscience came to define the nation and its conception of itself. Through crisp essays that show how Americans demolished old prejudices while inventing new ones, The Lively Experiment offers a comprehensive account of America's boisterous history of interreligious relations.

Humans have been uttering profane words and incurring the consequences for millennia. But contemporary events—from the violence in 2006 that followed Danish newspaper cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed to the 2012 furor over the Innocence of Muslims video—indicate that controversy concerning blasphemy has reemerged in explosive transnational form. In an age when electronic media transmit offense as rapidly as profane images and texts can be produced, blasphemy is bracingly relevant again. In this volume, a distinguished cast of international scholars examines the profound difficulties blasphemy raises for modern societies. Contributors examine how the sacred is formed and maintained, how sacrilegious expression is conceived and regulated, and how the resulting conflicts resist easy adjudication. Their studies range across art, history, politics, law, literature, and theology. Because of the global nature of the problem, the volume's approach is comparative, examining blasphemy across cultural and geopolitical boundaries.

This study was undertaken to compare the efficacy and safety of tacrolimus (Tac) with the microemulsion formulation of cyclosporin (CyA) in children undergoing renal transplantation. A 6-month, randomized, prospective, open, parallel group study with an open extension phase was conducted in 18 centers from nine European countries. In total, 196 pediatric patients (<18 years) were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive either Tac ( n=103) or CyA microemulsion ( n=93) administered concomitantly with azathioprine and corticosteroids. The primary endpoint was incidence and time to first acute rejection. Baseline characteristics were comparable between treatment groups. Tac therapy resulted in a significantly lower incidence of acute rejection (36.9%) compared with CyA therapy (59.1%) ( P=0.003). The incidence of corticosteroid-resistant rejection was also significantly lower in the Tac group compared with the CyA group (7.8% vs. 25.8%, P=0.001). The differences were also significant for biopsy-confirmed acute rejection (16.5% vs. 39.8%, P<0.001). At 1 year, patient survival was similar (96.1% vs. 96.6%), while 10 grafts were lost in the Tac group compared with 17 graft losses in the CyA group ( P=0.06). At 1 year, mean glomerular filtration rate (Schwartz estimate) was significantly higher in the Tac group (62+/-20 ml/min per 1.73 m(2), n=84) than in the CyA group (56+/-21 ml/min per 1.73 m(2), n=74, P=0.03). The most frequent adverse events during the first 6 months were hypertension (68.9% vs. 61.3%), hypomagnesemia (34.0% vs. 12.9%, P=0.001), and urinary tract infection (29.1% vs. 33.3%). Statistically significant differences ( P<0.05) were observed for diarrhea (13.6% vs. 3.2%), hypertrichosis (0.0% vs. 7.5%), flu syndrome (0.0% vs. 5.4%), and gum hyperplasia (0.0% vs. 5.4%). In previously non-diabetic children, the incidence of long-term (>30 days) insulin use was 3.0% (Tac) and 2.2% (CyA). Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease was observed in 1 patient in the Tac group and 2 patients in the CyA group. In conclusion, Tac was significantly more effective than CyA microemulsion in preventing acute rejection after renal transplantation in a pediatric population. The overall safety profiles of the two regimens were comparable.

A minor legal revolution occurred in 2008. That year, the United Kingdom decriminalized blasphemy as a common-law offence.¹ Though little debate preceded the move, which passed as a minor amendment to a broader bill for combating crime and disorder, this was no exercise in symbolism. Just a few years earlier, a parliamentary committee had affirmed blasphemy as an offense of “strict liability,” meaning that the intent of the accused was not relevant for prosecution.² An English newspaper editor was successfully prosecuted under this standard near the end of the 1970s, and in 1996 the British government surprised a filmmaker by