Securing the future of research computing in the biosciences.

Improvements in technology often drive scientific discovery. Therefore, research requires sustained investment in the latest equipment and training for the researchers who are going to use it. Prioritising and administering infrastructure investment is challenging because future needs are difficult to predict. In the past, highly computationally demanding research was associated primarily with particle physics and astronomy experiments. However, as biology becomes more quantitative and bioscientists generate more and more data, their computational requirements may ultimately exceed those of physical scientists. Computation has always been central to bioinformatics, but now imaging experiments have rapidly growing data processing and storage requirements. There is also an urgent need for new modelling and simulation tools to provide insight and understanding of these biophysical experiments. Bioscience communities must work together to provide the software and skills training needed in their areas. Research-active institutions need to recognise that computation is now vital in many more areas of discovery and create an environment where it can be embraced. The public must also become aware of both the power and limitations of computing, particularly with respect to their health and personal data.

Reducing Violence in Correctional Institutions: Revalidation of the Inmate Risk Assessment for Violent, Nonsexual Victimization.

Jail and prison administrators are responsible for ensuring institutional safety and order. Recent estimates indicate violence in correctional institutions is pervasive. One promising approach to reduce institutional violence is using a risk assessment to predict the likelihood of victimization. Once corrections officials identify high victimization risk offenders, these authorities can take steps to triage interventions to mitigate such risks. This strategy, however, requires a classification instrument that is available and predictively valid. In 2014, Labrecque, Smith, and Wooldredge created one such tool-the Inmate Risk Assessment for Violent, Nonsexual Victimization (RVNSV). This study reassesses the predictive validity of the RVNSV on a sample of adult inmates in the United States. The results indicate the RVNSV is a valid predictor of inmate victimization, among males and females.

A tetramer-octamer equilibrium in Mycobacterium leprae and Escherichia coli RuvA by analytical ultracentrifugation.

In the context of the bacterial RuvABC system, RuvA protein binds to and is involved in the subsequent processing of a four-way DNA structure called Holliday junction that is formed during homologous recombination. Four crystal structures of RuvA from Escherichia coli (EcoRuvA) showed that it was tetrameric, while neutron scattering and two other crystal structures for RuvA from Mycobacterium leprae (MleRuvA) and EcoRuvA showed that it was an octamer. To clarify this discrepancy, sedimentation equilibrium experiments by analytical ultracentrifugation were carried out and the results showed that MleRuvA existed as a tetramer-octamer equilibrium between 0.2-0.5 mg/ml in 0.1 M NaCl with a dissociation constant of 4 muM, and is octameric at higher concentrations. The same experiments in 0.3 M NaCl showed that MleRuvA is a tetramer up to 3.5 mg/ml, indicating that salt bridges are involved in octamer formation. Sedimentation equilibrium experiments with EcoRuvA showed that it was tetrameric at low concentration in both salt buffers but the protein was insoluble at high-protein concentrations in 0.1 M NaCl. It is concluded that free RuvA exists in an equilibrium between tetrameric and octameric forms in the typical concentration range and buffer found in bacterial cells.

Paroxetine treatment of generalized anxiety disorder: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: This study assessed the efficacy of two fixed doses of paroxetine in the treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. METHOD: Outpatients (N=566) with generalized anxiety disorder and no other axis I disorder were eligible if they scored >/=20 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Anxiety (with a score of 2 or higher on the anxious mood and tension items). Following a 1-week placebo run-in phase, patients were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of treatment with paroxetine, 20 or 40 mg/day, or placebo. The primary outcome measure was the change from baseline in total score on the Hamilton anxiety scale. Response was defined as a rating of "very much improved" or "much improved" on the Clinical Global Impression global improvement measure; remission was defined as a Hamilton anxiety scale score