BackgroundPolyadenylation of RNA has a decisive influence on RNA stability. Depending on the organisms or subcellular compartment, it either enhances transcript stability or targets...Full Text Available
BackgroundA wide range of techniques is now available for analyzing regulatory networks. Nonetheless, most of these techniques fail to interpret large-scale transcriptional data...Full Text Available
In this work, we query the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii copper regulon at a whole-genome level. Our RNA-Seq data simulation and analysis pipeline validated a 2-fold cutoff and 10 RPKM (reads per kilobase of mappable length per million mapped reads) (~1 mRNA per cell) to reveal 63 CRR1 targets plus another 86 copper-responsive genes. Proteomic and immunoblot analyses captured 25% of the corresponding proteins, whose abundance was also dependent on copper nutrition, validating transcriptional regulation as a major control mechanism for copper signaling in Chlamydomonas. The impact of copper deficiency on the expression of several O2-dependent enzymes included steps in lipid modification pathways. Quantitative lipid profiles indicated increased polyunsaturation of fatty acids on thylakoid membrane digalactosyldiglycerides, indicating a global impact of copper deficiency on the photosynthetic apparatus. Discovery of a putative plastid copper chaperone ...
p53 plays a critical role in tumor suppression. As a transcription factor, in response to stress signals, p53 regulates its target genes and initiates stress responses, including cell cycle arrest,...Full Text Available
The sequence-dependent structural variability and conformational dynamics of DNA play pivotal roles in many biological milieus, such as in the site-specific binding of transcription factors to target...Full Text Available
We have characterized the kinetic response of gene targets throughout the murine genome to transcriptional modulation by the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). In contrast to a model in which multiple genes...Full Text Available
Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are ligand-activated transcription factors belonging to the nuclear hormone receptor superfamily. Their discovery in the 1990s provided insights...Full Text Available
Drosophila melanogaster has long been at the forefront of studies of transcriptional regulation in animals. Many fundamental ideas--such as cis control elements that act over long distances, the regulation of development by hierarchical cascades of transcription factors, dosage compensation, and position effect variegation--originated from studies of the fruit fly. The recent completion of the euchromatic DNA sequence of Drosophila is another breakthrough. The sequence data highlight important unanswered questions. For example, only one-fifth of the 124 Mb of Drosophila euchromatic DNA codes for protein. The function of the remaining 100 Mb of mostly unique DNA is largely unknown. Some proportion of this non-reading frame DNA must encode the functional recognition sites targeted by the approximately 700 sequence-specific DNA binding proteins that regulate transcription in Drosophila, but what ...
Endoreduplication represents a cell cycle variant during which multiple rounds of DNA replication occur without subsequent chromosome separation and cytokinesis, resulting into a cellular increase of the DNA content. Although the DNA ploidy level of cells is controlled by external stimuli such as light, currently limited knowledge is available on how environmental signals regulate the endoreduplication cycle at the molecular level. Previously, we have demonstrated that the conversion from the mitotic cell cycle into an endoreduplication cycle is mediated by the atypical E2F transcription factor DEL1 that operates as a repressor of endocycle onset. Here, we identified DEL1 as a transcriptionaltarget of the classical E2Fb and E2Fc transcription factors that antagonistically control DEL1 transcript levels through competition for a single E2F cis-acting binding site. Correspondingly ...
The liver is a primary target of growth hormone (GH). GH signals are mediated by the transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 5 (STAT5). Here, we focus on recent discoveries about the role of GH-STAT5 signaling in hepatic physiology and pathophysiology. We discuss roles of the GH-STAT5 axis in body growth, lipid metabolism, and the cell cycle pertaining to hepatosteatosis, fibrosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Finally, we discuss recent discoveries about the role of GH-STAT5 in sex-specific gene expression and bile acid, steroid, and drug metabolism.
Quantitative Real-Time PCR (qRT-PCR) is a widely used tool to study host responses against parasites. A crucial step in the gene quantification process is the normalization of the expression data against stable housekeeping genes (HKGs). However, in recent years, several reports have showed that the transcriptional levels of such HKGs can change dramatically, especially when cellular changes appear in the tissues investigated. The aim of the current study was to assess the variability of 11 putative HKGs in bovine abomasal tissue during an infection with the parasitic nematode Ostertagia ostertagi. Gene transcription levels of selected potential HKGs were measured by qRT-PCR and the expression stabilities evaluated using geNorm, NormFinder, and The Mann-Whitney-U test. The analysis showed ...
A conserved multi-subunit complex (MybMuvB, MMB), regulates transcriptional activity of many different target genes in Drosophila somatic cells. A paralogous complex, tMAC, controls...Full Text Available
The Myc oncoprotein is a potent inducer of cell growth, cell cycle progression, and apoptosis. While many direct Myc target genes have been identified, the molecular determinants of Myc’s transcriptional...Full Text Available
BackgroundEstrogen receptors alpha (ERα) and beta (ERβ) are transcription factors (TFs) that mediate estrogen signaling and define the hormone-responsive phenotype...Full Text Available
Hox genes encode a family of transcriptional regulators that operate differential developmental programs along the anteroposterior axis of bilateral animals. Regulatory changes affecting Hox gene expression are believed to have been crucial for the evolution of animal body plans. In Drosophila melanogaster, Hox expression is post-transcriptionally regulated by microRNAs (miRNAs) acting on target sites located in the 3' untranslated regions (3'UTRs) of Hox mRNAs. Notably, recent work has shown that during D. melanogaster development Hox genes produce mRNAs with variable 3'UTRs (short and long forms) in different sets of tissues as a result of alternative polyadenylation; importantly, Hox short and long 3'UTRs contain very different target sites for miRNAs. Here, we use a computational approach to explore the evolution of Hox 3'UTRs treated with especial regard to miRNA regulation. Our work is focused on ...
Several different approaches exist to generate expressed RNA interference (RNAi) precursors for multiple target inhibition, a strategy referred to as combinatorial (co)RNAi. One such approach makes...Full Text Available
Objective: Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disease, modulated by plaque stabilizing and de-stabilizing cell populations such as infiltrating monocytes and vascular smooth muscle cells (vSMCs). Transcription factors regulating proliferation and differentiation of atherosclerosis relevant cell types are of interest in this context. The forkhead box transcription factor FoxP1 modulates monocyte differentiation. We studied FoxP1 expression in atherosclerotic tissue, correlated FoxP1 expression with plaque characteristics and identified associations between FoxP1 and plaque proteins. Methods: 116 Atherosclerotic plaques from carotid endarterectomy samples were histologically classified (fibrous, fibroatheromatous, atheromatous) and subjected to semi-quantitative protein analysis. Macrophage,...
This paper present the results of a series of calculations made to determine the "2"3"8Pu production potential of several advanced target assembly designs in the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF). These calculations show that by using advanced target designs the intimately mix the "2"3"7Np target material with an yttrium hydride moderator, the FFTF has the potential of producing up to 30 kg of high-quality "2"3"8Pu per year.
The potential of radiolabelled phenylpiperazines as agents for the detection and therapy of tumours of neural crest origin was evaluated by in vitro pharmacological studies with human neuroblastoma...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe metagenomic analysis of microbial communities holds the potential to improve our understanding of the role of microbes in clinical conditions. Recent, dramatic improvements...Full Text Available
Differential host-pathogen interactions direct viral replication in infected cells. In HIV-1 infected cells, nuclear export of viral RNA transcripts into cellular cytoplasm is governed by interaction...Full Text Available
The Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen (EBNA I) present in latently infected cells is encoded in a 2-kilobase exon contained in the BamHI K viral genomic fragment. This exon is, however, found within...Full Text Available
Determine the degree to which different precautionary themes are dominant in various target populations and how these themes are acquired. Assess cultural signals of potential danger: are there different kinds of potential danger in different cultures. Do...
The gastrin releasing peptide (GRP) receptor is becoming an increasingly attractive target for development of new radiolabeled peptides with diagnostic and therapeutic potential. The attractiveness of the GRP receptor as a target is based upon the functional expression of GRP receptors in several tumors of neuroendocrine origin including prostate, breast, and small cell lung cancer. This concise review outlines some of the efforts currently underway to develop new GRP receptor specific radiopharmaceuticals by employing a variety of radiometal chelation systems.
Normal human foreskin keratinocytes cotransfected with the neomycin resistance gene and recombinant human papillomavirus (HPV) DNAs (types 16, 18, 31, and 33) that have a high or moderate association with cervical malignancy acquired immortality and contained integrated and transcriptionally active viral genomes. Only transcripts from the intact E6 and E7 genes were detected in at least one cell line, suggesting that one or both of these genes are responsible for immortalization. Recombinant HPV DNAs with low or no oncogenic potential for cervical cancer (HPV1a, -5, -6b, and -11) induced small G418-resistant colonies that senesced as did the nontransfected cells. These colonies contained only episomal virus DNA; therefore, integration of HPV sequences is important for immortalization of keratinocytes. This study suggests that the virus-encoded immortalization function contributes to the pathogenesis of cervical carcinoma.
Ozone has in recent years been increasingly investigated for its potential use in the control of insect pests of stored cereals. Ozone is a powerful oxidizing agent that can react directly, or via production of reactive oxygen species, with proteins, DNA and double bonds of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). The aim of the present study was to investigate the mode of action in ozone toxicity using the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), as a relevant model. Transcription of focal genes thought to be involved in protection against ozone, and repair of cellular damage caused by ozone exposure, was studied together with the composition of storage lipid fatty acids and membrane phospholipid fatty acids in order to detect lipid peroxidation. Contrary to expectations, transcription ...
Target materials for inertial fusion energy (IFE) power plant designs might be selected for a wide variety of reasons including wall absorption of driver energy, material opacity, cost and ease of fabrication. While each of these issues are of great importance, target materials should also be selected based upon their safety and environmental (S and E) characteristics. The present work focuses on the recycling, waste management and accident dose characteristics of potentialtarget materials. If target materials are recycled so that the quantity is small, isotopic separation may be economically viable. Therefore, calculations have been completed for all stable isotopes for all elements from lithium to polonium. The results of these calculations are used to identify specific isotopes and elements that are most likely to be offensive as well as those most likely to be acceptable in ...
Nop25 is a putative RNA binding nucleolar protein associated with rRNA transcription. The present study was undertaken to determine the mechanism of Nop25 localization in the nucleolus. Deletion experiments of Nop25 amino acid sequence showed Nop25 to contain a nuclear targeting sequence in the N-terminal and a nucleolar targeting sequence in the C-terminal. By expressing derivative peptides from the C-terminal as GFP-fusion proteins in the cells, a lysine and arginine residue-enriched peptide (KRKHPRRAQDSTKKPPSATRTSKTQRRRR) allowed a GFP-fusion protein to be transported and fully retained in the nucleolus. When the peptide was fused with cMyc epitope and expressed in the cells, a cMyc epitope was then detected in the nucleolus. Nop25 did not localize in the nucleolus by deletion of the peptide from Nop25. Furthermore, deletion of a subdomain (KRKHPRRAQ) in the peptide or amino acid substitution of lysine and arginine ...
A modified variable structure interacting multiple model (M-VSIMM) estimator for complex hybrid maneuver target tracking is presented. The M-VSIMM could potentially be applied to fire control systems (FCS) used on warships. Target model groups were designed using 3D dimensional dynamic target models. Optimal model group selection logic was proposed, contrary to the activation and termination logic in the original VSIMM. The system will respond faster with optimal model group selection logic. After performing simulations, the tracking performances of the Kalman, ?-?(-?), VDIE, IMM and M-VSIMM filters were compared under various maneuvering conditions.
Glycyrrhiza glabra root is one of the common traditional Chinese medicines and used as flavoring and sweetening agents for tobaccos, chewing gums, candies, toothpaste and beverages. While glycyrrhizin is one of the main components in the extract of G. glabra root and has been characterized, the other components have not been well characterized. The mechanism of growth activation of breast cancer MCF-7 cells, including the activation of Erk1/2 and Akt, and the transcriptional regulation of estrogen-responsive genes, was examined by means of sulforhodamine B, luciferase reporter gene, real-time RT-PCR and Western blotting assays after the induction of the cells with the extract of G. glabra root. The extract has similar activity to that induced by 17beta-estradiol (E(2)), although glycyrrhizin did not show such an activity. Moreover, the estrogen receptor alpha-dependent neurite outgrowth induced by the extract was similar to that by E(2), whereas glycyrrhizin had no ...
PNNL, with cofunding from the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and Building Technologies Program, conducted a research and development activity targeted at addressing the energy efficiency goals targeted in the BPA roadmap. PNNL investigated an integrated heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system option referred to as the low-lift cooling system that potentially offers an increase in HVAC energy performance relative to ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2004.
BackgroundPersonal health records (PHRs) provide patients with access to personal health information (PHI) and targeted education. The use of PHRs has the potential to improve a...Full Text Available
Breast cancer is a progressive and potentially fatal disease that affects women of all ages. Like all progressive diseases, early and reliable diagnosis is the key for successful treatment and annihilation....Full Text Available
Rapamycin inhibits the mTOR (target of rapamycin) pathway and extends lifespan in multiple species. The tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) protein is a negative regulator of mTOR. In humans, loss of the...Full Text Available
Previous studies in several different trigeminal nerve injury/inflammation models indicated that the hyperexcitability of primary afferent neurons contributes to the pain pathway underlying mechanical...Full Text Available
Treating brain tumors using inhibitors of angiogenesis is extensively researched and tested in clinical trials. Although anti-angiogenic treatment holds a great potential for treating primary and secondary...Full Text Available
BackgroundCD26 (dipeptidyl peptidase IV, DPPIV) is a 110 kDa surface glycoprotein expressed in most normal tissues, and is a potential novel therapeutic target for selected cancers....Full Text Available
BackgroundGene expression profiling and the analysis of protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks may support the identification of disease bio-markers and potential drug targets....Full Text Available
... 154. By way of comparison, the aquatic weed Hygrophila polysperma (Roxb.) T. Anderson, a potentialtarget for biological ... L. Sutton. 2000. Is the aquatic weed hygrophila, Hygrophila polysperma (Polemon...
SummaryBlastomycosis is a serious and potentially fatal infection by the thermally dimorphic fungus Blastomyces dermatitidis. PCR assays targeting the BAD-1 virulence...Full Text Available
A simple beam-forming system is described for the electrostatic accelerator of the Scientific-Research Institute of Nuclear Physics of Moscow State University. The system allows the beam to be focused on targets at various distances for a conductor potential of from 1 to 4 MV and beam currents of up to 35 #mu# A.
Experimentally it is shown that a movable grounded metallic plate placed inside a multi-dipole magnetic cage can vary the diffused plasma parameters such as density, plasma potential and electron temperature. Plasma is solely produced in the source section of a double plasma device by a dc hot filament discharge and a low-density plasma is produced in the target section by local ionization of neutral gas by the high energetic electrons coming from the source section. A grounded movable stainless steel plate is inserted in the target section of the device. The floating potential of the plate also changes depending on the position of the plate inside the magnetic cage.
The GntR-like protein NorG has been shown to affect Staphylococcus aureus genes involved in the resistance to quinolones and ?-lactams, such as those encoding the NorB and AbcA transporters. To identify the target genes regulated by NorG, we carried out transcriptional profiling assays using S. aureus RN6390 and its isogenic norG::cat mutant. Our data showed that NorG positively affected the transcription of global regulators mgrA, arlS, and sarZ. The three putative drug efflux pump genes most positively affected by NorG were the NorB efflux pump (5.1-fold), the MmpL-like protein SACOL2566 (5.2-fold), and the BcrA-like drug transporter SACOL2525 (5.7-fold). The S. aureus predicted MmpL protein showed 53% homology with the MmpL lipid transporter of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and the putative SACOL2525 protein showed 87% homology with the bacitracin drug transporter BcrA of Staphylococcus hominis. Two pump genes most ...
The antimicrobial peptide scygonadin (Scy) was first isolated from the gonad of Scylla serrata and its gene is predominantly expressed in the ejaculatory duct of adult males. Thus, its function was predicted to be associated with reproductive immunity, but this is still unclear and needs further investigation. In our study, the expression pattern of Scy at different developmental stages of both male and female S. paramamosain was investigated, so that the potential function of this peptide could be examined. Using real-time quantitative PCR, Scy mRNA transcripts were demonstrated obviously in the vulnerable embryos and larvae-zoea I but very weakly detected in the larvae-zoea III, megalops and juveniles. The gene expression pattern showed a decreasing trend during the early developmental s...
This paper proposes a new pattern recognition system employing optical joint transform correlation (JTC) technique which offers a great number of advantages over similar digital techniques, including very fast operation, simple architecture and capability of updating the reference image in real time. The proposed JTC technique incorporates a synthetic discriminant function (SDF) of the target image estimated from different training images to make the pattern recognition performance invariant to noise and distortion. It then involves four different phase-shifted versions of the same target SDF reference image, which are individually joint transform correlated with the given input scene. When the correlation signals are combined, it produces a single cross-correlation peak corresponding to each potentialtarget present in the given input scene. The proposed technique also includes a fringe-adjusted filter ...
Cellular hypertrophy is regulated by coordinated pro- and antigrowth machineries. Foxo transcription factors initiate an atrophy-related gene program to counter hypertrophic growth. This study was designed...Full Text Available
Extensive gene expression during meiosis is a hallmark of spermatogenesis. Although it was generally accepted that RNA transcription ceases during meiosis, recent observations suggest that some transcription...Full Text Available
In response to stress, cells start transcriptional and transcription-independent programs that can lead to adaptation or death. Here, we show that multiple inducers of autophagy, including nutrient...Full Text Available
We explored transcriptional responses of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe to various environmental stresses. DNA microarrays were used to characterize changes in expression...Full Text Available
Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a mitogen that is critically involved in vasculogenesis, angiogenesis, and hematopoiesis. However, what and how transcription factors participate in the regulation of vegf gene expression are not fully understood. Here we report the cloning and sequencing of the zebrafish vegf promoter which revealed that the promoter contains a number of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)-activated Smad binding elements (SBE), implicating Smad1 and Smad5 in the regulation of BMP-induced expression of vegf. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays of adding recombinant Smad proteins to the SBE-containing DNA oligonucleotides that represent portions of zebrafish vegf promoter resulted in mobility shift of the oligonucleotides. These changes demonstrate potential interactions between Smad1/5 and the vegf promoter. Reporter activity assays using the wild-type or SBE-deleted vegf promoters to drive the luciferase reporter ...
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are a potential source of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) for constructing tissue-engineered vascular grafts. However, the details of how specific combinations of vascular microenvironmental factors regulate MSCs are not well understood. Previous studies have suggested that both mechanical stimulation with uniaxial cyclic strain and chemical stimulation with transforming growth factor {beta}1 (TGF-{beta}1) can induce smooth muscle markers in MSCs. In this study, we investigated the combined effects of uniaxial cyclic strain and TGF-{beta}1 stimulation on MSCs. By using a proteomic analysis, we found differential regulation of several proteins and genes, such as the up-regulation of TGF-{beta}1-induced protein ig-h3 (BGH3) protein levels by TGF-{beta}1 and up-regulation of calponin 3 protein level by cyclic strain. At the gene expression level, BGH3 was induced by TGF-{beta}1, but calponin 3 was not significantly regulated by mechanical ...
Background: the authors report on the conception and first clinical application of a donut-shaped high-dose configuration for proton therapy (PT). This approach allows one to intensify target volume dose coverage for targets encompassing a critical, dose-limiting structure - like here, the cauda equina -, whilst delivering minimal dose to other healthy structures surrounding the target, thereby reducing the integral dose. Methods and results: intensity-modulated PT methods (IMPT) for spot scanning were applied to create and deliver a donut-shaped high-dose configuration with protons, allowing treating > 75% of the target with at least 95% of the prescribed dose of 72.8 CGE, whilst restricting dose to the cauda equina to 60-65 CGE. Integral dose was lower by a factor of 3.3 as compared to intensity-modulated radiotherapy with photons (IMXT). Conclusion: IMPT and spot scanning technology allow a ...
Background: the authors report on the conception and first clinical application of a donut-shaped high-dose configuration for proton therapy (PT). This approach allows one to intensify target volume dose coverage for targets encompassing a critical, dose-limiting structure - like here, the cauda equina -, whilst delivering minimal dose to other healthy structures surrounding the target, thereby reducing the integral dose. Methods and results: intensity-modulated PT methods (IMPT) for spot scanning were applied to create and deliver a donut-shaped high-dose configuration with protons, allowing treating > 75% of the target with at least 95% of the prescribed dose of 72.8 CGE, whilst restricting dose to the cauda equina to 60-65 CGE. Integral dose was lower by a factor of 3.3 as compared to intensity-modulated radiotherapy with photons (IMXT). Conclusion: IMPT and spot scanning technology allow a ...
In the quest to understand the ultimate nature of WIMPs, we propose the use of a hybrid detection technique: cylinders filled with liquefied noble gasses, acting as targets, are immersed inside a tank of Gd-doped ultra-pure water that provides an active and efficient veto against neutrons. The evaluation of the background rejection capabilities and physics potential of this instrument have been carried out through a full GEANT4 simulation, assuming the detector will be located at the Canfranc underground laboratory (in the Spanish Pyrenees). Our results compare very favourably with existing or planned experiments in the field. This technique is scalable and will allow to reach target masses of few tonnes in the next future.
We report a search for small RNAs (sRNAs) in the low-GC, gram-positive human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae. Based on bioinformatic analyses by Livny et al. (J. Livny, A. Brencic, S. Lory, and M. K. Waldor, Nucleic Acids Res. 34:3484-3493, 2006), we tested 40 candidates by Northern blotting and confirmed the expression of nine new and one previously reported (CcnA) sRNAs in strain D39. CcnA is one of five redundant sRNAs reported by Halfmann et al. (A. Halfmann, M. Kovacs, R. Hakenbeck, and R. Bruckner, Mol. Microbiol. 66:110-126, 2007) that are positively controlled by the CiaR response regulator. We characterized 3 of these 14 sRNAs: Spd-sr17 (144 nucleotides [nt]; decreased in stationary phase), Spd-sr37 (80 nt; strongly expressed in all growth phases), and CcnA (93 nt; induced by competence stimulatory peptide). Spd-sr17 and CcnA likely fold into structures containing single-stranded regions between hairpin structures, whereas Spd-sr37 forms a base-paired structure. Primer ...
Three transcription units are present in the adenovirus type 2 region EII. Transcription units EIIaE and EIIaL encode the mRNA for the 72,000-dalton DNA binding protein, early and late in the lytic...Full Text Available
Two candidate small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) corresponding to severe acute respiratory syndrome-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) spike gene were designed and in vitro transcribed to explore the possibility of silencing SARS-CoV S gene. The plasmid pEGFP-optS, which contains the codon-optimized SARS-CoV S gene and expresses spike-EGFP fusion protein (S-EGFP) as silencing target and expressing reporter, was transfected with siRNAs into HEK 293T cells. At various time points of posttransfection, the levels of S-EGFP expression and amounts of spike mRNA transcript were detected by fluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry, Western blot, and real-time quantitative PCR, respectively. The results showed that the cells transfected with pEGFP-optS expressed S-EGFP fusion protein at a higher level compared with those transfected with pEGFP-S, which contains wildtype SARS-CoV spike gene sequence. The green fluorescence, mean fluorescence intensity, and ...
Receptor interacting protein 140 (RIP140) is a coregulator for numerous nuclear receptors and transcription factors and primarily exerts gene-repressive activities on various target genes. We previously identified a spectrum of posttranslational modifications on RIP140 that augment its property and biological activity. In T(3)-triggered biphasic regulation of cellular retinoic acid binding protein 1 (Crabp1) gene along the course of fibroblast-adipocyte differentiation, we found TRAP220(MED1) critical for T(3)-activated chromatin remodeling whereas RIP140 essential for T(3)-repressive chromatin remodeling of this gene promoter. In this current study, we aim to examine whether and how RIP140 replaces TRAP220(MED1) on the CrabpI promoter in differentiating adipocyte cultures. We find increasing recruitment of RIP140 to this promoter, with corresponding reduction in TRAP220(MED1) recruitment during the T(3)-repressive phase. We also uncover direct ...
The uncoupling protein (UCP) is a proton/anion transporter found in the inner mitochondrial membrane of brown adipocyte. Although UCP has nor been detected in mitochondria from any other tissue, it shares structural and catalytic properties with several other mitochondrial carrier proteins. Although UCP was discovered only recently it is one of the most extensively studied mitochondrial carrier proteins.More recently, the mouse, rat, and human genes encoding for UCP have been isolated and sequenced. The availability of these various tools has led to several significant observations. UCP gene expression is strongly controlled at the level of transcription by signals that are activated after the stimulation of brown adipocytes by norepinephrine. The comparison of UCP gene with the genes encoding the adenine nucleotide translocator revealed the existence of structural and evolutionary homologies. Moreover, in humans the UCP gene and one form of adenine nucleotide ...
RNA interference (RNAi) plays an important role in regulating gene expression in eukaryotes. Previously, we generated Arabidopsis and tobacco plants expressing double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) targeting a cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera) P450 gene, CYP6AE14. Bollworms fed on transgenic dsCYP6AE14 plants showed suppressed CYP6AE14 expression and reduced growth on gossypol-containing diet (Mao et?al., in Nat Biotechnol 25: 1307?1313, 2007). Here we report generation and analysis of dsRNA-expressing cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) plants. Bollworm larvae reared on T2 plants of the ds6-3 line exhibited drastically retarded growth, and the transgenic plants were less damaged by bollworms than the control. Quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) showed that the CYP6AE1...
Regulation of transcription initiation by RNA polymerase II requires TFIID, a multisubunit complex composed of the TATA binding protein (TBP) and at least seven tightly associated factors (TAFs). Some TAFs act as direct targets or coactivators for promoter-specific activators while others serve as interfaces for TAF-TAF interactions. Here, we report the molecular cloning, expression and characterization of Drosophila dTAFII60 and its human homolog, hTAFII70. Recombinant TAFII60/70 binds weakly to TBP and tightly to the largest subunit of TFIID, TAFII250. In the presence of TAFII60/70, TBP and TAFII250, a stable ternary complex is formed. Both the human and Drosophila proteins directly interact with another TFIID subunit, dTAFII40. Our findings reveal that Drosophila TAFII60 and human TAFII70 share a high degree of structural similarity and that their interactions with other subunits of TFIID are conserved.Images
The publication presents an outline of the subject of energy management and attempts to test the hypotheses that targeted knowledge management may result in new developments and potentials, and if these are at all desirable. On this basis, a knowledge management system will be developed that may effectively promote developments and potentials in the field of energy management. The tools and fundamentals of energy management are looked into, and the given situation and desired goals are identified by means of an enquiry. This is a scientific study that aims at providing empirical information on the situation and views on the subject of energy management. The analysis, which is supported by an enquiry sheet, is to provide a basis for testing the assumed hypothesis. Further, the potential acceptance and utilization potential of decisive knowledge management in the facility and real ...
The steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1, also known as NR5A1) is a transcription factor belonging to the nuclear receptor superfamily. Whereas most of the members of this family have been extensively characterized, the therapeutic potential and pharmacology of SF-1 still remains elusive. Described here is the identification and characterization of selective inhibitory chemical probes of SF-1 by a rational ultra-high-throughput screening (uHTS) strategy. A set of 64,908 compounds from the National Institute of Health's Molecular Libraries Small Molecule Repository was screened in a transactivation cell-based assay employing a chimeric SF-1 construct. Two analogous isoquinolinones, ethyl 2-[2-[2-(2,3-dihydro-1,4-benzodioxin-7-ylamino)-2-oxoethyl]-1-oxoisoquinolin-5-yl]oxypropanoate (SID7969543) and ethyl 2-[2-[2-(1,3-benzodioxol-5-ylmethylamino)-2-oxoethyl]-1-oxoisoquinolin-5-yl]oxypropanoate and (SID7970631), were identified as potent submicromolar ...
A new method is being developed to quickly screen for the human exposure potential to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and organochlorines (OCs). The development involves two key elements: identifying suitable signals that represent intracellular changes that are specific to PAH and OC exposure, and constructing a device to guide the biological cell growth so that signals from individual cells are consistent and reproducible. We are completing the identification of suitable signals by using synchrotron radiation-based (SR) Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectromicroscopy in the mid-infrared region (4000-400 cm-1). Distinct changes have been observed in the IR spectra after treatment of human cells in culture medium with PAHs and OCs. The potential use of this method for detecting exposure to PAHs and OCs has been tested and compared to a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay that ...
Experimental and evaluated integral parameters derived from nuclear plus interference differential elastic scattering cross sections are presented for all projectile/target combinations of the particles p, d, t, /sup 3/He, and ..cap alpha... The data include reaction rates, average fractional energy losses per collision and per unit path length, and average laboratory scattering cosines. The resulting parameters are of potential use in analysis of charged-particle transport.
Occupational and environmental exposure to organic ligands, solvents, fuel hydrocarbons, and polychlorinated biphenyls are linked with increased risk of hematologic malignancies. DOE facilities and waste sites in the U.S. are contaminated with mixtures of potentially hazardous chemicals such as metals, organic ligands, solvents, fuel hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and radioactive isotopes. A major goal of this project was to establish linkage between chemical/radiation exposure and induction of genomic damage in target populations with the capability to undergo transformation.
The study was conducted to determine potentialtarget organ toxicity and its reversibility in hamsters following twice daily oral doses of NSC-D629243 for 28 consecutive days. Male and female hamsters were administered NSC-D629243 dissolved in sesame oil ...
Positron emission tomography (PET) is the gold standard for non-invasive assessment of myocardial viability and allows accurate detection of coronary artery disease by assessment of myocardial perfusion. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides high resolution anatomical images that allow accurate evaluation of ventricular structure and function together with detection of myocardial infarction. Potential hybrid PET/MR tomography may potentially facilitate the combination of information from these imaging modalities in cardiology. Furthermore, the combination of anatomical MRI images with the high sensitivity of PET for detecting molecular targets may extent the application of these modalities to the characterization of atherosclerotic plaques and to the evaluation of angiogenetic or stem cell therapies, for example. This article reviews studies using MRI and PET in parallel to compare their performance in cardiac ...
The elastic and inelastic scattering of "1"4C at 51 MeV from targets of "4"0Ca, "5"6Fe, "6"0Ni, "6"6Zn and "8"8Sr has been measured using a Q3D spectrometer. The "1"4C-nucleus potentials have been derived by optical-model analysis of the observed elastic scattering; the inelastic scattering differential cross sections were interpreted in the distorted-wave Born approximation and also in the coupled-channels approach. The analysis yields "1"4C-nucleus potentials that closely resemble "1"2sup(,)"1"3C and "1"6O potentials. (orig.).
9-cis-UAB30 is a potential chemopreventative agent that has been shown to be effective on many different types of tumors. The safety and toxicity of 9-cis-UAB30 had not been previously established. These studies were conducted to evaluate the potential toxicity and pharmacokinetics in a rodent and a nonrodent species for the purpose of investigational new drug submission. Oral gavage administration of 9-cis-UAB30 at the doses 0, 3, 15, and 100 ?mg/kg/day to CD? rats for 28 days showed a dose-dependent (although not dose-proportional) increase in plasma drug levels in week 4. The liver was the target organ for toxicity of 9-cis-UAB30. Hepatomegaly along with increases in serum aspartate-aminotransferase and alkaline-phosphatase levels were seen in rats. Moderate hypoalbuminemia and hyperglo...
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Human K2P3.1 (TASK1) channels represent potentialtargets for pharmacological management of atrial fibrillation. K2P channels control excitability by stabilizing membrane potential and by expediting repolarization. In the heart, inhibition of K2P currents by class III antiarrhythmic drugs results in action potential prolongation and suppression of electrical automaticity. Carvedilol exerts antiarrhythmic activity and suppresses atrial fibrillation following cardiac surgery or cardioversion. The objective of this study was to investigate acute effects of carvedilol on human K2P3.1 (hK2P3.1) channels. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Two-electrode voltage clamp and whole-cell patch clamp electrophysiology was used to record hK2P3.1 currents from Xenopus oocytes, Chinese hamster o...
Expression of Bacterial luciferase enzyme (lux) in mammalian cells would be a powerful bioreporter protein system for in vivo imaging because eukaryotic luciferases need expensive substrates. However, only a few efforts have been made to express bacterial luciferase enzyme in mammalian cells. As the result of this, we attempted to construct bicistronic vector including two bacterial luciferase genes (LuxA and LuxB) for assessing the potential to be visualized in vitro or in vivo by optical imaging system after transfection to mammalian cells. We designed and synthesized luxA and luxB genes from Photorhabdus Luminescens. To co-express both luxA and luxB genes from a single promoter, we cloned as a bicistronic transcript fused with an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES). This bicistronic transcript was transfected by Superfect to HEK 293T cell line. We also transfected lux A and lux B vector to HEK 293T cells separately. To ...
1-Furan-2-yl-3-pyridin-2-yl-propenone (FPP-3) is an anti-inflammatory agent with a propenone moiety and chemically synthesized recently. In this study, we examined the chemopreventive effect of FPP-3 on 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA)-induced genotoxicity in MCF-7 cells. FPP-3 reduced the formation of the DMBA-DNA adduct. DMBA-induced CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 gene expression and enzyme activity were inhibited by FPP-3. It inhibited DMBA-induced aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) transactivation and DMBA-inducible nuclear localization of the AhR. Induction of detoxifying phase II genes by chemopreventive agents represents a coordinated protective response against oxidative stress and neoplastic effects of carcinogens. Transcription factor NF-E2 related factor 2 (Nrf2) regulates antioxidant response element (ARE) of phase II detoxifying and antioxidant enzymes, such as glutathione S-transferase (GST) and NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase (QR). FPP-3 increased the expression ...
Global acetylation of histone H4 is a mark of gene transcriptional activation. The c-Myc transcription factor binds to specific DNA sites in cellular chromatin and induces the acetylation of...Full Text Available
BackgroundIsoproterenol-induced cardiac hypertrophy in mice has been used in a number of studies to model human cardiac disease. In this study, we compared the transcriptional response...Full Text Available
A detailed map of the transcriptional organization of the CELO virus genome was produced. Recent computer analysis of CELO virus has indicated the presence of 38 putative open reading frames (ORFs)....Full Text Available
A regional analysis of nucleotide substitution rates along human genes and their flanking regions allows us to quantify the effect of mutational mechanisms associated with transcription in germ line...Full Text Available
Memory consolidation requires transcription and translation of new protein. Arc, an effector immediate early gene, and zif268, a regulatory transcription factor, have been implicated in synaptic plasticity...Full Text Available
Mutations in SOX9, a gene essential for chondrocyte differentiation cause the human disease campomelic dysplasia (CD). To understand how SOX9 activates transcription, we characterized...Full Text Available
A continuous stream of activating and repressing signals is processed by the transcription complex paused at the promoter of the c-myc proto-oncogene. The general transcription factor...Full Text Available
SUMMARYReplication timing is frequently discussed superficially in terms of its relationship to transcriptional activity via chromatin structure. However, so little is known about...Full Text Available
We have used a cell-free polymerase I transcription system derived from HeLa cells to study the regulation of human rRNA synthesis. Analysis of deletion mutants spanning the start site of transcription at nucleotide +1 indicates that the control region affecting initiation of human rRNA synthesis is contained within sequences from nucleotides -158 to +18. This promoter region can be subdivided into (i) a central segment of approximately 40 base pair that is required for transcription and (ii) flanking sequences that influence the efficiency of transcription in vitro. We have examined the in vitro transcriptional activity of the human extract under various conditions that are thought to modulate rRNA synthesis in vivo. Cell-free extracts prepared from HeLa cells infected with adenovirus 2 synthesize human rRNA at levels greatly decreased relative to uninfected cell extracts. By ...
A structurally conserved element, the trigger loop, has been suggested to play a key role in substrate selection and catalysis of RNA polymerase II (pol II) transcription elongation. Recently resolved...Full Text Available
We recently found that many RNA polymerase II transcription factors are modified with N-acetylglucosamine residues. These sugar moieties confer upon transcription factors an ability to bind the lectin wheat germ agglutinin. We have taken advantage of this interaction to devise a purification procedure for the "GC-box" binding transcription factor Sp1. Crude nuclear extracts are first subjected to wheat germ agglutinin affinity chromatography and then subjected to sequence-specific DNA affinity chromatography. The Sp1 protein purified by this procedure is at least 95% pure, and the overall recovery is greater than 80%. In addition to yielding larger quantities of Sp1 than conventional schemes, the new purification procedure is also simpler and more rapid. We show that wheat germ agglutinin affinity chromatography can also be used to purify the glycosylated forms of the CCAAT-binding transcription factor. ...
The majority of diseases in the retina are caused by genetic mutations affecting the development and function of photoreceptor cells. The transcriptional networks directing these processes are regulated...Full Text Available
The Far UpStream Element (FUSE) regulatory system promotes a peak in the concentration of c-Myc during cell cycle. First, the FBP transcriptional activator binds to the FUSE DNA element upstream...Full Text Available
BackgroundModeling of a complex biological process can explain the results of experimental studies and help predict its characteristics. Among such processes is transcription in...Full Text Available
We describe an Ebolavirus minigenome-based system that is suitable for high-throughput screening of compounds able to impair Ebolavirus virus replication and/or transcription....Full Text Available
SummaryThe general transcription factor TFIID is a large multi-subunit complex required for the transcription of most protein-encoding genes by RNA polymerase II. Taking advantage...Full Text Available
Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by high-throughput sequencing (ChIP-seq) allows researchers to determine the genome-wide binding locations of individual transcription factors (TFs) at high resolution....Full Text Available
Auxin modulates diverse plant developmental pathways through direct transcriptional regulation and cooperative signaling with other plant hormones. Genetic and biochemical approaches have clarified...Full Text Available
The ETS proteins are a family of transcription factors (TFs) that regulate a variety of biological processes. We made genome-wide analyses to explore the classification of the ETS gene family. We identified...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe mammalian FoxO transcription factors function to regulate diverse physiological processes. Emerging evidence that both BDNF and lithium suppress FoxO...Full Text Available
The ternary complex factor (TCF) Elk-1 is a transcription factor that regulates immediate early gene (IEG) expression via the serum response element (SRE) DNA consensus site. Elk-1 is associated with...Full Text Available
The sirtuin Sirt6 is a NAD-dependent histone deacetylase that is implicated in gene regulation and lifespan control. Sirt6 can interact with the stress-responsive transcription factor NF-κB...Full Text Available
In response to oxidative stress, the transcription factor NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) controls the fate of cells through transcriptional upregulation of antioxidant response element (ARE)-bearing...Full Text Available
Generation of replicative defective viruses is frequently observed during viral infections. We now report that encapsidation and reverse transcription of spliced viral RNA is an additional mechanism...Full Text Available
Mechanisms for differential regulation of gene expression may underlie much of the phenotypic variation and adaptability of malaria parasites. Here we describe transcriptional variation among culture-adapted...Full Text Available
As many as 59% of the transcription factors in Escherichia coli regulate the transcription rate of their own genes. This suggests that auto-regulation has one or more important...Full Text Available
The regulation of gene expression in the brain reward regions is known to contribute to the pathogenesis and persistence of drug addiction. Increasing evidence suggests that the regulation of gene transcription...Full Text Available
We have previously shown that a T to G transversion at the second T of the conalbumin "TATA" box drastically decreases specific initiation of transcription by RNA polymerase B (1). We now report that...Full Text Available
In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, a and α mating-type information is stored in transcriptionally silenced cassettes called HML and HMR....Full Text Available
This paper outlines an approach to develop estimates of individual customer contestability using a combined statistical and engineering analysis. The approach is targeted for use for mid-size commercial and industrial customers who are not being considered for individual flexible pricing contracts. Contestability is defined as the potential lost revenue associated with customers leaving the utility or significantly reducing electricity purchases. Contestability is modeled from the customer`s perspective using a two-stage decision process. In the first stage, the customer decides if he will continue to purchase electricity from the utility (referred to as customer retention), and in the second stage, the customer determines the amount of electricity purchased (referred to as load retention). Measures of individual customer contestability will be key factors in developing market segments and new rate offerings in future energy markets.
In this study, the complete sequence of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of Atelura formicaria (Hexapoda: Zygentoma) is described. The molecule is 15.205 bp in length and it is the third complete mt genome sequenced from the Zygentoma. The genome organization conforms with the putative ancestral insect gene arrangement. All protein coding genes use standard initiation codons (methionine and isoleucine). The exception is nad4 that starts with GTG, a codon used for this purpose in other insect species. A peculiar strand skew bias is observed, given that the PCGs encoded on the J-strand contain more thymines than adenines and more cytosines than guanines. This trend in nucleotide composition has been observed also in the "firebrat" Thermobia domestica (Zygentoma, Lepismatidae), but differs from that of the majority of hexapod species, including Tricholepidion gertschi (Zygentoma, Lepidotrichidae), where adenines and cytosines outnumber thymines and guanines. The presence of structural ...
Neuron-restrictive silencer factor (NRSF) binds its consensus element to repress the transcription of various genes. The dominant-negative form (dnNRSF) has a hypertrophic effect on cardiogenesis through an unidentified mechanism. We examined the involvement of transient receptor potential (TRP) channel proteins, using transgenic mice overexpressing dnNRSF (dnNRSF mice). Electrophoretic mobility-shift assays revealed an interaction between NRSF and a neuron-restrictive silencer element-like sequence in intron 4 of TRPC1 genomic DNA. According to RT-PCR and Western analyses, TRPC1 was up-regulated in dnNRSF mouse heart. Transient overexpression of TRPC1 in HEK 293T cells increased the activity of the nuclear factor in activated T cells (NFAT) promoter and stimulated store-operated Ca"2"+ channel (SOCC)-mediated Ca"2"+ entry. Transfection of TRPC1 into primary cardiomyocytes increased NFAT activity, indicating a major role for TRPC1 in NFAT ...
The inducible transcription factor NF-#kappa#B regulates divergent signaling pathways including inflammatory response and cancer development. Selective inhibitors for NF-#kappa#B signaling are potentially useful for treatment of inflammation and cancer. NF-#kappa#B is canonically activated by preferential disposal of its inhibitory protein; I#kappa#B, which suppresses the nuclear translocation of NF-#kappa#B. I#kappa#B#alpha# (a major member of I#kappa#B family proteins) is phosphorylated with an I#kappa#B kinase (IKK) and subsequently polyubiquitylated by SCF"#beta#"T"r"C"P"1 ubiquitin-ligase in the presence of E1 and E2 prior to proteasomal degradation. Here, we describe a novel inhibitor termed GS143, which suppressed I#kappa#B#alpha# ubiquitylation, but not I#kappa#B#alpha# phosphorylation, MDM2-directed p53 ubiquitylation, and proteasome activity in vitro. GS143 markedly suppressed the destruction of I#kappa#B#alpha# stimulated by ...
The production of K{sup +}-mesons in pA(A=D,C,Cu,Ag,Au) collisions has been investigated at the COoler SYnchrotron COSY-Juelich for beam energies T{sub p}=1.0-2.3 GeV. Double differential inclusive pC cross-sections at forward angles {theta}{sub K+}<12 as well as the target mass dependence of the K{sup +} momentum spectra have been measured with the ANKE spectrometer. Far below the free NNthreshold at T{sub NN}=1.58 GeV the spectra reveal a high degree of collectivity in the target nucleus. From the target mass dependence of the cross-sections at higher energies, the repulsive in-medium potential of the K{sup +}-mesons can be deduced. Using pNcross-section parameterisations from the literature and our measured pD data we derive a cross-section ratio {sigma}(pn{yields}K{sup +}X)/{sigma}(pp{yields}K{sup +}X) {proportional_to}(3-4). (orig.)
IMRT with inverse planning allows simultaneous integrated boost strategies that exploit the heterogeneous dose distribution within the planning target volumes (PTVs). In this scenario, the location of cold spots within the target becomes a crucial issue and has to be related to the distribution of the clonogenic cell density (CCD). The main aim of this work is to provide the means to calculate the optimal prescription dose in a relative inhomogeneous dose distribution. To achieve this, the prescription dose has to be assigned to obtain the same tumor control probability (TCP) as the ideal homogeneous distribution, taking into account different CCDs in different PTVs (i.e. visible and subclinical regions). An adapted formulation of the linear-quadratic model, within the F-factor formalism, has been derived to preserve a chosen TCP value for the whole target volume. The F-factor has been investigated to show its ...
Based on the results obtained for C-N and Si-C-N films, a systematic investigation of reactive magnetron sputtering of hard quaternary Si-B-C-N materials has been carried out. The Si-B-C-N films were deposited on p-type Si(100) substrates by dc magnetron co-sputtering using a single C-Si-B target (at a fixed 20% boron fraction in the target erosion area) in nitrogen-argon gas mixtures. Elemental compositions of the films, their surface bonding structure and mechanical properties, together with their oxidation resistance in air, were controlled by the Si fraction (5-75%) in the magnetron target erosion area, the Ar fraction (0-75%) in the gas mixture, the rf induced negative substrate bias voltage (from a floating potential to -500 V) and the substrate temperature (180-350 deg. C). The total pressure and the discharge current on the magnetron target were held constant at 0.5 Pa and 1 ...
Anxiety disorders are a highly prevalent and disabling class of psychiatric disorders. This review focuses on new directions in neurobiological research and implications for the development of novel psychopharmacological treatments. Neuroanatomical and neuroimaging research in anxiety disorders has centered on the role of the amygdala, reciprocal connections between the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, and, most recently, alterations in interoceptive processing by the anterior insula. Anxiety disorders are characterized by alterations in a diverse range of neurochemical systems, suggesting ample novel targets for drug therapies. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) concentrations are elevated in a subset of anxiety disorders, which suggests the potential utility of CRF receptor antagoni...
Dyspnea is the most distressing symptom experienced by those suffering from advanced stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Activity-related dyspnea in COPD is multifactorial but is associated with increased central neural drive, impaired dynamic respiratory mechanics and abnormal respiratory muscle function. Each of these components can potentially be targeted for pharmacotherapy. Recent advances in the pharmacotherapy of COPD include the development of new long-acting bronchodilators which, when combined, provide sustained improvements in dyspnea. Additionally, novel applications of older therapies such as opiates, furosemide, helium-oxygen, and statins show early promise as dyspnea-relieving interventions in COPD. Effective pharmacological manipulation of the affective ...
Gallium liquid-metal ion sources that have been introduced in the late 1970s have allowed the development of a new class of micro- and nanofabrication tools collectively denominated as focused ion beam (FIB) machines. To investigate the potential of a helium beam in such a FIB instrument the authors have tested a room-temperature electron beam ion trap coupled with a high resolution FIB machine. In this letter they present their first results in target imaging using a helium beam with a resolution that allows to account for a beam diameter in the submicrometer range.
ABSTRACT: Metabolomic analysis will provide the next large set of clues to further our understanding of human health and disease. A recent study has elucidated the significant differences in the metabolomes of adipocytes, serum and an adipocyte cell line after activation of two nuclear receptors, peroxisome proliferator activated receptor ?/? (PPAR?/?) and PPAR?. These findings hold great promise for explaining fundamental differences in the mechanisms of PPAR agonists and for identifying targets for the treatment of diabetes.See related research article: http://genomebiology.com/2011/12/8/R75. PMID:21861850
With the exception of Sand Springs in Williamstown, Massachusetts, there are no identifiable hydrothermal geothermal resources in the New England region. The radioactive plutons of the White Mountains of New Hampshire do not, apparently, contain sufficient stored heat to make them a feasible target for an induced hydrothermal system such as exists at Fenton Hill near Los Alamos, New Mexico. The only potential source of low grade heat is the large volume of ground water contained within the unconsolidated sediments related to the Pleistocene glaciation of the region. During the course of the survey an unusual and unexplained thermal anomaly was discovered in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, which is described.
We present results for a complete set of polarization observables for jet production in lepton proton collision, where the final state lepton is not observed. The calculations are carried out in collinear factorization at the level of Born diagrams. For all the observables we also provide numerical estimates for typical kinematics of a potential future Electron Ion Collider. On the basis of this numerical study, the prospects for the transverse single target spin asymmetry are particularly promising. This observable is given by a certain quark-gluon correlation function, which has a direct relation to the transverse momentum dependent Sivers parton distribution.
Most K-12 schools could save 25% of their energy costs by being smart about energy. Nationwide, the savings potential is $6 billion. While improving energy use in buildings and busses, schools are likely to create better places for teaching and learning, with better lighting, temperature control, acoustics, and air quality. This brochure, targeted to school facilities managers and business officials, describes how schools can become more energy efficient.
Cross sections for the elastic and inelastic scattering of /sup 16/O on /sup 58/Ni, /sup 88/Sr, /sup 40/Ca, and /sup 48/Ca have been calculated in a coupled-channels treatment, including the low-lying 2/sup +/ and 3/sup /minus// states of both projectile and target. Real, energy-independent ion-ion potentials and form factors were used, and fusion was simulated by ingoing wave boundary conditions in all channels. The agreement with the measured scattering data is qualitatively as good as obtained in previous optical-model calculations.
Cross sections for the elastic and inelastic scattering of "1"6O on "5"8Ni, "8"8Sr, "4"0Ca, and "4"8Ca have been calculated in a coupled-channels treatment, including the low-lying 2"+ and 3"- states of both projectile and target. Real, energy-independent ion-ion potentials and form factors were used, and fusion was simulated by ingoing wave boundary conditions in all channels. The agreement with the measured scattering data is qualitatively as good as obtained in previous optical-model calculations.
Heyuan mineralization belt is a structure-magmatic activities belt which is charcterized by strong plastic deformation and shearing. The squeeze (overthrust) structure is formed early. Later stretch produced slide shovel-shaped normal fault which control the red basin and uranium mineralization. Comprehensive study shows that this area is of favorable uranium metallogenic condition due to the rich uranium source and higher degree of geology work, it is a target for the new round resources exploration. (authors)
The possibilities, advantages, and difficulties of determining nuclear matter densities by elastic scattering of alpha-particles are generally discussed. On the basis of particular experimental data - 104 MeV alpha-particle scattering from "4"0,"4"2,"4"4,"4"8Ca - a refined folded potential is introduced using a density-dependent alpha-nucleon-interaction and target nucleus densities described by Fourier-Bessel-series. Thereby, the total nucleon densities of these isotopes were determined with little model dependence. The resulting root-mean-square radii and density differences are compared with other experimental results obtained by different methods. (orig.).
A time-reversal-violating spin-correlation coefficient in the total cross section for polarized neutrons incident on a tensor rank-2 polarized target is calculated by assuming a time-reversal-noninvariant, parity-conserving ``five-fold" interaction in the neutron-nucleus optical potential. Results are presented for the system $n + {^{165}{\\rm Ho}}$ for neutron incident energies covering the range 1--20 MeV. From existing experimental bounds, a strength of $2 \\pm 10$ keV is deduced for the real and imaginary parts of the five-fold term, which implies an upper bound of order $10^{-4}$ on the relative $T$-odd strength when compared to the central real optical potential.
There is a need for earlier and more accurate cancer diagnostics as well as new targets for cancer immunotherapy. To this end, it is important to identify sets of tumour antigens specific for different cancer forms. Several methods that identify potential tumour antigens in an arrayed and high-throughput format have been developed during the last years of SEREX (serological identification of antigens by recombinant expression cloning) related research. Such techniques may hold the potential to describe the complete immunogenic part of the cancer proteome, also called the cancer immunoproteome.We have developed a powerful platform for automated serological high-throughput filter screening of tumour cDNA libraries. The screening format of this method is 18,000 single cDNAs clones, which is s...
Histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors have been actively exploited as potential anticancer agents. To identify gene targets of HDAC inhibitors, we found that HDAC inhibitors such as sodium butyrate, scriptaid, apicidin and oxamflatin induced the expression of 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH), a potential cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) antagonist and tumor suppressor, in a time and concentration dependent manner in A549 and H1435 lung adenocarcinoma cells. Detailed analyses indicated that HDAC inhibitors activated the 15-PGDH promoter-luciferase reporter construct in transfected A549 cells. A representative HDAC inhibitor, scriptaid, and its negative structural analog control, nullscript, were further evaluated at the chromatin level. Scriptaid but not nullscript induced a signific...
Abstract Aims: To develop an in vitro flat-bed perfusion biofilm model that could be used to determine the antimicrobial efficacy of topically applied treatments. Methods and Results: Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus biofilms were grown within continuously perfused cellulose matrices. Enumeration of the biofilm density and eluate was performed at various sampling times, enabling determination of the biofilm growth rate. Two antimicrobial wound dressings were applied to the surface of mature biofilms and periodically sampled. To enable real-time imaging of biofilm growth and potential antimicrobial kinetics, a bioluminescent Ps. aeruginosa biofilm was monitored using low-light photometry. Target species produced reproducible steady-state biofilms at a density of c. 107 per b...
Ewing's sarcoma is a small round-cell tumor typically arising in the bones, rarely in soft tissues, of children and adolescents. Ewing's sarcoma has retained the most unfavorable prognosis of all primary musculoskeletal tumors. Prior to the use of multi-drug chemotherapy, long-term survival was less than 10%. The development of multi-disciplinary therapy with chemotherapy, irradiation, and surgery has increased current long-term survival rates in most clinical centers to greater than 50%. In addition, the preferred method of tumor resection has changed; limb salvage has nearly replaced amputation of the affected limb. Limb salvage procedures can be performed in place of amputation without compromising patient survival rates. Recent studies have revealed that the pathognomonic translocations involving the EWS gene on chromosome 22 and an ETS-type gene, which is most commonly the Fli1 gene on chromosome 11, are implicated in more than 95% of Ewing's sarcomas, primitive neuroectodermal ...
The most striking achievement in magnetic fusion experiments during last few years was the discovery of plasma detachment from material targets, a much needed effect for plasmas with high power fusion parameters. Due to the very low heat loads on the targets observed in these regimes and potentially low erosion of the targets, detached regimes look attractive from the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) design point of view. Thus the author has experimental proof for the possibility for a co-existence of fusion relevant hot plasma in the core and a low temperature partly ionized plasma at the edge of magnetic fusion device. Although somewhat similar behavior of edge plasma was considered theoretically even before plasma detachment was found experimentally, it was not clear in the beginning how these theoretical and experimental findings would fit together. Now, after a few years of ...
Herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) entry into target cell is initiated by the ionic interactions between positively charged viral envelop glycoproteins and a negatively charged cell surface heparan sulfate (HS). This first step involves the induction of HS-rich filopodia-like structures on the cell surface that facilitate viral transport during cell entry. Targeting this initial first step in HSV-1 pathogenesis, we generated different zinc oxide (ZnO) micro-nano structures (MNSs) that were capped with multiple nanoscopic spikes mimicking cell induced filopodia. These MNSs were predicted to target the virus to compete for its binding to cellular HS through their partially negatively charged oxygen vacancies on their nanoscopic spikes, to affect viral entry and subsequent spread. Our results demonstrate that the partially negatively charged ZnO-MNSs efficiently trap the virions via a novel virostatic mechanism rendering them ...
Kong-Ming Wu (Corresponding author) The application of recombinant DNA technology has resulted in many insect-resistant varieties by genetic engineering (GE). Crops expressing Cry toxins derived from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) have been planted worldwide, and are an effective tool for pest control. However, one ecological concern regarding the potential effects of insect-resistant GE plants on non-target organisms (NTOs) has been continually debated. In the present study, we briefly summarize the data regarding the development and commercial use of transgenic Bt varieties, elaborate on the procedure and methods for assessing the non-target effects of insect-resistant GE plants, and synthetically analyze the related research results, mostly those published between 2005 and 2010. A mass of laboratory and field studies have shown that the currently available Bt crops have no direct detrimental effects on NTOs due to their ...
This topical report is a compilation of characterizations by different disciplines of the Mississippian Ratcliffe in portions of Richland County, MT. Goals of the report are to increase understanding of the reservoir rocks, oil-in-place, heterogeneity and methods for improved recovery. The report covers investigations of geology, petrography, reservoir engineering and seismic. The Ratcliffe is a low permeability oil reservoir which appears to be developed across much of the study area and occurs across much of the Williston Basin. The reservoir has not been a primary drilling target in the study area because average reserves have been insufficient to payout the cost of drilling and completion despite the application of hydraulic fracture stimulation. Oil trapping does not appear to be structurally controlled. For the Ratcliffe to be a viable drilling objective, methods need to be developed for (1) targeting better reservoir development and (2) ...
Concerning heat transfer augmentation of an axisymmetric impinging jet using a perforated plate set, the bore of the hole in the plate for local and averge heat transfer rate, pitch, and effect of the distance between perforated plate and target plate were examined. Heat transfer augmentation was examined under the condition of 0.063 /ge/d/D /ge/0.200, 1.25 /ge/p/d /ge/4.00, Re is approximately equal to 18000, (where d is the bore of the hole in the plate, D is the axisymmetric nozzle outlet bore, p is the pitch of the perforated plate, and Re is the jet Reynolds number). The findings are as follows; The velocity of the small jet after passing the perforated plate is reduced, and resistance to disturbance is remarkably large. The small jet which is not at the center hole extends to the outside of the plate. The heat transfer rate at a stagnation point is high when the target plate is placed in the jet potential core area ...
Recycling of the spent rinse water discharged from the wet benches commonly used in semiconductor processing is one tactic for responding to the targets for water usage published in the 1997 National Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (NTRS). Not only does the NTRS list a target that dramatically reduces total water usage/unit area of silicon manufactured by the industry in the future but for the years 2003 and beyond, the NTRS actually touts goals which would have semiconductor manufacturers drawing less water from a regional water supply per unit area of silicon manufactured than the quantity of ultrapure water (UPW) used in the production of that same silicon. Achieving this latter NTRS target strongly implies more widespread recycling of spent rinse waters at semiconductor manufacturing sites. In spite of the fact that, by most metrics, spent rinse waters are of much higher purity than incoming municipal waters, ...
Combination agents comprising two different pharmacophores with the same biological target have the potential to show additive or synergistic activity. Bis(thiosemicarbazonato)copper(II) complexes (e.g. 64Cu-ATSM) and nitroimidazoles (e.g. 18F-MISO) are classes of tracer used for the delineation of tumor hypoxia by positron emission tomography (PET). Three nitroimidazole-bis(thiosemicarbazonato)copper(II) conjugates were produced in order to investigate their potential as combination hypoxia imaging agents. Two were derived from the known bifunctional bis(thiosemicarbazone) H2ATSM/A and the third from the new precursor diacetyl-2-(4-N-methyl-3-thiosemicarbazone)-3-(4-N-ethylamino-3-thiosem icarbazone) - H2ATSM/en. Oxygen-dependent uptake studies were performed using the 64Cu radiolabelled ...
We report the identification and characterization of a new Drosophila clock-regulated gene, takeout (to). to is a member of a novel...Full Text Available
The biophysical properties of membrane phospholipids are controlled by the composition of their constituent fatty acids and are tightly regulated in Escherichia...Full Text Available
Gene expression is a fundamentally stochastic process, with randomness in transcription and translation leading to significant cell-to-cell variations in mRNA and protein levels. This variation...Full Text Available
The glass gene is required for proper photo-receptor differentiation during development of the Drosophila eye glass codes for a DNA-binding protein containing five zinc fingers that we show is a transcriptional activator. A comparison of the sequences of the glass genes from two species of Drosophila and a detailed functional domain analysis of the Drosophila melanogaster glass gene reveal that both the DNA-binding domain and the transcriptional-activation domain are highly conserved between the two species. Analysis of the DNA-binding domain of glass indicates that the three carboxyl-terminal zinc fingers alone are necessary and sufficient for DNA binding. We also show that a deletion mutant of glass containing only the DNA-binding domain can behave in a dominant-negative manner both in vivo and in a cell culture assay that measures transcriptional activation. PMID:7604032
Phosphorylation is one of the most frequent modifications in intracellular signaling and is implicated in many processes ranging from transcriptional control to signal transduction in innate immunity....Full Text Available
Species interactions research and monitoring was initiated in 1989 to investigate ecological interactions among fish in response to proposed supplementation of salmon and steelhead in the upper Yakima River basin. This is the eighth of a series of progress reports that address species interactions research and pre-supplementation monitoring of fishes in the Yakima River basin. Data have been collected prior to supplementation to characterize the ecology and demographics of non-target taxa (NTT) and target taxon, and develop methods to monitor interactions and supplementation success. Major topics of this report are associated with implementing NTT monitoring prescriptions for detecting potential impacts of hatchery supplementation, hatchery fish interactions, and monitoring fish predation indices. This report is organized into four chapters, with a general introduction preceding the first chapter. This annual report ...
Magnetic particles have become very promising materials for drug delivery. However, preparation of magnetite particles with high surface area, biocompatibility, strong magnetic response, and suitable particle size still remains a major challenge. In this report, magnetite nanocrystal clusters with high surface areas were fabricated through a solvothermal process by introducing ammonium acetate as a porogen and trisodium citrate as a surface modification agent. The porosity, which was controlled by the reactant concentration, has been investigated in detail. The surface area of the nanocrystal clusters was as high as 141?m(2) g(-1) . Ibuprofen, as a model drug, was entrapped into the magnetite carriers. The interfacial interaction between the carboxylic groups on the drug molecules and the carboxylate groups on the carriers enhanced the loading efficiency. Low cytotoxicity in MCF-7 cell and in vitro constant drug release behavior combined with the high drug loading efficiency and high ...
We present deep two-dimensional spectra of 22 candidate and confirmed Lyman break galaxies (LBGs) at redshifts 2targets were preferentially selected with spatial extent and/or multiple knot morphologies, and we used slitmasks and individual slits tilted to optimize measurement of any spatially resolved kinematics. The median target magnitude was I_814=25.3, and total exposure times ranged from 10 to 50 ks. We measure redshifts, some new, ranging from z=0.2072 to z=4.056, including two interlopers at z<1, and resulting in a sample of 14 LBGs with a median redshift z=2.424. The morphologies and kinematics of the close pairs and multiple knot sources in our sample are generally inconsistent with galaxy formation scenarios postulating that LBGs occur only at the bottom of the potential wells of massive host halos; rather, they support ...
The SCILS program investigates and demonstrates concepts of operation for dispersed theater forces C3. The dispersal concept would increase the number of potentialtargets for nuclear strike, make these targets smaller, more highly mobile and harder to find, and introduce functional redundancy. The SCILS system is a microcomputer-based approach to preserving and enhancing the effectiveness of C3 operation in a dispersed configuration. In this program, the system was implemented for testing for the 9th Infantry Division in coordination with the Army's Distributed Command and Control System. Technical highlights of the system include a distributed, replicated data base, a video map/graphics-oriented Commander's Decision Display System, a packet switched Multi-Media Network that operates with deployed field communication systems, and a Voice/Data Conferencing System that supports remote coordination/briefing ...
A technique for delivering genes carried by recombinant retroviruses into specific cell types could have numerous applications in oncology, developmental biology, and gene therapy. As a first step toward this remote goal the authors designed a procedure allowing in vitro cell targeting by retroviruses. Biotinylated antibodies against the viral envelope protein on one side, and against specific cell membrane markers on the other side, were bridged by streptavidin and used to link the virus to the host. The method was successfully used to infect human cells with ecotropic murine retroviruses by means of major histocompatibility complex class I and class II antigens and appears easily adaptable to other cell, membrane markers. Moreover, the sequential protocol they design, although allowing infection of human cells, requires less stringent safety constraints than would handling of amphotropic virus stocks.
PURPOSE: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly virulent malignancy with no effective treatment thus requiring innovative and effective targeted therapies. The oncogene Astrocyte elevated gene-1 (AEG-1) plays a seminal role in hepatocarcinogenesis and profoundly downregulates insulin-like growth factor binding protein-7 (IGFBP7). The present study focuses on analyzing potential tumor suppressor functions of IGFBP7 in HCC and the relevance of IGFBP7 downregulation in mediating AEG-1 function.EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: IGFBP7 expression was detected by immunohistochemistry in HCC tissue microarray and real-time PCR and ELISA in human HCC cell lines. Dual Fluorescence in situ hybridization was performed to detect loss of heterozygosity at IGFBP7 locus. Stable IGFBP7-overexpressing clones were established in the background of AEG-1-overexpressing human HCC cells and were analyzed for in vitro proliferation and senescence and in vivo tumorigenesis and ...
All microRNA (miRNA) target—finder algorithms return lists of candidate target genes. How valid is that output in a biological setting? Transcriptome analysis has proven to be a useful approach...Full Text Available
The cell cycle-regulatory transcription factor E2F-1 is regulated by interactions with proteins such as the retinoblastoma gene product and by cell cycle-dependent alterations in E2F-1 mRNA abundance....Full Text Available
Transcription for a hybrid SV40 promoter-beta globin coding sequence recombinant initiates from both early-early (EE) and late-early (LE) SV40 start sites (EES and LES) in the absence of DNA replication....Full Text Available
The products of trithorax group (trxG) genes maintain active transcription of many important developmental regulatory genes, including homeotic genes. Several trxG proteins have been shown to act in...Full Text Available
RNA was synthesized in vitro from a T3 DNA template by T3 RNA polymerase and subsequently separated into seven discrete size classes (molecular weights ranging between 0.21 x 10(6) and 6.2 x 10(6))...Full Text Available
The nucleotide sequence of the 5'-terminal oligonucleotides produced by pancreatic RNase digestion of bacteriophage T3 RNA polymerase (EC 2.7.7.6) transcripts of T3 DNA has been determined. The sequence...Full Text Available
A multiple comparison approach using whole genome transcriptional arrays was used to identify genes and pathways involved in calorie restriction/dietary restriction (DR) life span extension in Drosophila....Full Text Available
Yeast arginyl-tRNA synthetase recognizes the non-modified wild-type transcripts derived from both yeast tRNA(Arg) and tRNA(Asp) with equal efficiency. It discriminates its cognate natural substrate,...Full Text Available
The transcriptional co-activator PGC-1α regulates functional plasticity in adipose tissue by linking sympathetic input to the transcriptional program of adaptive thermogenesis. We report here...Full Text Available
Transcription activation of sulfur metabolism in yeast is dependent on two DNA binding factors, the centromere binding factor 1 (Cbf1) and Met4. While the role of Met4 was clearly established by showing...Full Text Available
α1-Fetoprotein transcription factor (FTF), also known as liver receptor homolog 1 (LRH-1) is highly expressed in liver and intestine, where it is implicated in the regulation...Full Text Available
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder of the elderly accounting for the vast majority of dementia. Recently, many studies have implicated the role of inflammatory response, especially neuroinflammatory response in the development and progression of AD. However, the underlying mechanism of how inflammatory response induces AD is unknown. Kynurenine pathway is a major route of the amino acid tryptophan catabolism, resulting in the production of nicotine adenine dinucleotide and other neuroactive intermediates: quinolinic acid (QA) and kynurenic acid (KA). QA exerts different toxic effects, including over-activation of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor and excitotoxicity, synaptic dysfunction and neuronal death. On the other hand, KA is identified as the only...
Ion desorption from a condensed gas solid Ne impacted by singly- and multiply-charged Ar"q"+ ions (q = 1-7) has been investigated. Various secondary ions such as cluster ions, Ne"+_n (n = 2-20) as well as atomic ions are observed. Mass spectral patterns, thickness dependence of the yields, and kinetic energy distributions of the desorbed Ne"+_n (n = 1,2) depend strongly on the projectile charge state. These results indicate that the dissipation of the projectile potential energy on the surface leads to the desorption of the monomer and small cluster ions by a Coulomb repulsion between adjacent target ions.
Abstract Male infertility continues to be a clinical challenge of increasing significance. While male factors such as decreased semen quality are responsible for 25% of all infertility issues, the etiology of suboptimal semen quality is poorly understood. Many physiological, environmental, and genetic factors have been implicated, including oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS), or free radicals, and although ROS are required for critical aspects of sperm function, excessive levels of ROS can negatively impact sperm quality. The origin of ROS generation, and the etiologies of increased ROS in men with suboptimal sperm quality have only recently been elucidated, offering multiple targets for potential therapy. Here, we present a critical review of th...
Heavy Ion Collisions at RHIC and LHC energies are potentially an interesting laboratory for the study of QED. In these collisions, a Heavy Ion in one beam sees a highly Lorentz contracted electric field due to an oncoming beam particle. The Electric field reaches a maximum value of E {approx_equal} {gamma}{sub eff} {center_dot} Z {center_dot} e/b{sup 2}, where the apparent Lorentz factor, {gamma}{sub eff} = 2 {center_dot} {gamma}{sub beam}{sup 2} - 1. The collision may be viewed in terms of a flux of photons colliding with a stationary ion target using the equivalent photon approximation, originally introduced by Fermi in 1924. We show that the cross section for Inelastic Electromagnetic Interactions of Heavy Ions are both calculable and have been measured in the first RHIC running period.
Fe-Cr amorphous films have been formed by both in situ evaporation of multilayered films and ion beam mixing in a target chamber of a 200 keV implanter. The effects of Cr content and ion irradiation on the amorphization of films were examined by transmission electron microscope (TEM). Corrosion of film was investigated by means of a potential dynamic polarization. Corrosion resistance of amorphous film in 0.5 mol H-2SO-4 solution is considerably increased than that of pure iron. Using X ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) corrosion resistance in atmosphere of amorphous Fe-Cr passive films formed by P"+ mixing was studied. Results show that the richness of Cr and P exist at the surface of Fe-Cr film.
This study examined whether elevated intravascular pressure stimulates asynchronous Ca2+ waves in cerebral arterial smooth muscle cells and if their generation contributes to myogenic tone development. The endothelium was removed from rat cerebral arteries, which were then mounted in an arteriograph, pressurized (20 100 mmHg) and examined under a variety of experimental conditions. Diameter and membrane potential (VM) were monitored using conventional techniques; Ca2+ wave generation and myosin light chain (MLC20)/MYPT1 (myosin phosphatase targeting subunit) phosphorylation were assessed by confocal microscopy and Western blot analysis, respectively. Elevating intravascular pressure increased the proportion of smooth muscle cells firing asynchronous Ca2+ waves as well as event frequency. C...
DNA methylation is considered as a potential cause of aberrations in regulation of gene expression during carcinogenesis. Therefore, changes in DNA methylation patterns may be targets for chemoprevention. In the present study, we investigated effects of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), vitamin D3, and resveratrol alone and in combination with adenosine analogues: 2-chloro-2'-deoxyadenosine (2CdA) and 9-beta-d-arabinosyl-2-fluoroadenine (F-ara-A), on methylation and expression of retinoic acid receptor beta 2 (RARbeta2) in MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cell lines. Alterations in methylation and expression levels after treatment of cells with the tested compounds were evaluated by methylation-sensitive restriction analysis (MSRA) and real-time PCR, respectively. RARbeta2 promoter in the ...
Adipose tissue plays an essential role in energy homeostasis as a metabolic and endocrine organ. Accordingly, adipocytes are emerging as a major drug target for obesity and obesity-mediated metabolic syndrome. Dysfunction of enlarged adipocytes in obesity is involved in obesity-mediated metabolic syndrome. Adipocytokines, such as adiponectin released from small adipocytes, are able to prevent these disorders. In this study, we found that honokiol, an ingredient of Magnolia officinalis used in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicines, enhanced adipocyte differentiation in 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Oil Red O staining showed that treatment with honokiol in the presence of insulin dose-dependently increased lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 preadipoyctes although its activity was weak compared with r...
Smoking during pregnancy is widely known to increase health risks to the foetus, and understanding the quitting process during pregnancy is essential in order to realise national government targets. Qualitative studies have been used in order to gain a greater understanding of the quitting process and the objective of this systematic review was to examine and evaluate qualitative studies that have investigated the psychological and social factors around women attempting to quit smoking during pregnancy. Electronic databases and journals were searched with seven articles included in this review. The findings demonstrated that women were aware of the health risks to the foetus associated with smoking; however knowledge of potential health risks was not sufficient to motivate them to quit. Se...
Summation Copper-64 (T1/2?=?12.7 hours; ?+, 0.653?MeV [17.8 %]; ??, 0.579?MeV [38.4 %]) has decay characteristics that allow for positron emission tomography (PET) imaging and targeted radiotherapy of cancer. The well-established coordination chemistry of copper allows for its reaction with a wide variety of chelator systems that can potentially be linked to peptides and other biologically relevant small molecules, antibodies, proteins, and nanoparticles. The 12.7-hours half-life of 64Cu provides the flexibility to image both smaller molecules and larger, slower clearing proteins and nanoparticles. In a practical sense, the radionuclide or the 64Cu-radiopharmaceuticals can be easily shipped for PET imaging studies at sites remote to the production facility. Due to the versatility of 64Cu, ...
Abstract. Malaria vector control targeting the larval stages of mosquitoes was applied successfully against many species of Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) in malarious countries until the mid-20th Century. Since the introduction of DDT in the 1940s and the associated development of indoor residual spraying (IRS), which usually has a more powerful impact than larval control on vectorial capacity, the focus of malaria prevention programmes has shifted to the control of adult vectors. In the Afrotropical Region, where malaria is transmitted mainly by Anopheles funestus Giles and members of the Anopheles gambiae Giles complex, gaps in information on larval ecology and the ability of An. gambiae sensu lato to exploit a wide variety of larval habitats have discouraged efforts to develop and impl...
The talk will focus on spin-dependent competition between oblate and prolate shape minima in the potential energy landscape of "1"8"0Hf (the most neutron-rich stable isotope), mediated via the alignment of valence nucleons. Results of a prompt spectroscopic study, using deep inelastic reactions with Gammasphere and CHICO, bombarding a thin "2"3"2Th target with a "1"8"0Hf beam #approx#25% above the Coulomb barrier, will be presented. Nucleon alignments in both prolate and oblate minima will be discussed, as well as the favoring of oblate collective rotation at high spins, observed through a mixing with gamma vibrations built on the prolate shape.
IntroductionBreast cancer is the most diagnosed and second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. female population. An estimated 5 to 10 percent of all breast cancers are inherited, caused by mutations in the breast cancer susceptibility genes (BRCA1/2). As many as 90% of all mutations are nonsense mutations, causing a truncated polypeptide product. A popular and low cost method of mutation detection has been the protein truncation test (PTT), where target regions of BRCA1/2 are PCR amplified, transcribed/translated in a cell-free protein synthesis system and analyzed for truncated polypeptides by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and autoradiography. We previously reported a novel High Throughput Solid-Phase PTT (HTS-PTT) based on an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) format that eliminates the need for radioactivity, SDS-PAGE and subjective interpretation of the results. Here, we report the next generation HTS-PTT ...
In neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's and prion disease it has been shown that host genetic background can have a significant effect on susceptibility. Indeed, human genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have implicated several candidate genes. Understanding such genetic susceptibility is relevant to risks of developing variant CJD (vCJD) in populations exposed to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and understanding mechanisms of neurodegeneration. In mice, aspects of prion disease susceptibility can be modelled by examining the incubation period following experimental inoculation. Quantitative trait linkage studies have already identified multiple candidate genes; however, it is also possible to take an individual candidate gene approach. Rarb and Stmn2 were selected as candidates based on the known association with vCJD. Because of the increasing overlap described between prion and Alzheimer's diseases we also chose Clu, Picalm and Cr1, which were identified as ...
Antisense- or RNAi-mediated suppression of the biosynthesis of nutritionally inferior storage proteins is a promising strategy for improving the amino acid profile of seeds. However, the potential pleiotropic effects of this on interconnected pathways and the agronomic quality traits need to be addressed. In the current study, a transcriptomic analysis of an antisense C-hordein line of barley was performed, using a grain-specific cDNA array. The C-hordein antisense line is characterized by marked changes in storage protein and amino acid profiles, while the seed weight is within the normal range and no external morphological irregularities were observed. The results of the transcriptome analysis showed excellent correlation with data on changes in the relative proportions of storage proteins and amino acid composition. The antisense line had a lower C-hordein level and down-regulated transcript encoding C-hordein. The production of the S-rich ...
Antisense- or RNAi-mediated suppression of the biosynthesis of nutritionally inferior storage proteins is a promising strategy for improving the amino acid profile of seeds. However, the potential pleiotropic effects of this on interconnected pathways and the agronomic quality traits need to be addressed. In the current study, a transcriptomic analysis of an antisense C-hordein line of barley was performed, using a grain-specific cDNA array. The C-hordein antisense line is characterized by marked changes in storage protein and amino acid profiles, while the seed weight is within the normal range and no external morphological irregularities were observed. The results of the transcriptome analysis showed excellent correlation with data on changes in the relative proportions of storage proteins and amino acid composition. The antisense line had a lower C-hordein level and down-regulated transcript encoding C-hordein. The production of the S-rich ...
We previously reported the identification of a new family of plant methyltransferases (MTs), named the SABATH family, that use S-adenosyl-l-methionine (SAM) to methylate a carboxyl moiety or a nitrogen-containing functional group on a diverse array of plant compounds. The Arabidopsis genome alone contains 24 distinct SABATH genes. To identify the catalytic specificities of members of this protein family in Arabidopsis, we screened recombinantly expressed and purified enzymes with a large number of potential substrates. Here, we report that the Arabidopsis thaliana gene At3g44860 encodes a protein with high catalytic specificity towards farnesoic acid (FA). Under steady-state conditions, this farnesoic acid carboxyl methyltransferase (FAMT) exhibits K{sub M} values of 41 and 71 {mu}M for FA and SAM, respectively. A three-dimensional model of FAMT constructed based upon similarity to the experimentally determined structure of Clarkia breweri salicylic acid ...
The transcriptional silencing of some cell cycle inhibitors and tumor suppressors, such as p16 and retinoic acid receptor beta(2), by DNA hypermethylation at CpG islands is commonly found in human oral squamous carcinoma cells. We examined the effects of the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine (5-Aza; 0.25 mg/kg body weight), all-trans retinoic acid (RA; given at 100 microg/kg body weight and 1 mg/kg body weight), and the combination of 5-Aza and the low-dose RA on murine oral cavity carcinogenesis induced by the carcinogen 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (4-NQO) in a mouse model. All the drug treatments were done for 15 weeks after a 10-week 4-NQO treatment. Mice in all drug treatment groups showed decreases in the average numbers of neoplastic tongue lesions. The combination of 5-Aza and RA effectively attenuated tongue lesion severity. Although all drug treatments limited the increase in the percentage of proliferating cell nuclear antigen-positive ...
The harnessing and enhanced use of renewable energy today is a matter of lively debate and much concern. Amazingly, hydro power is either rarely considered in these discussions or viewed in a negative light. But hydro power continues to be the most important source of renewable energy, and its use potential is considerable and should be taken into account when, for instance, agreeing on or implementing carbon dioxide reduction targets. Small hydro power stations are an effective means of harnessing existing energy potentials. (orig.) [Deutsch] Ueber die Nutzung und den Ausbau regenerativer Energien wird heutzutage lebhaft diskutiert und gerungen. Es mag erstaunen, dass in diesen Diskussionen die Wasserkraft kaum Beachtung findet oder in einem schlechten Licht gesehen wird. Dabei ist die Wasserkraft nach wie vor bei weitem die wichtigsten Quelle regenerativer Energie, und sie besitzt ein beachtliches Ausbaupotential, das man ...
In June 2009, the State of Hawaii enacted an Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard (EEPS) with a target of 4,300 gigawatt hours (GWh) by 2030 (Hawaii 2009). Upon setting this goal, the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH), and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), working with select local stakeholders, partnered to execute the first key step toward attaining the EEPS goal: the creation of a high-resolution roadmap outlining key areas of potential electricity savings. This roadmap was divided into two core elements: savings from new construction and savings from existing buildings. BAH focused primarily on the existing building analysis, while NREL focused on new construction forecasting. This report presents the results of the Booz Allen Hamilton study on the existing building stock of Hawaii, along with conclusions on the key drivers of potential energy efficiency savings and on the steps ...
This paper reports measurements of absolute differential cross sections for the direct scattering of oxygen atoms by He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, H_2, N_2, O_2, CO, CO_2, H_2O, SO_2, NH_3, CH_4, CF_4, and SF_6 targets. The measured cross sections include contributions from all elastic and inelastic processes that result in a fast neutral oxygen atom product. Cross sections are presented for 0.5- and 1.5-keV projectile energies over the laboratory angular range 0.2 degree endash 5 degree. When compared in the center-of-mass reference frame, these cross sections exhibit a high degree of similarity in both amplitude and angular dependence. The cross sections for N_2, CO, CO_2, and H_2O are inverted using a partial-wave analysis to yield empirical interaction potentials, which can then be used to extrapolate the measurements down to lower energies. Using these potentials, cross sections are evaluated at 0.1 keV. copyright 1996 The ...
The mass deployment of electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (EVs and PHEVs) that rely on low greenhouse gas (GHG) emission electricity generation has great potential to significantly reduce the consumption of petroleum and other high CO2-emitting transportation fuels. The vision of the Electric and Plug-in Hybrid (EV/PHEV) Vehicles Roadmap is to achieve by 2050 the widespread adoption and use of EVs and PHEVs, which together represent more than 50% of annual LDV (light duty vehicle) sales worldwide. In addition to establishing a vision, this roadmap sets strategic goals to achieve it, and identifies the steps that need to be taken to accomplish these goals. This roadmap also outlines the roles and collaboration opportunities for different stakeholders and shows how government policy can support the overall achievement of the vision. The strategic goals for attaining the widespread adoption and use of EVs and PHEVs worldwide by 2050 cover the development of ...
Radioactive ion beams (RIBs) of short-lived isotopes of fluorine are in demand for investigating astrophysical phenomena related to the hot CNO cycle and rp processes responsible for stellar nucleosynthesis. Since negative ion beams are required for injection into tandem electrostatic accelerators, such as the 25 MV tandem accelerator used for post acceleration of RIBs for the Holifield Radioactive Ion Beam Facility (HRIBF) research program at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), efficient, direct-formation F{sup -} ion sources are highly desirable for RIB applications involving this type of post-accelerator. We have conceived and evaluated a direct extraction F{sup -} source for potential RIB applications which is predicated on the reverse polarity operation of a positive electron-beam-plasma target/ion source (EBPTIS) while simultaneously feeding fluorine rich compounds and Cs vapor into the source. The source is found to operate in two ...
Mutations in transcription factors hepatocyte nuclear factors (HNF)-1#alpha# and HNF-1#beta# cause maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) types 3 and 5, respectively. HNF-1#alpha# and HNF-1#beta# mutations are well studied in some tissues, but the mechanism by which HNF-1#alpha# and HNF-1#beta# mutations affect sucrase-isomaltase (SI) transcription in the small intestine is unclear. We studied the effects of 13 HNF-1#alpha# mutants and 2 HNF-1#beta# mutants on human SI gene transcription, which were identified in subjects with MODY3 and MODY5, respectively. Transactivation activity of 11 HNF-1#alpha# and 2 HNF-1#beta# mutants was significantly lower than that of wild (wt)-HNF-1#alpha# and wt-HNF-1#beta#. Furthermore, in co-expression studies with mutant (mu)-HNF-1#alpha#/ wt-HNF-1#beta# and wt-HNF-1#alpha#/mu-HNF-1#beta#, the combination of mu-HNF-1#alpha# (P379fsdelCT and T539fsdelC)/wt-HNF-1#beta# impaired SI ...
Objective: Pretargeting is the concept that combines optimal delivery of the antibody and rapid capture and elimination of the radioactivity. In this study, we evaluated the potential of antibody pretargeting to enable the tumor-targeting {sup 212}Pb for in vivo generation of {sup 212}Bi for {alpha} particle radiotherapy. Methods: The {sup 212}Pb/{sup 212}Bi chelate of DOTA-biotin, as well as their {gamma}-emitting analogues, {sup 203}Pb and {sup 205}Bi, was prepared and characterized. The radiolabeled compounds were injected in animals for evaluation of tumor targeting and normal tissue uptake and retention. In the pretargeting protocol, injection of 400 {mu}g of NR-LU-10 antibody-streptavidin conjugate was given at t=0 h, then 100 {mu}g of N-acetyl-galatosamine-biotin clearing agent was injected at t=20-24 h; finally, 1 {mu}g of {sup 212}Pb/{sup 212}Bi-DOTA-biotin was injected 6 h later. Results: Both {sup 203}Pb and {sup ...
Mimivirus is the prototype of a new family (the Mimiviridae) of nucleocytoplasmic large DNA viruses (NCLDVs), which already include the Poxviridae, Iridoviridae, Phycodnaviridae and Asfarviridae. Mimivirus specifically replicates in cells from the genus Acanthamoeba. Proteomic analysis of purified mimivirus particles revealed the presence of many subunits of the DNA-directed RNA polymerase II complex. A fully functional pre-transcriptional complex appears to be loaded in the virions, allowing mimivirus to initiate transcription within the host cytoplasm immediately upon infection independently of the host nuclear apparatus. To fully understand this process, a systematic study of mimivirus proteins that are predicted (by bioinformatics) or suspected (by proteomic analysis) to be involved in...
Abstract This study reports the effects of varying concentrations of copper sulfate on the metabolic and gene transcriptional profile of a recombinant Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line producing an immunoglobulin G (IgG)-fusion protein (B0). Addition of 50 M copper sulfate significantly decreased lactate accumulation in the cultures while increasing viable cell density and protein titer. These changes could be seen from day 6 and became increasingly evident with culture duration. Reducing the copper sulfate concentration to 5 M retained all the above beneficial effects, but with the added benefit of reduced levels of the aggregated form of the B0 protein. To profile the cellular changes due to copper sulfate addition at the transcriptional level, Affymetrix CHO microarrays were used to...
BackgroundThe pathogenicity of Plasmodium falciparum is in part due to the ability of the parasitized red blood cell (pRBC) to adhere to intra-vascular host cell...Full Text Available
BackgroundHerbivore feeding elicits dramatic increases in defenses, most of which require jasmonate (JA) signaling, and against which specialist herbivores are thought to be better...Full Text Available
The structural phosphoprotein NS of vesicular stomatitis virus, in association with the virion-associated RNA polymerase L protein, transcribes the genome ribonucleoprotein template in vitro. It contains...Full Text Available
Borna disease virus (BDV) uses a unique strategy of replication and transcription which takes place in the nucleus, unlike other known, nonsegmented, negative-stranded RNA viruses of animal origin....Full Text Available
SummaryBrown fat is specialized in energy expenditure, a process that is principally controlled by the transcriptional co-activator PGC-1α. Here we describe a molecular...Full Text Available
Skeletal muscle and adipose tissue development often has a reciprocal relationship in vivo, particularly in myodystrophic states. We have investigated whether determined myoblasts with no inherent adipogenic...Full Text Available
Known vertebrate GATA proteins contain two zinc fingers and are required in development, whereas invertebrates express a class of essential proteins containing one GATA-type zinc finger. We isolated...Full Text Available
The bovine syncytial virus, a member of the retroviral subfamily Spumavirinae, causes a persistent, asymptomatic infection in cattle. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the viral genome revealed two overlapping...Full Text Available
Mitochondria and peroxisomes execute some analogous, nonredundant functions including fatty acid oxidation and detoxification of reactive oxygen species, and, in response to select metabolic cues, undergo...Full Text Available
Earlier we have shown that exogenous expression of HIPPI, a molecular partner of Huntingtin interacting protein HIP-1, induces apoptosis and increases expression of caspases-1, -8 and -10 in HeLa and...Full Text Available
Current genome-wide association studies (GWAS) are moving towards the use of large cohorts of primary cell lines to study a disease of interest and to assign biological relevance to the genetic signals...Full Text Available
Purpose of ReviewThe vertebrate cap’n’collar family transcription factor Nrf2 and its invertebrate homologs SKN-1 (in worms) and CncC (in flies) function...Full Text Available
The mini-chromosome maintenance proteins Mcm2–7 are essential for DNA replication. They are loaded onto replication origins during G1 phase of the cell cycle to form a pre-replication complex...Full Text Available
AbstractThe tick-borne protozoan parasite Theileria annulata causes a debilitating disease of cattle called Tropical Theileriosis. The parasite predominantly invades...Full Text Available
Post-transcriptional nucleoside modifications fine-tune the biophysical and biochemical properties of transfer RNA (tRNA) so that it is optimized for participation in cellular processes. Here we report...Full Text Available
BackgroundChromatin insulators or boundary elements are a class of functional elements in the eukaryotic genome. They regulate gene transcription by interfering with promoter-enhancer...Full Text Available
A series of deletion mutants extending from -250 toward the capsite has been constructed in the early promoter region of the adenovirus 2 EIIa gene and tested both in vitro, and in vivo after transfection...Full Text Available
The specific binding of transcription factors to cognate sequence elements is thought to be critical for the generation of specific gene expression programs. Members of the nuclear factor κB...Full Text Available
BackgroundActivation of the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) within antigen presenting cells (APCs) is linked to abnormal APCs differentiation and function....Full Text Available
BackgroundThe aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that mediates the toxicity and biological activity of dioxins and related chemicals. The...Full Text Available
Dal82p binds to the UISALL sites of allophanate-induced genes of the allantoin-degradative pathway and functions synergistically with the GATA family Gln3p and Gat1p transcriptional...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe common liver fluke Fasciola hepatica is the agent of a zoonosis with significant economic consequences in livestock production worldwide, and increasing...Full Text Available
CBP and its paralog p300 are histone acetyl transferases that regulate gene expression by interacting with multiple transcription factors via specialized domains. The structure...Full Text Available
Efficiency of translation termination relies on the specific recognition of the three stop codons by the eukaryotic translation termination factor eRF1. To date only a few proteins are known to be involved...Full Text Available
Recognition of acetylated chromatin by the bromodomains and extra-terminal domain (BET) family proteins is a hallmark for transcriptional activation and anchoring viral genomes to mitotic chromosomes...Full Text Available
The accepted model of retroviral reverse transcription includes a circular DNA intermediate which requires strand displacement synthesis for linearization and creation of an integration-competent, long...Full Text Available
Constitutive activation of the transcription factor Stat5 in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells leads to various hematopoietic malignancies including myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN). Our recent study...Full Text Available
The Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposon system represents an important alternative to viral integrating vector systems but may, as its viral counterparts, be subject to transcriptional silencing. To investigate...Full Text Available
Although genetically identical for autosomal Chrs (Chr), male and female preimplantation embryos could display sex-specific transcriptional regulation. To illustrate sex-specific differences at the...Full Text Available
Promoters are important regulatory elements that contain the necessary sequence features for cells to initiate transcription. To functionally characterize a large set of human promoters, we measured...Full Text Available
By pretreating simian virus 40-infected BSC-1 cells with glucosamine, [3H]uridine labeling of both cellular and viral RNA can be halted instantaneously by addition of cold uridine. We have...Full Text Available
Methylation of RNA by methyltransferases is a phylogenetically ubiquitous post-transcriptional modification that occurs most extensively in transfer RNA (tRNA) and ribosomal RNA (rRNA). Biochemical...Full Text Available
Adipocyte differentiation is a complex developmental process that involves the coordinated interplay of numerous transcription factors. PPARγ has emerged as a master regulator of adipogenesis...Full Text Available
Nuclear hormone receptors comprise a characteristic family of transcription factors found in vertebrates, insects and nematodes. Here we show by cDNA and gene cloning that a Cnidarian, Tripedalia...Full Text Available
Brown fat is a specialized tissue that can dissipate energy and counteract obesity through a pattern of gene expression that greatly increases mitochondrial content and uncoupled respiration. PRDM16...Full Text Available
In mice and humans the circadian rhythm of many biochemical reactions, physiology, and behavior is generated by a transcriptional-translation feedback loop (TTFL) made up of the so-called core clock...Full Text Available
Polyploidy is an important force in the evolution of flowering plants. Genomic merger and doubling induce an extensive array of genomic effects, including immediate and long-term alterations in the...Full Text Available
BackgroundIdentification of urinary biomarkers for detection of bladder cancer recurrence would be beneficial to minimize the frequency of cystoscopy. Our objective was to determine...Full Text Available
How transcription factors interpret the cis-regulatory logic encoded within enhancers to mediate quantitative changes in spatiotemporally restricted expression patterns during animal...Full Text Available
Osterix (Osx) is a zinc-finger-containing transcription factor that is expressed in osteoblasts of all endochondral and membranous bones. In Osx null ...Full Text Available
Menin, which is encoded by the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) gene, is a tumor suppressor and transcriptional regulator. Menin controls proliferation and apoptosis of cells, especially pancreatic...Full Text Available
BackgroundNKX2-3 is associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). NKX2-3 is expressed in microvascular endothelial cells and the muscularis...Full Text Available
NF-κB, a transcription factor first discovered in 1986, is now known to be closely connected to the process of tumorogenesis based on a multiplicity of evidence. (1)...Full Text Available
BackgroundIncreasing evidence demonstrates that stem cells maintain their identities by a unique transcription network and chromatin structure. Opposing epigenetic modifications...Full Text Available
BackgroundNeuropeptide Y is a key neurotransmitter of the central nervous system which plays a vital role in the feed energy homeostasis in mammals. Mutations in the regulatory and...Full Text Available
BackgroundMalignant catarrhal fever (MCF) is a lethal disease of cattle, characterized by vasculitis, necrosis, and accumulation of activated, dysregulated cytotoxic lymphocytes...Full Text Available
BackgroundSerine proteinase inhibitors (Serpins) are a large superfamily of structurally related, but functionally diverse proteins that control essential proteolytic pathways in...Full Text Available
The cytokine interleukin-7 (IL-7) has essential growth activities that maintain the homeostatic balance of the immune system. Little is known of the mechanism by which IL-7 signaling regulates metabolic...Full Text Available
Juvenile hormone analog (JHA) insecticides are relatively nontoxic to vertebrates and offer effective control of certain insect pests. Recent reports of resistance in whiteflies and mosquitoes demonstrate...Full Text Available
The expression of three c-onc genes (c-erb, c-myc, c-myb) was investigated in five cell lines established from fibrosarcomas induced with 20-methylcholanthrene (MCA) of Japanese quails. These cell lines showed low levels of the three c-onc genes, with the exception of two cell lines that accumulated moderate (MCAQ 1-4) and large amounts (MCAQ 3-5) of c-myc RNA. Molecular cloning and restriction endonuclease analyses indicated that expression of c-myc in these two cell lines were not associated with detectable rearrangements in the c-myc locus, that the size of the c-myc transcript (2.7 kb) in MCAQ 3-5 was similar to that of the normal c-myc messenger RNAs (mRNA) and that the transcriptional activatin observed in MCAQ 3-5 was not mediated by the LTR (long terminal repeat) of a proximate ALV (avian leukosis virus) provirus. Finally, when analyzed with the restriction enzymes Msp I and Hpa II, the c-myc locus of MCAQ 3-5 and MCAQ 1-4 was found ...
Insulin resistance in skeletal muscle is a key phenotype associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) for which the molecular mediators remain unclear. We therefore conducted an expression analysis of human...Full Text Available
The spliced alignment of expressed sequence data to genomic sequence has proven a key tool in the comprehensive annotation of genes in eukaryotic genomes. A novel algorithm was developed to assemble...Full Text Available
IntroductionThe murine air pouch is a bursa-like space that resembles the human synovial membrane. Injection of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals into the pouch elicits an acute inflammatory...Full Text Available
Exposure of animals to hyperoxia decreases lung VEGF mRNA expression concomitant with an acute increase in VEGF protein within the epithelial lining fluid (ELF). The VEGF concentration in ELF...Full Text Available
BACKGROUND: Mitochondrial changes have been described in muscle tissue in acquired hypothyroidism. Among the molecular mechanisms by which thyroid hormones regulate expression of nuclear genes encoding...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe zinc-finger transcription factor GLI3 is an important mediator of Sonic hedgehog signaling and crucial for patterning of many aspects of the vertebrate body plan. In...Full Text Available
BackgroundPromoter region plays an important role in determining where the transcription of a particular gene should be initiated. Computational prediction of eukaryotic Pol II promoter...Full Text Available
BackgroundHIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) is a heterodimer composed of p66 and p51 subunits and is responsible for reverse transcription of the viral RNA genome into DNA. RT can...Full Text Available
BackgroundHuman Papillomavirus (HPV) E2 plays several important roles in the viral cycle, including the transcriptional regulation of the oncogenes E6 and E7, the regulation of the...Full Text Available
Gene arrays containing all currently known open reading frames of Bacillus subtilis were used to examine the general stress response of Bacillus. By proteomics, transcriptional...Full Text Available
Bovine embryos can be generated by in vitro fertilization or somatic nuclear transfer; however, these differ from their in vivo counterparts in many aspects and exhibit a higher proportion of developmental...Full Text Available
Zinc is an essential trace metal ion for growth, but an excess of Zn is toxic and microorganisms express diverse resistance mechanisms. To understand global bacterial responses to excess Zn, we conducted...Full Text Available
Transcription factors drive organogenesis, from the initiation of cell fate decisions to the maintenance and implementation of these decisions. The Drosophila embryonic salivary gland...Full Text Available
Hematopoietic stem cells replenish all the cells of the blood throughout the lifetime of an animal. Although thousands of stem cells reside in the bone marrow, only a few contribute to blood production...Full Text Available
The development of chromatin immunoprecipitation methods coupled with DNA microarray (ChIP-chip) technology has enabled genome-wide identification of cis-DNA regulatory elements to which transcription...Full Text Available
Zebrafish transgenesis is a powerful and increasingly common strategy to assay vertebrate transcriptional regulatory control. Several challenges remain, however, to the broader application of...Full Text Available
Exposure to dieldrin induces neurotoxic effects in the vertebrate CNS and disrupts reproductive processes in teleost fish. Reproductive impairment observed in fish by dieldrin is likely the...Full Text Available
BackgroundNF-κB is a survival signaling transcription factor complex involved in the malignant phenotype of many cancers, including squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). The citrus...Full Text Available
Pseudomonas mandelii liquid cultures were studied to determine the effect of pH and temperature on denitrification gene expression, which was quantified by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR....Full Text Available
BackgroundThe transcription factor Pax6 is essential for the development of the central nervous system and it exerts its multiple functions by regulating the expression of downstream...Full Text Available
Exposure of Mycobacterium tuberculosis to hypoxia is known to alter the expression of many genes, including ones thought to be involved in latency, via the transcription factor DevR...Full Text Available
September 14, 2010 ADHD: Signs, Symptoms, Research NIMH researchers talk about the symptoms of ADHD as well as the latest research. Download this video. Watch on YouTube. Transcript Announcer: ADHD- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder- is one of the ...
BackgroundThere is an ever increasing rate of data made available on genetic variation, transcriptomes and proteomes. Similarly, a growing variety of bioinformatic programs are becoming...Full Text Available
IntroductionTyrosine phosphorylated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (pStat3) is expressed in numerous cancers and is required for mediating tumorigenesis. Autocrine...Full Text Available
Although skin is usually exposed during human exposures to ionizing radiation, there have been no thorough examinations of the transcriptional response of skin fibroblasts and keratinocytes...Full Text Available
The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that mediates the toxicity of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin. However, the role of the AHR...Full Text Available
Circadian clock is implicated in the regulation of aging. The transcription factor CLOCK, a core component of the circadian system, operates in complex with another circadian clock protein BMAL1. Recently...Full Text Available
The increased transcription of the Cyp6g1 gene of Drosophila melanogaster, and consequent resistance to insecticides such as DDT, is a widely cited example of adaptation...Full Text Available
BackgroundInterest in lycopene metabolism and regulation is growing rapidly because accumulative studies have suggested an important role for lycopene in human health promotion....Full Text Available
Cocaine is a worldwide used drug and its abuse is associated with physical, psychiatric and social problems. The mechanism by which cocaine causes neurological damage is very complex and involves several...Full Text Available
Cellular cholesterol homeostasis is controlled by sterol-regulated proteolysis of membrane-bound transcription factors called sterol-regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs). CPP32, a cysteine protease,...Full Text Available
A high-throughput assay for enzyme activity has been developed that is reaction independent. In this assay, a small-molecule yeast three-hybrid system is used to link enzyme catalysis to transcription...Full Text Available
SummarySpatial control of gene expression, at the level of both transcription and translation, is critical for cellular differentiation [1-Full Text Available
The genomic termini of RNA viruses contain essential cis-acting signals for such diverse functions as packaging, genome translation, mRNA transcription, and RNA replication, and thus...Full Text Available
During blastocyst formation the segregation of the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm is governed by the mutually antagonistic effects of the transcription factors Oct4 and Cdx2. Evidence indicates...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe successful interaction of bacterial pathogens with host tissues requires the sensing of specific chemical and physical cues. The human gut contains a huge number of...Full Text Available
The state of chromatin (the packaging of DNA in eukaryotes) has long been recognized to have major effects on levels of gene expression, and numerous chromatin-altering strategies—including...Full Text Available
The abnormal megakaryocytopoiesis associated with idiopathic myelofibrosis (IM) plays a role in its pathogenesis. Because mice with defective expression of transcription factor GATA-1 (GATA-1low...Full Text Available
SummaryActivating transcription factor 2 (ATF2) is regulated by JNK/p38 in response to stress. Here, we demonstrate that the protein kinase ATM phosphorylates ATF2 on serines...Full Text Available
Siderophores are essential factors for iron (Fe) acquisition in bacteria during colonization and infection of eukaryotic hosts, which restrain iron access through iron-binding protein, such as lactoferrin...Full Text Available
BackgroundGATA-2 is a transcription factor required for hematopoietic stem cell survival as well as for neuronal development in vertebrates. It has been shown that specific expression...Full Text Available
KLF1 regulates a diverse suite of genes to direct erythroid cell differentiation from bipotent progenitors. To determine the local cis-regulatory contexts and transcription factor networks...Full Text Available
BackgroundWe have recently introduced a predictive framework for studying gene transcriptional regulation in simpler organisms using a novel supervised learning algorithm called...Full Text Available
During complementary chromatic adaptation (CCA), cyanobacterial light harvesting structures called phycobilisomes are restructured in response to ambient light quality shifts. Transcription of genes...Full Text Available
A search for homologs of the Bacillus subtilis PhoP response regulator in the group A streptococcus (GAS) genome revealed three good candidates. Inactivation of one of these, recently...Full Text Available
BackgroundThe MYC transcription factors are known to be involved in the biology of many human cancer types. But little is known about the Myc/microRNAs cooperation in the regulation...Full Text Available
In addition to inducing new transcriptional activities that lead within a few hours to the accumulation of heat shock proteins (Hsps), heat shock activates within minutes the major signaling transduction...Full Text Available
increased knowledge as result of about a year's work, has led us first to ...... James Webb: And the advanced technology on which military power is going to be ..... on the road and I've been with the real big dogs and I know the deal ...
Human antibodies targeting prostate cancer cell surface epitopes may be useful for imaging and therapy. The objective of this study was to evaluate the tumor targeting of an internalizing human...Full Text Available
Computational prediction of microRNA targets remains a challenging problem. The existing rule-based, data-driven and expression profiling approaches to target prediction are mostly approached from the...Full Text Available
In order to identify novel high value antibacterial targets it is desirable to delineate whether the inactivation of the target enzyme will lead to bacterial death or stasis. This knowledge is particularly...Full Text Available
To investigate mechanisms responsible for positive and negative transcriptional control, the authors have utilized two types of promoters that are diffferentially regulated by thyroid hormone (T{sub 3}) receptors. Promoters containing the palindromic T{sub 3} response element TCAGGTCA TGACCTGA are positively regulated by the T{sub 3} receptor after the administration of T{sub 3}, whereas otherwise identical promoters containing the estrogen response element TCAGGTCA CTG TGACCTGA can be regulated negatively; converse effects are observed with the estrogen receptor. They describe evidence that the transcriptional inhibitory effects of the T{sub 3} or estrogen receptors on the estrogen or T{sub 3} response elements, respectively, are imposed by amino acid sequences in the C'-terminal region that colocalize with dimerization and hormone-binding domains and that these sequences can transfer inhibitory functions to other classes of ...
Computational fluid dynamics(CFD) code FLUENT was used to simulate the thermal hydraulic processes occurring in conceptual design of the accelerator-driven subcritical reactor(ADSR) liquid lead target. The purpose of the analysis is to investigate the thermal hydraulic characteristics of liquid lead as ADSR target material with various target geometries and injection locations of proton beam. In the calculation analysis, the local temperature of the liquid lead target rises to the boiling temperature very rapidly. When the proton beam is injected from the bottom of the target system, the duration time to reach the boiling temperature is longer and the temperature distribution is flatter than other cases.
Experimental and computational investigations were performed in order to better understand the mechanical response of rigid targets with various geometries to the detonation of shallow buried explosives. The motion of the targets was measured by use of high-speed digital video photography. This work involved flat targets, targets that were downwardly convex, and targets that were downwardly concave with explosive charges located at various positions beneath the targets. It was observed that, in general, angled hulls - whether downwardly concave or convex - tended to reduce the amount of momentum imparted to the center of mass of the targets. Computations were performed by use of an arbitrary Langrangian-Eulerian treatment in a nonlinear finite element code. A model based on quasi-static te...
In an effort to develop octahedral metal complexes as chemotherapeutic and diagnostic agents targeted to DNA, it is critical to optimize the properties of their cellular uptake. Appending d-octaarginine...Full Text Available
The design of the absorber blocks for internal and external dumping of the SPS proton beam is discussed. In addition, the external target stations for slow and fast extracted proton beams are described.
... L. Sutton. 2000. Is the aquatic weed hygrophila, Hygrophila polysperma (Polemoniales: Acanthaceae), a suitable target for classical biological ... ...
Nato SCI-12 on Camouflage Evaluation Workshop on Search and Target Acquisition The Netherlands, June 1999. Image Discrimination Models for Object Detection ...
By W. Wayne Scott. Langley Research Center. SUMMARY. Thin- and thick-target bremsstrahlung spectra are presented for electron energies up to 7.0 MeV. ...
The National Ignition Facility (NIF) is a proposed Department of Energy facility which will contribute to the resolution of important Defense Program and inertial fusion energy issues for energy production in the future. The NIF will consist of a laser system with 192 independent beamlets transported to a target chamber. The target chamber is a multi-purpose structure that provides the interface between the target and the laser optics. The chamber must be capable of achieving moderate vacuum levels in reasonable times; it must remain dimensionally stable within micron tolerances, provide support for the optics, diagnostics, and target positioner; it must minimize the debris from the x-ray and laser light environments; and it must be capable of supporting external neutron shielding. The chamber must also be fabricated from a low neutron activation material. The fusion reaction in the ...
Although the public generally hold positive attitudes towards wind energy, proposals for the construction of new wind farms are often met with strong resistance. In New Zealand, where the government has recently introduced ambitious policy targets for renewable energy generation, negative perceptions of wind farms are increasingly evident and have the potential to prevent the achievement of these targets. This research sets out to examine what influences social resistance to wind farms in New Zealand. Drawing from public submissions on three wind farm proposals, a framework developed by Devine-Wright [Devine-Wright, P., 2005a. Beyond NIMBYism: towards an integrated Framework for Understanding Public Perceptions of Wind Energy. Wind Energy 8, 125-139.] was used as the basis for identification of factors affecting public perceptions of wind farms. The research found firstly that there was no apparent relationship between the ...
Although the public generally hold positive attitudes towards wind energy, proposals for the construction of new wind farms are often met with strong resistance. In New Zealand, where the government has recently introduced ambitious policy targets for renewable energy generation, negative perceptions of wind farms are increasingly evident and have the potential to prevent the achievement of these targets. This research sets out to examine what influences social resistance to wind farms in New Zealand. Drawing from public submissions on three wind farm proposals, a framework developed by Devine-Wright [Devine-Wright, P., 2005a. Beyond NIMBYism: towards an integrated Framework for Understanding Public Perceptions of Wind Energy. Wind Energy 8, 125-139.] was used as the basis for identification of factors affecting public perceptions of wind farms. The research found firstly that there was no apparent relationship between the ...
Microcapsules consisting of alginate and hyaluronic acid that can be decomposed by radiation are currently under development. In this study, the composition of the microcapsule material was optimized by changing the amounts of alginate and hyaluronic acid. Solutions of 0.025%, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.2%, or 0.4% (wt./vol.) hyaluronic acid were mixed into a 0.2% alginate solution. To these mixtures, carboplatin (0.2 mmol) was added and the resulting material was used for the capsule preparation. The capsules were prepared by spraying the material into a CaCl{sub 2} solution (0.34 mol/l) using a microatomizer. These capsules were irradiated by a single dose of 2, 5, or 10 Gy {sup 60}Co {gamma}-ray radiation. Immediately after irradiation, the releasing of core content of microcapsule was determined, using a micro particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) camera. The average diameter of the microcapsules was 22.3 {+-} 3.3 {mu}m, and that of the liquid core was 10.2 {+-} 4.3 {mu}m. The maximum ...
The Fredericksberg of South Florida may have a great oil potential that has been overlooked as a primary target in past decades. Previous exploration in the area has targeted the Lower Cretaceous oil-producing Sunniland Formation lower in the stratigraphic section. The Fredericksberg Dollar Bay Formation has hydrocarbon shows in many wells occurring in limestone biohermal deposits as well as in an upper dolomitic section. The Dollar Bay Formation is part of the Big Cypress Group of the Comanchean Series of the Lower Cretaceous. The Lower Cretaceous lithology is composed of evaporitic-carbonate cycles consisting of anhydrites, dolomites, and limestones. There are also present some calcareous shales, mudstones, salt, lignitic material, and carbonaceous material, especially in the anhydrite and limestone intervals. The limestones are usually micritic, chalky, calcarenitic, sometimes argillaceous, containing skeletal particles ...
The sequencing and detailed comparative functional analysis of genomes of a number of select botanical models open new doors into comparative genomics among the angiosperms, with potential benefits for improvement of many orphan crops that feed large populations. In this study, a set of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers was developed by mining the expressed sequence tag (EST) database of sorghum. Among the SSR-containing sequences, only those sharing considerable homology with rice genomic sequences across the lengths of the 12 rice chromosomes were selected. Thus, 600 SSR-containing sorghum EST sequences (50 homologous sequences on each of the 12 rice chromosomes) were selected, with the intention of providing coverage for corresponding homologous regions of the sorghum genome. Primer pairs were designed and polymorphism detection ability was assessed using parental pairs of two existing sorghum mapping populations. About 28% of these new markers detected ...
BackgroundDespite an ever-improving understanding of the molecular biology of cancer, the treatment of most cancers has not changed dramatically in the past three decades and drugs that do not discriminate between tumor cells and normal tissues remain the mainstays of anticancer therapy. Since Hsp90 is typically involved in cell proliferation and survival, this is thought to play a key role in cancer, and Hsp90 has attracted considerable interest in recent years as a potential therapeutic target.MethodsWe focused on the interaction of Hsp90 with its cofactor protein p60/Hop, and engineered a cell-permeable peptidomimetic, termed "hybrid Antp-TPR peptide", modeled on the binding interface between the molecular chaperone Hsp90 and the TPR2A domain of Hop.ResultsIt was demonstrated that this designed hybrid Antp-TPR peptide inhibited the interaction of Hsp90 with the TPR2A domain, inducing cell death of breast, pancreatic, renal, lung, prostate, ...
Extensive research into the treatment and control of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from semiconductor industry manufacturing processes has identified the need for alternatives to existing combustion devices. Specifically, semiconductor manufacturing design is moving toward exploiting effective, small-scale, abatement control technologies for specific point-of-use (POU) waste streams associated with a particular component or manufacturing tool. The Silent Discharge Plasma (SDP) developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory is a nonthermal plasma technology created by a dielectric-ballasted electrical discharge. Influent gas-phase pollutants are destroyed in the reactor by the free radicals or electrons generated by the plasma. This paper examines the potential for SDP to be used in niche circumstances for POU control of VOC exhaust streams specific to the semiconductor industry. A sensitivity analysis is presented, showing how SDP cost of ownership is affected by ...
Ophir Corporation was awarded a contract by the U. S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory under the Project Title ''Airborne, Optical Remote Sensing of Methane and Ethane for Natural Gas Pipeline Leak Detection'' on October 14, 2002. This second six-month technical report summarizes the progress made towards defining, designing, and developing the hardware and software segments of the airborne, optical remote methane and ethane sensor. The most challenging task to date has been to identify a vendor capable of designing and developing a light source with the appropriate output wavelength and power. This report will document the work that has been done to identify design requirements, and potential vendors for the light source. Significant progress has also been made in characterizing the amount of light return available from a remote target at various distances from the light source. A ...
Neurotensin (NT) and its high affinity receptor (NTR1) are involved in several neoplastic processes. Thus, NT-based radiopharmaceuticals are potential tracers for targeted diagnosis and therapy of NTR-positive tumours. A new analogue based on NT(8-13), NT-XIX, with the three enzymatic cleavage sites stabilised, was synthesised and tested. The synthesis was performed by Boc strategy. Labelling with "9"9"mTc/"1"8"8Re was performed using the tricarbonyl technique. Metabolic stability was tested in vitro and in vivo. NT-XIX was further characterised in vitro in HT-29 cells and in vivo in nude mice with HT-29 xenografts. NT-XIX showed much longer half-lives than non-stabilised analogues. Binding to NTR1 was highly specific, although the affinity was lower than that of natural NT. Bound activity rapidly internalised into HT-29 cells and 50% remained trapped after 24 h. In the time-course biodistribution, the highest uptake was found in the tumour at ...
This paper reviews three key initiatives undertaken in the historical city of Oxford to bring about reductions in energy-related CO_2 emissions on a city-wide scale. The author has been part of all the three initiatives. In 2002, a collaborative partnership between academia, industry and city council started the Oxford Solar Initiative (OSI) which uses a community-based approach to help households and organisations in Oxford, financially and technically, to install solar energy systems and energy efficiency measures in buildings. So far OSI has facilitated the installation of 80 active solar systems, over 450 energy efficiency measures and 3,000 low energy bulbs. The scientific basis of OSI is a GIS-based DECoRuM model which estimates and maps baseline energy use and CO_2 emissions on a house-by house level, identifies 'pollution' hotspots, predicts the potential for reductions in CO_2 emissions and monitors reductions achieved as a result of deploying energy ...
'Full text:' The use of fuel cell technology in military applications will depend on safe, high energy density systems being developed. An important part of using this technology is also the development of alternative hydrogen producing fuels with high energy densities and are easy to transport. Fuel cells are now a very large R and D effort for several military applications around the world. The major reason is because of the high power demands needed requires electrical energy sources that far exceed the capabilities of batteries currently being fielded for portable applications. Fuel cells are regarded as highly efficient, tactical energy converters that can be adapted for wide range of power requirements. They are potentially the lowest weight power source when coupled with batteries or capacitors to form hybrid systems. Generally electrical power is needed to support a number of applications from ultra-high power for electrical pulses (radios, sensors) to ...
In the framework of nuclear waste transmutation studies, the Mini-INCA project has been initiated at CEA/DSM with objectives to determine optimal conditions for transmutation and incineration of minor actinides (MA) in high intensity neutron fluxes. Our experimental tools based on alpha- and gamma-spectroscopy of the samples and the development of micro fission chambers could gather either microscopic information on nuclear reactions (total or partial cross sections for neutron capture and/or fission reactions) or macroscopic information on transmutation and incineration potentials. Neutron capture cross sections of selected actinides ({sup 241}Am, {sup 242}Am, {sup 242}Pu, {sup 237}Np) have already been measured at ILL, showing some discrepancies when compared to evaluated data libraries but in overall good agreement with recent data. The studies and possibilities offer by the MEGAPIE project to assess neutronic performances of a 1 MW spallation ...
In the framework of nuclear waste transmutation studies, the Mini-INCA project has been initiated at CEA/DSM with objectives to determine optimal conditions for transmutation and incineration of minor actinides (MA) in high intensity neutron fluxes. Our experimental tools based on alpha- and gamma-spectroscopy of the samples and the development of micro fission chambers could gather either microscopic information on nuclear reactions (total or partial cross sections for neutron capture and/or fission reactions) or macroscopic information on transmutation and incineration potentials. Neutron capture cross sections of selected actinides ("2"4"1Am, "2"4"2Am, "2"4"2Pu, "2"3"7Np) have already been measured at ILL, showing some discrepancies when compared to evaluated data libraries but in overall good agreement with recent data. The studies and possibilities offer by the MEGAPIE project to assess neutronic performances of a 1 MW spallation target ...
A compact, quasi-4? position sensitive silicon array, TIARA, designed to study direct reactions induced by radioactive beams in inverse kinematics is described here. The Transfer and Inelastic All-angle Reaction Array (TIARA) consists of 8 resistive charge division detectors forming an octagonal barrel around the target and a set of double-sided silicon-strip annular detectors positioned at each end of the barrel. The detector was coupled to the ?-ray array EXOGAM and the spectrometer VAMOS at the GANIL Laboratory to demonstrate the potential of such an apparatus with radioactive beams. The 14N(d,p)15N reaction, well known in direct kinematics, has been carried out in inverse kinematics for that purpose. The observation of the 15N ground state and excited states at 7.16 and 7.86 MeV is presented here as well as the comparison of the measured proton angular distributions with DWBA calculations. Transferred l-values are in very good agreement ...
A conjugate of 6-hydrazinopyridine-3-carboxylic acid (HYNIC) with the amino analogue of metronidazole (MN) was synthesized through a multiple-step reaction. HYNIC-MN could be labeled easily and efficiently with 99mTc using N-(2-hydroxy-1,1-bis(hydroxymethyl)ethyl)glycine (tricine) and ethylenediamine -N,N?-diacetic acid (EDDA) as coligands to form the 99mTc?HYNIC?MN complex in high yield (>95%). Its partition coefficient indicated that it was a good hydrophilic complex. The tumor cell experiment showed that the 99mTc?HYNIC?MN complex had a certain hypoxic selectivity. The biodistribution studies of 99mTc?HYNIC?MN in Kunming mice bearing S180 tumor showed a favorable tissue distribution profile with high tumor uptake, and low or negligible accumulation in non-target organs, suggesting 99mTc...
The purpose and need for DOE to undertake the actions described in this document are to improve the efficiency of the Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS) complex. Benefits would include optimization of the AGS scientific program, increased high-energy and nuclear physics experimentation, improved health and safety conditions for workers and users, reduced impact on the environment and the general public, energy conservation, decreased generation of hazardous and radioactive wastes, and completion of actions required to permit the AGS to be the injector to the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC)., Improved efficiency is defined as increasing the AGS`s capabilities to capture and accelerate the proton intensity transferred to the AGS from the AGS booster. Improved capture of beam intensity would reduce the beam losses which equate to lost scientific opportunity for study and increased potential for radiation doses to workers and the general public. The action ...
Our inability to associate distant regulatory elements with the genes that they regulate has largely precluded their examination for sequence alterations contributing to human disease. One major obstacle is the large genomic space surrounding targeted genes in which such elements could potentially reside. In order to delineate gene regulatory boundaries we used whole-genome human-mouse-chicken (HMC) and human-mouse-frog (HMF) multiple alignments to compile conserved blocks of synteny (CBS), under the hypothesis that these blocks have been kept intact throughout evolution at least in part by the requirement of regulatory elements to stay linked to the genes that they regulate. A total of 2,116 and 1,942 CBS>200 kb were assembled for HMC and HMF respectively, encompassing 1.53 and 0.86 Gb of human sequence. To support the existence of complex long-range regulatory domains within these CBS we analyzed the prevalence and distribution of ...
Glypican-3 (GPC3), a membrane-bound heparan sulfate proteoglycan, is found to be overexpressed in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The purpose of the present study was to investigate the possible role of GPC3 in the development of HCC. In this study, RNA interference (RNAi) with a GPC3 small hairpin RNA (GPC3 shRNA) was used to identify the effects of GPC3 on the regulation of malignant behaviors of HCC. MHCC97-H, a highly metastatic human HCC cell line in which GPC3 mRNA and protein levels were detected as the highest among the 4 HCC cell lines assessed in this study, and was thus selected as a cell model for in vitro and in vivo experiments. The results showed that down-regulation of GPC3 can significantly inhibit the proliferative and invasive ability of MHCC97-H. Compared with the parental HCC cells, GPC3-silenced cells exhibited attenuated capacities in developing tumors in nude mice, while the growth of tumor xenografts derived from these cells dramatically regressed. In ...
Recent technological developments have facilitated intensified searches for genetic markers under selection in nonmodel species. Here, we present an approach for the identification of candidate gene variation in nonmodel organisms. We report on the characterization of 82 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and on the development of a specific genotyping assay for 30 SNPs in 18 candidate genes for growth and reproduction in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). These markers can be used for scanning natural populations for signatures of selection in both contemporary and archived historical samples, for example in retrospective studies assessing the effects of environmental changes, such as increasing temperatures, and selection imposed by high fishing pressure. Furthermore, these gene markers may be of interest to aquaculture, serving as a starting point for linking phenotypic traits important for productivity with genotypes and potentially be of use for marker-assisted ...
Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) 19-9 and 73-3 specific for human colon adenocarcinoma were labelled with a high number of gadolinium atoms. Twenty five DTPA were chelated per MAb, with only slight loss of immunoreactivity. The NMR contrast agent Gd-25 DTPA-MAb 19-9 or 73-3 ((Gd) 17 mumole/kg, (MAb) 60 microM) was injected into nude mice bearing human colon adenocarcinoma (SW948). Tumors were removed 24 hr after injection and T1 was measured in vitro. T1 relaxation time varied according to MAb specificity against tumour targets; T1 decreased 20% for MAb 19-9 and MAb 73-3 with SW948 tumor. Imaging was performed with this model. Very good contrast was obtained 24 hr after Gd-25 DTPA-MAb injection.
No-carrier-added astatine radionuclides produced in the {sup 7}Li-irradiated lead matrix were separated from bulk lead nitrate target by complexing At with insulin, followed by dialysis. The method offers simultaneous separation of At from lead as well as its complexation with insulin. The At-insulin complex might be a potential radiopharmaceutical in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. The stability of At-insulin complex was checked by dialysis against deionized water and Ringer lactate (RL) solution. It has been found that the half-life of At-insulin complex is about {approx}12 h, when dialyzed against deionized water and is only 6 h, when dialyzed against RL solution having the same composition as blood serum. The 6 h half-life of this Insulin-At complex is perfect for killing cancer cells from external cell surfaces as the half-life of internalization of insulin molecule inside the cell is 7-12 h.
No-carrier-added astatine radionuclides produced in the "7Li-irradiated lead matrix were separated from bulk lead nitrate target by complexing At with insulin, followed by dialysis. The method offers simultaneous separation of At from lead as well as its complexation with insulin. The At-insulin complex might be a potential radiopharmaceutical in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. The stability of At-insulin complex was checked by dialysis against deionized water and Ringer lactate (RL) solution. It has been found that the half-life of At-insulin complex is about #approx#12 h, when dialyzed against deionized water and is only 6 h, when dialyzed against RL solution having the same composition as blood serum. The 6 h half-life of this Insulin-At complex is perfect for killing cancer cells from external cell surfaces as the half-life of internalization of insulin molecule inside the cell is 7-12 h.
The northeastern part of the Great Divide basin is a separate, unique, and until recently, little-explored subbasin sometimes called the Bison basin. It is bounded by the Wind River Mountains, Sweetwater-Granite Mountain foreland uplift, Lost Soldier-Wertz structure, and a little-studied very positive east-west structural arch approximately coincident with the Sweetwater-Fremont county line. A comprehensive seismic, Landsat, and subsurface geologic examination or, better, dissection of the Bison basin was initiated in 1978. Numerous oil and gas prospects were delineated by this study. Since this small, 12 by 40 mi (19 by 64 km) basin is bordered by known reserves of 260 million bbl of oil and 90 million bcf of gas, these prospects proved to be a popular target of the drill bit. At least one of these prospects appears to be productive; others are currently being drilled. The presence of major east-west wrench faults, a well-documented foreland uplift, until recently ...
Current antidotal regimens for organophosphorus compound (OP) poisoning consist of a combination of pretreatment with a spontaneously reactivating AChE inhibitor such as pyridostigmine bromide, and postexposure therapy with anticholinergic drugs such as atropine sulfate and oximes such as 2-PAM chloride (Gray, 1984). Although these antidotal regimens are effective in preventing lethality of animals from OP poisoning, they do not prevent postexposure incapacitation, convulsions, performance deficits, or, in many cases, permanent brain damage (Dunn and Sidell, 1989). These problems stimulated the development of enzyme bioscavengers as a pretreatment to sequester highly toxic OPs before they reach their physiological targets. Several studies over the last two decades have demonstrated that exogenously administered human serum butyrylcholinesterase (Hu BChE) can be used successfully as a safe, efficacious, and single prophylactic treatment to counteract the toxicity of ...
Concentrations of trace metals were determined in water, sediment, fish feed and two species of farmed fish, pompano and snapper, collected from Daya Bay and Hailing Bay of South China in July 2007 and January 2008. Total average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Hg and As were 1.6, 2.7, 27.3, 0.025, 0.62, 0.18 and 0.59?g/gdrywt in pompano and 1.5, 2.6, 23.6, 0.020, 0.55, 0.22 and 0.53?g/gdrywt in snapper. In general, the concentrations of all target metals except Hg were positively correlated with lipid contents whereas negative correlations were observed between the metal concentrations and fish body weights. Model calculation indicated that dietary uptake of Zn and Cd predominate their accumulation in snapper, accounting for 99.9% and 98.2% of the total inputs. Risk ...
The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of low-resolution Raman spectroscopy for monitoring the oxidation status of olive oil. Primary and secondary oxidation parameters such as peroxide value, K"2"3"2 and K"2"7"0 were studied. Low-resolution Raman spectra ranging from 200 to 2700 cm^-^1 in a set of 126 oxidized and virgin olive oil samples were collected directly using a probe. Partial Least Squares was used to calibrate the Raman instrument for the different targeted parameters. The performance of the models was determined by using validation sets, and the best results obtained were: R^2 = 0.91, RMSEP = 2.57 for the peroxide value content; R^2 = 0.88, RMSEP = 0.37 for K"2"3"2; and R^2 = 0.90, RMSEP = 0.08 for K"2"7"0. These results demonstrated that low-resolution Raman spect...
Methods: Systemic irradiation of neuroaxis is an essential part in the management of medulloblastoma, stPNET and intracranial germ cell tumors. The introduction of quality assurance programs in radiooncology assures a precise radiotherapy of target volumes and is a prerequisite to improve survival. Results: Hyperfractionated radiotherapy has the potential of increasing dose to tumor more safely without increasing the risk for late adverse effects. Pilot studies revealed excellent tumor control in medulloblastoma with acceptable acute toxicity and a long-term survival of up to 96%. In medulloblastoma stereotactic radiation techniques reveal an acceptable toxicity and promising results in tumor control in recurrent disease or as primary treatment. They are now part of future treatment protocols in case of persisting residual tumor. Radiotherapy alone in pure germinoma is continuously yielding high cure rates. In secreting germ cell tumors ...
Three abiotic systems are described that catalyze the reductive dehalogenation of heavily halogenated environmental pollutants, including carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethene, and perchloroethene. These systems include (a) an electrolytic reactor in which the potential on the working electrode (cathode) is fixed by using a potentiostat, (b) a light-driven system consisting of a semiconductor and (covalently attached) macrocycle that can accept light transmitted via an optical fiber, and a light-driven, two-solvent (isopropanol/acetone) system that promotes dehalogenation reactions via an unknown mechanism. Each is capable of accelerating reductive dehalogenation reactions to very high rates under laboratory conditions. Typically, millimolar concentrations of aqueous-phase targets can be dehalogenated in minutes to hours. The description of each system includes the elements of reaction mechanism (to the extent known), typical kinetic data, and ...
Greenhouse gas mitigation strategies are generally considered costly with world leaders often engaging in debate concerning the costs of mitigation and the distribution of these costs between different countries. In this paper, the analyses and results of the design of a 100% renewable energy system by the year 2050 are presented for a complete energy system including transport. Two short-term transition target years in the process towards this goal are analysed for 2015 and 2030. The energy systems are analysed and designed with hour-by-hour energy system analyses. The analyses reveal that implementing energy savings, renewable energy and more efficient conversion technologies can have positive socio-economic effects, create employment and potentially lead to large earnings on exports. If externalities such as health effects are included, even more benefits can be expected. 100% Renewable energy systems will be technically possible in the ...
We proposed a solid and a mercury target concepts through the preliminary conceptual design. To feasible these concepts, analysis and experimental works are being carried out. This paper introduces an outline of present status of target R and D such as heat transfer augmentation experiments for the solid target, mercury flow tests with a loop of maximum flow rate of 15L/min, flow pattern measurements for a cold source moderator etc. as well as preliminary conceptual design works. (author)
In the CERN approach to the design of a neutrino factory, the repetition frequency of the proton beam is high enough to consider stationary solid targets as a viable solution for multi-MW beams. The target consists of high density tantalum spheres of 2 mm diameter which can efficiently be cooled by passing a high mass flow He-gas stream through the voids between the Ta-granules. Very small thermal shocks and stresses will arise in this fine grained structure due to the relatively long burst of 3.3 ms from the SPL-proton linac. In a quadruple target system where each target receives only one quarter of the total beam power of 4 MW, conservative temperature levels and adequate lifetimes of the target are estimated in its very high radiation environment. A conceptual design of the integration of the target into the magnetic horn-pion-collector is presented.
The Drosophila sequence-specific DNA binding protein, Adf-1, is capable of activating transcription of the alcohol dehydrogenase gene, Adh, and is implicated in the transcriptional control of other developmentally regulated genes. We have cloned the cDNA encoding Adf-1 by generating specific DNA probes deduced from partial amino acid sequence of the protein. Several cDNA clones encoding an extended open reading frame were isolated from a phage lambda library. The complete amino acid sequence of Adf-1 deduced from the longest cDNA reveals structural similarities to the putative helix-turn-helix DNA binding motif of Myb and Myb-related proteins. DNA sequence analysis of genomic clones and Northern blot analysis of mRNA suggest that Adf-1 is a single-copy gene encoding a 1.9-kb transcript. Purified recombinant Adf-1 expressed in Escherichia coli binds specifically to Adf-1 recognition sites and activates ...
Three regio-isomers of N-(N-benzylpiperidin-4-yl)-4-iodobenzamide, IBP, were prepared and evaluated for their sigma affinities. All three isomers (2, 3, and 4-substituted) showed high affinities for sigma-1 receptors in guinea pig brain membranes (Ki - 1.64 nM, 3.02 nM, 1.70 nM respectively) against ["3H]-(+)-pentazocine, a sigma-1 selective ligand. 2-IBP and 4-IBP showed modest affinities for sigma-2 sites in rat liver (Ki = 29.6 nM. 25.2 nM respectively) against ["3H]DTG in the presence of dextrallorphan to mask sigma-1 sites. The homologous competition binding studies of 4-["1"2"5I]BP in MCF-7 human breast tumor cells showed high affinity dose-dependent binding. Competition binding studies with haloperidol and DTG also showed a high affinity binding (Ki = 4.6 nM, 60 nM respectively), demonstrating the sigma specificity. The saturation binding (Scatchard analysis) of ["3H]DTG with MCF-7 cell membrane preparations gave Kd of 24.54 nM and a Bmax of 2071 fmol/mg protein. These results ...
The coalbed methane (CBM) geology, resource and production potential in the Weibei Coalfield, southeastern Ordos Basin are studied based on geological surveys and laboratory measurements. The results showed that coal rank varies both laterally and vertically and changes from volatile bituminous coals in the margin to anthracites towards the basin (1.6-2.5% R{sub o}). Coals are composed of 60-85% vitrinite, 15-40% inertinite and a trace amount of minerals. Methane isothermal adsorption measurements of 20 coal samples revealed that the maximum adsorption capacity (on a dry and ash-free basis) of coals, which are affected by coal rank, coal maceral, coal lithotype and especially to the moisture content, varies from 13.91 to 29.54 m{sup 3}/t. Estimated gas contents range from 0 to 15 m{sup 3}/t. These data yield an estimated in-place CBM resource of 2.5 x 10{sup 11} m{sup 3} for the Weibei Coalfield. In combination with the geological information, the data indicated ...
The Cambro-Ordovician platform was formed along the margin of the old super-continent of Laurentia approximately 470 million years ago, and is a prolific producer of hydrocarbons. This presentation provided a geological review of the region as well as estimates of the amounts of oil in place. A simplified geological cross-section of the formation was presented, as well as a chart of the Anticosti Basin of western Newfoundland. Details of exploration wells targeting the Cambro-Ordovician carbonate platform and current west coast land holdings were provided. An outline of the area's petroleum system included details of source rock, reservoirs, traps and seals and migration and timing. Offshore prospects for the platform were estimated to be in the region of 100 to 200 million barrels. Onshore prospects were estimated to be in the region of 30 million to 150 million barrels. It was noted that limited coverage by onshore seismic data may mean that larger ...
Caring for a child with a potentially fatal medical condition is a challenge for parents or caregivers. The ability to measure parental self-efficacy in pediatric palliative care may be an important component of targeting supportive services that address individual needs of families. Therefore, the goal was to develop a Pediatric Palliative Care Parental Self-Efficacy Measure (PCPEM). First, a list of questions were generated that asked parents their level of confidence in carrying out tasks involved in caring for a child with a potentially fatal medical condition in 6 palliative care domains: 1) medical discussion/decisions; 2) symptom management/medication; 3) daily activities; 4) feelings/concerns; 5) spirituality; and 6) end-of-life care. The PCPEM was narrowed to 58 questions after expert reviews. Then, 16 caregivers of children receiving palliative care services and 9 bereaved caregivers participated in individual ...
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver cancer and has very limited therapeutic options. Recently, it has been found that hyaluronic acid (HA) shows selective binding to CD44 receptors expressed in most cancer histotypes. Since the trend in cancer treatment is the use of targeted radionuclide therapy, the aim of this research was to label HA with rhenium-188 and to evaluate its potential use as a hepatocarcinoma therapeutic radiopharmaceutical. Methods: {sup 188}Re-HA was prepared by a direct labelling method to produce a ReO(O-COO){sub 2}-type coordination complex. {sup 188}Re-HA protein binding and its stability in saline, phosphate buffer, human serum and cysteine solutions were determined. Biokinetic and dosimetric data were estimated in healthy mice (n=60) using the Medical Internal Radiation Dose methodology and mouse model beta-absorbed fractions. To evaluate liver toxicity, alanine aminotranferase (AST) and ...
Threat characterization is a key component in evaluating the threat faced by control systems. Without a thorough understanding of the threat faced by critical infrastructure networks, adequate resources cannot be allocated or directed effectively to the defense of these systems. Traditional methods of threat analysis focus on identifying the capabilities and motivations of a specific attacker, assessing the value the adversary would place on targeted systems, and deploying defenses according to the threat posed by the potential adversary. Too many effective exploits and tools exist and are easily accessible to anyone with access to an Internet connection, minimal technical skills, and a significantly reduced motivational threshold to be able to narrow the field of potential adversaries effectively. Understanding how hackers evaluate new IT security research and incorporate significant new ideas into their own tools provides ...
This research is to provide improved strategies for enhanced oil recovery from the Tensleep Sandstone oil reservoirs in the Bighorn and Wind River basins, Wyoming. Because of the great range of API gravities of the oils produced from these reservoirs, the proposed study concentrates on understanding the spatial variation and anisotropy of relative permeability within the Tensleep Sandstone. This research will associate those spatial distributions and anisotropies with the depositional subfacies and zones of diagenetic alteration found within the sandstone. The associations of the above with pore geometry will link relative permeability with the dimensions of lithofacies and authigenic mineral facies. Hence, the study is to provide criteria for scaling this parameter on a range of scales, from the laboratory to the basin-wide scale of subfacies distribution. Effects of depositional processes and burial diagenesis will be investigated. Image analysis of pore systems will be done to ...
Poncirin, flavanone glycoside, isolated from the fruit of Poncirus trifoliata, has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, the effects of poncirin on the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells were investigated. The C3H10T1/2 mesenchymal stem cells and primary bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were studied. In the C3H10T1/2 cells, poncirin prevented adipocyte differentiation, as demonstrated by inhibition of cytoplasm lipid droplet accumulation and peroxisome proliferator-activating receptor-? (PPAR-?) and CCAAT-enhancer-binding protein-? (C/EBP-?) mRNA expression. By contrast, poncirin enhanced the expression of the key osteogenic transcription factors, runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) and transcriptional coactivator with PDZ-binding motif (TAZ). Poncirin also enhanced expression of the osteogenic marker genes including alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and osteocalcin (OC). Poncirin ...
Transcriptional regulation of the galactose-metabolizing genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae depends on three core proteins: Gal4p, the transcriptional activator that binds to upstream activating DNA sequences (UASGAL); Gal80p, a repressor that binds to the carboxyl terminus of Gal4p and inhibits transcription; and Gal3p, a cytoplasmic transducer that, upon binding galactose and adenosine 5'-triphosphate, relieves Gal80p repression. The current model of induction relies on Gal3p sequestering Gal80p in the cytoplasm. However, the rapid induction of this system implies that there is a missing factor. Our structure of Gal80p in complex with a peptide from the carboxyl-terminal activation domain of Gal4p reveals the existence of a dinucleotide that mediates the interaction between the two. Biochemical and in vivo experiments suggests that nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP) plays a key role in the initial ...
Low expression of osmotically responsive genes 2 (LOS2) encodes an enolase (2-phospho-D-glycerate hydrolase, EC 4.2.1.11) that converts 2-phospho-D-glycerate (PGA) to phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) in the glycolytic pathway in Arabidopsis. Meanwhile, it is a transcriptional activator of cold-responsive gene, negatively controlling the expression of STZ/ZAT10, a zinc finger transcriptional repressor of cold-responsive gene from Arabidopsis. A novel LOS2 gene, designated PtrLOS2 (GenBank accession number GQ144341), was isolated from trifoliate orange [Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf.]. The PtrLOS2 cDNA is 1 662 bp in length with a 1 338 bp open reading frame (ORF), encoding a deduced 445 amino acid residue protein with a predicted molecular mass of 47.79 kDa and an isoelectric point of 5.54. The ded...
The Drosophila melanogaster tissue-specific transcription factor NTF-1 was originally identified in vitro as a protein that could bind to and activate transcription from the Dopa decarboxylase (Ddc) gene. A structure-function analysis of NTF-1 led to the identification of a discrete amino-terminal activation domain. Here, we report that an NTF-1 mutant lacking the activation domain acts as a trans-dominant inhibitor of NTF-1 activation in tissue culture cells by forming inactive heterodimers with the full-length protein. Ectopically expressing this dominant-negative protein or the full-length protein in developing Drosophila embryos leads to dire developmental consequences. Overexpressing the trans-dominant NTF-1 leads to lethality, while overexpressing full-length NTF-1 results in both lethality and morphogenetic defects. Our results suggest that both the activity and the regulation of NTF-1 are critical for viability and proper development of ...
The PMS2 gene encodes a protein that is involved in DNA mismatch repair and is mutated in a subset of patients with hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer (HNPCC). The previously published PMS2 cDNA sequence lack an upstream in-frame stop codon preceding the presumptive initiating methionine. To evaluate the 5` terminus of the PMS2 coding region further, we isolated additional cDNA clones, RT-PCR products, and the corresponding 5` genomic segment of the PMS2 locus. The PMS2 gene transcripts were found to have heterogeneous but colinear 5` termini, one of which contained an in-frame termination codon preceding the initiating methionine. In addition, a novel gene encoding a 34.5-kDa polypeptide was found to initiate transcriptionally within PMS2 from the opposite strand. 23 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs.
Amyloid precursor protein (APP), a key protein in pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD), is a type I transmembrane protein which can be cleaved by b- and g-secretase to release the amyloidogenic b-amyloid peptides (Ab) and the APP intracellular domain (AICD). While Ab has been widely believed to initiate pathogenic cascades culminating AD, the physiological functions and regulations of AICD remain elusive. In present study, endogenous AICD was demonstrated to be increased by canonical Wnt signal. Instead of due to g-secretase activity, enhanced AICD expression was found due to the increased protein stability by Wnt/b-catenin. b-Catenin was demonstrated to be an associating partner of AICD, capable of promoting AICD mediated transcriptional activity. Investigation by AICD mutants proved ...
Abstract The Hippo pathway is an evolutionally conserved protein kinase cascade involved in regulating organ size in vivo and cell contact inhibition in vitro by governing cell proliferation and apoptosis. Deregulation of the Hippo pathway is linked to cancer development. Its first core kinase Warts was identified in Drosophila more than 15 years ago, but it gained much attention when other core components of the pathway were identified 8 years later. Major discoveries of the pathway were made during past several years. The core kinase components Hippo, Salvador, Warts, and Mats in the fly and Mst1/2, WW45, Lats1/2, and Mob1 in mammals phosphorylate and inactivate downstream transcriptional co-activators Yorkie in the fly, Yes-associated protein (YAP) and transcriptional co-activator with ...
Purpose The paired-like homeodomain transcription factor 2 (PITX2) gene encodes a transcription factor controlled by the WNT/Dvl/CTNNB1 and Hedgehog/TGFB pathways in the pathogenesis of colorectal cancer (CRC). Although PITX2 is reportedly involved in various functions, including tissue development by controlling cell growth, its significance in CRC remains unclear. We report our findings regarding abnormal PITX2 expression in human CRC. Methods PITX2 expression was evaluated in 5 human CRC cell lines and 92 primary CRC samples. Cell growth was evaluated after inhibition of PITX2 expression or after exogenous introduction of PITX2. Results PITX2 expression was seen in all the five CRC cell lines. The study of tissue samples indicated that PITX2 expression was significantly higher in cancer...
Retroelements constitute a large part of the human genome. These sequences are mostly silenced in normal cells, but genome-wide DNA hypomethylation in cancers might lead to their re-expression. Whether this re-expression really occurs in human cancers is largely unkown. We therefore investigated expression and DNA methylation of several classes of retroelements in human prostate cancer tissues and cell lines by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and pyrosequencing, respectively. The most striking finding was strong and generalized increased expression of the HERV-K_22q11.23 provirus in cancers, including de novo expression of a spliced accessory Np9 transcript in some tumors. In parallel, DNA methylation in the long terminal repeat (LTR) decreased. Conversely, HER...
Mutations in sclerostin function or expression cause sclerosing bone dysplasias, involving decreased antagonism of Wnt/Lrp5 signaling. Conversely, deletion of the VHL tumor suppressor in osteoblasts, which stabilize HIF-a isoforms and thereby enables HIF-a/b-driven gene transcription, increases bone mineral content and cross-sectional area compared to wild-type controls. We examined the influence of cellular hypoxia (1% oxygen) upon sclerostin expression and canonical Wnt signaling. Osteoblasts and osteocytes cultured under hypoxia revealed decreased sclerostin transcript and protein, and increased expression and nuclear localization of activated b-catenin. Similarly, both hypoxia and the hypoxia mimetic DFO increased b-catenin gene reporter activity. Hypoxia and its mimetics increased exp...
Harvested plant organs such as heads of broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica) experience a range of stresses that can lead to premature reduction in quality and eventual senescence. Understanding plant responses to stress may open up novel opportunities to extend postharvest life. One of the first stresses experienced by harvested organs is likely to be water deficit stress since severance of the vascular system halts the normal flux of water into the tissue. For broccoli branchlets with their cut ends held in water, transcriptome analysis based on hybridization of broccoli floret mRNA to a heterologous Arabidopsis microarray revealed that the transcript abundance of 431 genes reliably changed within 48h of harvest. Of these, transcripts of 146 genes increased and 34 genes decreased...
Evolutionary conservation of DNA sequences provides a tool for the identification of functional elements in genomes. We have created a database of evolutionary conserved regions (ECRs) in vertebrate genomes entitled ECRbase that is constructed from a collection of pairwise vertebrate genome alignments produced by the ECR Browser database. ECRbase features a database of syntenic blocks that recapitulate the evolution of rearrangements in vertebrates and a collection of promoters in all vertebrate genomes presented in the database. The database also contains a collection of annotated transcription factor binding sites (TFBS) in all ECRs and promoter elements. ECRbase currently includes human, rhesus macaque, dog, opossum, rat, mouse, chicken, frog, zebrafish, and two pufferfish genomes. It is freely accessible at http://ECRbase.dcode.org.
The cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) is a highly conserved transcription factor that integrates signaling through the cAMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA) in many eukaryotes. PKA plays a critical role in Dictyostelium development but no CREB homologue has been identified in this system. Here we show that Dictyostelium utilizes a CREB-like protein, BzpF, to integrate PKA signaling during late development. bzpF^- mutants produce compromised spores, which are extremely unstable and germination defective. Previously, we have found that BzpF binds the canonical CRE motif in vitro. In this paper, we determined the DNA binding specificity of BzpF using protein binding microarray (PBM) and showed that the motif with the highest specificity is a CRE-like sequence. BzpF is necessary to ...
Glycyrrhiza glabra root is one of the common traditional Chinese medicines and used as flavoring and sweetening agents for tobaccos, chewing gums, candies, toothpaste and beverages. While glycyrrhizin is one of the main components in the extract of G. glabra root and has been characterized, the other components have not been well characterized. The mechanism of growth activation of breast cancer MCF-7 cells, including the activation of Erk1/2 and Akt, and the transcriptional regulation of estrogen-responsive genes, was examined by means of sulforhodamine B, luciferase reporter gene, real-time RT-PCR and Western blotting assays after the induction of the cells with the extract of G. glabra root. The extract has similar activity to that induced by 17b-estradiol (E2), although glycyrrhizin di...
Limited demand and high cost has prevented the construction of hard rock caverns in this country for a number of years. The storage of natural gas in mined caverns may prove technically feasible if the geology of the targeted market area is suitable; and economically feasible if the cost and convenience of service is competitive with alternative available storage methods for peak supply requirements. It is believed that mined cavern storage can provide the advantages of high delivery rates and multiple fill-withdrawal cycles in areas where salt cavern storage is not possible. In this research project, PB-KBB merged advanced mining technologies and gas refrigeration techniques to develop conceptual designs and cost estimates to demonstrate the commercialization potential of the storage of refrigerated natural gas in hard rock caverns. Five regions of the U.S.A. were studied for underground storage development and PB-KBB reviewed the literature ...
The maintenance of a balance between cell gain and cell loss is essential for proper liver function. The exact role of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) in regulating cell proliferation and apoptosis of liver cells remains unclear, since ligand-dependent activation of AhR has been shown to induce cell cycle arrest, proliferation, differentiation or apoptosis, depending on the cellular model used. AhR can directly interact with retinoblastoma protein in hepatic cells, forming protein complexes that can efficiently block cell cycle progression by inducing G1 arrest, or to induce the expression of inhibitors of cyclin-dependent kinases, such as p271. On the other hand, it has been suggested that AhR could play a stimulatory role in cell proliferation, either directly or by mediating a release from contact inhibition. It is now generally accepted that progenitor cells exist in the liver, are activated in various liver diseases and can form a potential ...
H{sub 2}Gen, with the support of the Department of Energy, successfully designed, built and field-tested two steam methane reformers with 578 kg/day capacity, which has now become a standard commercial product serving customers in the specialty metals and PV manufacturing businesses. We demonstrated that this reformer/PSA system, when combined with compression, storage and dispensing (CSD) equipment could produce hydrogen that is already cost-competitive with gasoline per mile driven in a conventional (non-hybrid) vehicle. We further showed that mass producing this 578 kg/day system in quantities of just 100 units would reduce hydrogen cost per mile approximately 13% below the cost of untaxed gasoline per mile used in a hybrid electric vehicle. If mass produced in quantities of 500 units, hydrogen cost per mile in a FCEV would be 20% below the cost of untaxed gasoline in an HEV in the 2015-2020 time period using EIA fuel cost projections for natural gas and untaxed gasoline, and 45% ...
PurposeWe conducted a comparative study of Clinical Target Volume (CTV) definition of pelvic lymph nodes by multiple GU radiation oncologists looking at the levels...Full Text Available
To capitalize on the response of tumor cells to ionizing radiation, we developed a controlled-release nanoparticle drug delivery system using a targeting peptide that recognizes a radiation-induced...Full Text Available
The role of IGF-I in the negative regulation of GH expression and release is demonstrated by in vitro and in vivo models; however, the targets and mechanisms of IGF-I...Full Text Available
The technology of gene targeting through homologous recombination has been extremely useful for elucidating gene functions in mice. The application of this technology was thought impossible in the large...Full Text Available
The goal of ultrasonic molecular imaging is the detection of targeted contrast agents bound to receptors on endothelial cells. We propose imaging methods that can distinguish adherent microbubbles...Full Text Available
... detected (and reported) as a by-product of MRM screening (MS/MS) targeted by Law or Rule ... detected (and reported) as a by-product of MRM screening (MS/MS) targeted by Law or Rule ...
The phenomenon of antibiotic resistance has created a need for the development of novel antibiotic classes with non-classical cellular targets. Unfortunately, target-based drug discovery against...Full Text Available
Many genetic processes depend on proteins interacting with specific sequences on DNA. Despite the large excess of nonspecific DNA in the cell, proteins can locate their targets rapidly. After initial...Full Text Available
Peroxisomes, glyoxysomes, glycosomes, and hydrogenosomes have each been classified as microbodies, i.e., subcellular organelles with an electron-dense matrix that is bound by a single membrane. We investigated...Full Text Available
Considering accessibility of the 3′UTR is believed to increase the precision of microRNA target predictions. We show that, contrary to common belief, ranking by the hybridization energy or by...Full Text Available
Histone Arg methylation and Lys acetylation have been found to cooperatively regulate the expression of p53 target genes. Peptidylarginine deiminase 4 (PAD4) is an enzyme that citrullinates...Full Text Available
Operant conditioning techniques were applied to the study of how target fixations are controlled by the probability of signal occurrence. In a standard vigilance setting, gaze at three illuminable...Full Text Available
Cytokinesis in animal and fungal cells utilizes a contractile actomyosin ring (AMR). However, how myosin II is targeted to the division site and promotes AMR assembly, and how the AMR coordinates with...Full Text Available
Purposes1. To determine the optimal pelvic nodal clinical target volume for post-operative treatment of endometrial cancer. 2. To compare the DVH of different treatment planning...Full Text Available
c-Jun N-terminal kinase 2 (JNK2) isoforms are transcribed from the jnk2 gene and are highly homologous with jnk1 and jnk3 transcriptional products....Full Text Available
The biological actions of juvenile hormones are well studied; they regulate almost all aspects of an insect’s life. However, the molecular actions of these hormones are not well understood....Full Text Available
The 5'-terminal structures of human adenovirus type 2 (Ad2) early region 2 (E2) mRNA were investigated. The E2 transcription unit has several interesting properties, including the presence of a TATA-like...Full Text Available
In order to study the intragenic profiles of active transcription, we determined the relative levels of active RNA polymerase II present at the 3′- and 5′-ends of 261 yeast genes by...Full Text Available
Simian virus 40 transcriptional complexes could be extracted from CV1 cells late in infection and separated from the bulk of inactive viral chromatin. Sucrose gradient sedimentation, cesium sulfate...Full Text Available
Sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP)-1 is a key transcription factor for the regulation of lipogenic enzyme genes in the liver. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) selectively suppress hepatic...Full Text Available
Histone H3 mRNAs were found in polyA(+) fractions of total RNA prepared from alfalfa plants, calli and somatic embryos. The sequence analysis of cDNAs revealed the presence of a polyA tail on independent...Full Text Available
LIMD1 is a tumour suppressor gene (TSG) down regulated in ∼80% of lung cancers with loss also demonstrated in breast and head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. LIMD1 is also a candidate TSG...Full Text Available
SummaryThe transcriptional co-repressor SMRT utilizes two major receptor interacting domains (RID1 and RID2) to mediate nuclear receptor (NR) signaling through epigenetic modification....Full Text Available
Anaplastic lymphoma kinase-positive, anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALK+ ALCL) is an aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma of T/null immunophenotype that is most prevalent in children and young adults. The...Full Text Available
BackgroundUsing a transcriptional profiling approach, we recently identified myeloid-related protein-8/14 (MRP-8/14) to be expressed by platelets during acute MI....Full Text Available
BackgroundThe large sensitivity, high reproducibility and essentially unlimited dynamic range of real-time PCR to measure gene expression in complex samples provides the opportunity...Full Text Available
Hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF) 4α is a key transcription factor regulating endo/xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes and transporters. We investigated whether microRNAs are involved in the regulation...Full Text Available
The CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β (C/EBPβ) is required for adipocyte differentiation and maturation. We have studied the role of the transcription factor, C/EBPβ,...Full Text Available
BackgroundHerpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) infections can cause a number of diseases ranging from simple cold sores to dangerous keratitis and lethal encephalitis. The interaction...Full Text Available
Stem-boring insects and methyl jasmonate (MeJA) are thought to induce similar complex chemical and anatomical defenses in conifers. To compare insect- and MeJA-induced terpenoid responses, we analyzed...Full Text Available
Recombinant plasmids containing mutant or wild-type adenovirus serotype 2 EIa genes that produce the 12S mRNA alone, the 13S mRNA alone, or both mRNAs were cotransfected into HeLa cells with plasmids...Full Text Available
We have identified another Drosophila GTP-binding protein (G protein) alpha subunit, dGq alpha-3. Transcripts encoding dGq alpha-3 are derived from alternative splicing of the dGq alpha locus previously...Full Text Available
The development of leukemia and thyroid cancer is characterized by activation of the abl oncogene and ret oncogene, respectively. In order to clarify the relationship between these gene aberrations and radiation, the pro-myelogenous leukemia-derived cell line HL60 and the thyroid cancer-derived cell line 8505C, were irradiated in vitro with 100Gy of X-rays. RNA was then extracted from 10"8 cells of the respective cell lines and examined by the reverse transcription PCR method for rearrangements of abl and ret genes. Five kinds of positive bands were observed in the HL-60 cells irradiated with 100Gy of X-ray. Similarly, six positive bands were also observed in the 8505C cells irradiated with 100Gy. In vitro X-irradiation activation of oncogenes found in radiation induced cancers imply that gene rearrangement by X-rays is involved in the development of malignant tumors. Furthermore, in an experiment to detect radiation effects in A-bomb survivors, RNA was extracted ...
The expression status of the estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) and that of the epidermal growth factor receptor Her-2/neu frequently correlate inversely in breast cancers. While ERα-dependent...Full Text Available
The proteins encoded by polar-localized mRNAs play an important role in cell fate specification along the anteroposterior axis of the Drosophila embryo. The only maternally synthesized mRNA known previously...Full Text Available
The aim of this study was to investigate cumulus expansion, nuclear maturation and expression of connexin 43, cyclooxygenase-2 and FSH receptor transcripts in equine cumuli oophori during in vivo and...Full Text Available
Background The identification of sequences that control transcription in metazoans is a major goal of genome analysis. In a previous study, we demonstrated that searching for clusters of predicted transcription factor binding sites could discover active regulatory sequences, and identified 37 regions of the Drosophila melanogaster genome with high densities of predicted binding sites for five transcription factors involved in anterior-posterior embryonic patterning. Nine of these clusters overlapped known enhancers. Here, we report the results of in vivo functional analysis of 27 remaining clusters. Results We generated transgenic flies carrying each cluster attached to a basal promoter and reporter gene, and assayed embryos for reporter gene expression. Six clusters are enhancers of adjacent genes: giant, fushi tarazu, odd-skipped, nubbin, squeeze and pdm2; three drive expression in patterns unrelated to those of ...
The retrovirus-like particles of Drosophila are intermediates of retrotransposition of the transposable element copia. In these particles, a 39-nucleotide-long fragment from the 5' region of Drosophila...Full Text Available
When preadipocytes differentiate into adipocytes, several differentiation-linked genes are activated. Lipo-protein lipase (LPL) is one of the first genes induced during this process. To investigate early events in adipocyte development, we have focused on the transcriptional activation of the LPL gene. For this purpose, we have cloned and fused different parts of intragenic and flanking sequences with a chloramphenicol acetyltransferase reporter gene. Transient transfection experiments and DNase I hypersensitivity assays indicate that several positive as well as negative elements contribute to transcriptional regulation of the LPL gene. When reporter gene constructs were stably introduced into preadipocytes, we were able to monitor and compare the activation patterns of different promoter deletion mutants at selected time points representing the process of adipocyte development. We could delimit two cis-regulatory elements important for gradual ...
In Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb), the Lyme disease spirochete, the alternative σ factor σ54 (RpoN) directly activates transcription of another alternative σ...Full Text Available
AbstractT-box family transcription factors play many roles in Metazoan development. Here we characterise Tbx6r, a unique Tbx6 paralogue isolated from the amphibian Xenopus....Full Text Available
The methylation of lysine 4 of Histone H3 (H3K4me) is an important component of epigenetic regulation. H3K4 methylation is a consequence of transcriptional activity, but also has been shown to contribute...Full Text Available
Microarray is a powerful tool for genome-wide gene expression analysis. In microarray expression data, often mean and variance have certain relationships. We present a non-parametric mean-variance smoothing...Full Text Available
Transcriptional silencing in Saccharomyces cerevisiae occurs at several genetic loci, including the ribosomal DNA (rDNA). Silencing at telomeres (telomere position effect [TPE])...Full Text Available
The goal of the present work was to determine the impact of N3-methyladenine (3-mA), an important lesion generated by many environmental agents and anticancer drugs, on in vivo DNA replication and in vitro RNA transcription. Due to 3-mA chemical instability, the stable isostere 3-methyl-3-deazaadenine (3-m-c(3)A) was site specifically positioned into an oligodeoxynucleotide. The oligomer was, then incorporated into a vector system that is rapidly converted to ssDNA inside yeast cells and requires DNA replication opposite the lesion for plasmid clonal selection. For control purposes, an adenine or a stable apurinic/apyrimidinic (AP)-lesion was placed at the same site. The presence of each lesion in the oligonucleotide was confirmed by MALDI-TOF analysis. Plasmids were then transfected into yeast cells. While the AP-site dramatically reduced plasmid replication in all strains, the 3-m-c(3)A had a slight effect in the rad30 background which significantly increased ...
Tea catechin is one of the compounds that are closely related to obesity and insulin sensitivity. In order to determine the effect of catechin on adipocyte differentiation, we treated 3T3-L1 preadipocytes...Full Text Available
... they assisted in the 2000 attack on the USS Cole? ... List the types of targets that ETA has attacked. ... was at least partially responsible for the attack. ...
... Tanzania, and the attack on the USS COLE. ... vis another has no bearing on the legality of the attack. If the person attacked is a combatant, the use of ...
The production of polarized negative ion beams by collisional pumping is described. Collisional pumping utilizes repeated charge changing collisions in a thick electron-spin-polarized gas or vapor target to form a polarized fast atom beam. The polarized fast atom beam is then partially converted into a polarized negative ion beam in a vapor target. Analysis is presented for a hydrogen beam passing through either a thick polarized H atom target or a thick polarized alkali target. Large polarizations and large currents may be possible.
The production of polarized negative ion beams by ''collisional pumping'' is described. Collisional pumping utilizes repeated charge changing collisions in a thick electron-spin-polarized gas or vapor target to form a polarized fast atom beam. The polarized fast atom beam is then partially converted into a polarized negative ion beam in a vapor target. Analysis is presented for a hydrogen beam passing through either a thick polarized H atom target or a thick polarized alkali target. Large polarizations and large currents may be possible.
While there is growing interest in Real Time Pricing as a competitive tool, its adoption to date has been constrained by wariness on the part of many utilities and many of their customers. That wariness is not misplaced, for Real Time Pricing is not for everyone. In order for both utilities and their customers to benefit, the pricing system must be properly tailored for, and offered to, the appropriate audience. This paper discusses needs for identifying targets, implications of targeting of Real Time Pricing to various types of customers, and implications for design and marketing of such pricing systems. Examples from utility experiences are provided, and recommendations are offered for development of improved targeting of Real Time Pricing.
The EU emissions trading scheme (ETS) was launched in 2005 to cap CO2 emissions from large industrial facilities and electricity producers. The European Commission is currently designing the post 2012 EU ETS, as outlined in COM(2008)16. Novel to this system is that a greater part of the rights will be auctioned. Auctioning in general assures a greater deal of efficiency compared to (certain types of) free allocation, lowers the administrative costs and prevents eventual windfall profits. However, auctioning also implies a potential loss of competitiveness for industry. If no international agreement on future climate policies is reached, firms may not be able to pass on the higher costs to their customers and may be faced with a loss in profitability and the threat of import substitution. In any emission trading scheme with an absolute cap, a relocation of production that is not covered by CO2 targets implies an increase in global CO2 emissions. ...
We apply the framework developed in Target space duality I: general theory. We show that both nonabelian duality and Poisson-Lie duality are examples of the general theory. We propose how the formalism leads to a systematic study of duality by studying few scenarios that lead to open questions in the theory of Lie algebras. We present evidence that there are probably new examples of irreducible target space duality.
This paper illustrates how the techniques developed by the authors for capital cost targeting of mass exchange networks can be applied to determination of capital investment targets for reduction in effluent for existing systems involving mass exchange. The results is an impact diagram which shows the relationship between effluent reduction and capital investment, indicating a region of limiting return on investment as well as the maximum possible reduction in effluent. (au)
In order to facilitate observations of low energy nuclear reactions, a new type recoil mass-separator together with a new gas-jet target system is being developed at the tandem accelerator facility in Kyushu University. The expected mass-resolving power of the separator is 220 for a solid angle of 10 msr and the practical thickness of the gas-jet target will exceed 0.1 atm#centre dot#cm for the light elements of H and He. (author).
A portable fiber optic detector that senses the presence of specific target chemicals by electrostatically attracting the target chemical to an aromatic compound coating on an optical fiber. Attaching the target chemical to the coated fiber reduces the fluorescence so that a photon sensing detector records the reduced light level and activates an appropriate alarm or indicator.
A 16 l liquid parahydrogen target has been developed for a measurement of the parity-violating {gamma}-asymmetry in the capture of polarized cold neutrons on protons in the {rvec n} + p {yields} d + {gamma} reaction by the NPDGamma collaboration. The target system was carefully designed to meet the stringent requirements on systematic effects for the experiment and also to satisfy hydrogen safety requirements. The target was designed to preserve the neutron polarization during neutron scattering on liquid hydrogen (LH{sub 2}), optimize the statistical sensitivity to the {rvec n} + p {yields} d + {gamma} reaction, minimize backgrounds coming from neutron interaction with the beam windows of the target cryostat, minimize LH{sub 2} density fluctuations which can introduce extra noise in the gamma asymmetry signal, and control systematic effects. The target incorporates two mechanical ...
...2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Energy Policy Act target group certification...Acquisition Regulations System DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CLAUSES AND FORMS SOLICITATION...Provisions and Clauses 952.226-73 Energy Policy Act target group...
Certain allelochemicals of the marine dinoflagellate Alexandrium tamarense cause lysis of a broad spectrum of target protist cells but the lytic mechanism is poorly defined. We first hypothesized that membrane sterols serve as molecular targets of these lytic compounds, and that differences in sterol composition among donor and target cells may cause insensitivity of Alexandrium and sensitivity of targets to lytic compounds. We investigated Ca^2^+ influx after application of lytic fractions to a model cell line PC12 derived from a pheochromocytoma of the rat adrenal medulla to establish how the lytic compounds affect ion flux associated with lysis of target membranes. The lytic compounds increased permeability of the cell membrane for Ca^2^+ ions even during blockade of Ca^2^+ channels wit...
A simple electromagnetic transport system was constructed to identify very rare positrons produced in a powerful laser beam interaction with a target. Testing experiments were carried out with CO[sub 2]-laser (10[sup 12] W/cm[sup 2]) beam pulses ([tau] = 50 ns, f = 0.01 Hz) focused on the copper target, as well as with a 96 MeV alpha-particle beam irradiated carbon target. The results showed that the developed system could be effectively used for positron identification and evaluation of their energy by means of a time-of-flight method. The computerized system to deal with this problem, together with others related to the power laser beam interaction with targets, has been constructed. (orig.).
The modeling methods used to compute the neutron-induced activation of target and near-target materials in the NIF facility are presented. A detailed space and energy description of the neutron environment in the different materials is provided. A new capability has been developed to treat in a general way the activation of debris produced in an operational regime of yield and no-yield experiments. First calculations are addressed to analyze the activity of the debris into the target chamber. The contribution of the different components to activity, interior dose rates, and waste disposal rating (WDR) is determined. The importance of the activation coming from primary irradiation in the target, and from secondary irradiation in debris deposited onto the first wall is assessed. Finally, waste hazards of the activated debris when removed out of the chamber and stored are analyzed. (authors)
Using static Michelson interferometer to get the spectrum information of measurement targets for spectrum identification, under the condition that the interference length is constant, the system can be optimized by BP neural network algorithm for the mixed spectral separation process. Thereby it can realize improving the recognition probability of camouflage target. Collecting the spectrum information in field of view (FOV) by the interferometer and linear array CCD detector, composing the set of mixed spectrum data, with known absorption spectrum of the material as a hidden layer of rules, it used BP neural network to separate the mixed spectrum data. Experiment with different distances, different combinations of mixed background spectrum as the initial data, using steel target (size: 1.5 m x 1.5 m) made of four kinds, the recognition probability of non-camouflage target is about 90% by BP neural ...
In the Fourth Dutch National Environmental Outlook (NMP, abbreviated in Dutch) of the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (VROM), published in July 1997, possible future developments in the traffic and transport sector in the Netherlands are described for the period 1995-2020 and also evaluates present Dutch policies. NMP-4 also offers possible solutions for expected environmental problems. This report serves as a background document for the traffic and transport sector. With a view to present Dutch policies, the main conclusions drawn from the Outlook are that: (1) the policy targets for car and lorry use for 2010 will not be met, (2) the target for CO2 emissions from road transport for 2010 will not be met, (3) the NOx emission target for 2010 will be met for cars, but not for trucks, (4) the VOC emission target for 2010 will be met for cars, but not for trucks, and (5) the noise ...
The thermal stability of low-friction Me-C/a-C:H coatings is important for their potential applications in the tool and automotive industry. Recently we showed that CrC _x/a-C:H coatings prepared by unbalanced magnetron sputtering of a Cr target in Ar + CH_4 glow discharges exhibit a nanocomposite structure where metastable fcc CrC nanocrystals are encapsulated by an a-C:H phase. Here, we present the structural evolution of these nanocomposite CrC/a-C:H coatings during annealing. High-temperature X-ray diffraction in vacuum and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) combined with thermo-gravimetric analysis in Ar atmosphere indicate decomposition of the formed metastable fcc CrC phase and subsequent formation of Cr_3C_2 and Cr_7C_3 and structural transformation of the a-C:H matrix phase towards higher sp"2 bonding contents at temperatures above 450 deg. C. Combined DSC and mass spectrometer analysis as well as elemental profiling after ...
Various engine concepts that are in the race to be the dominant bus-engine type five years from now were reviewed. Three types of engines, the Otto cycle (CNG and propane), diesel and DME (dimethyl ether) received most of the attention. Emission standards, engine size and reliability are the main demands on bus engines. Each of these engine concepts were reviewed against these criteria. In terms of emission standards (as measured by the EEV emission limits) Otto cycle engines have the advantage since they are currently in production. Advanced diesel technology is on the prototype level, but not yet in production. DME-engines are still on the testbed, not in the demonstration stage and much less in the production stage. Otto cycle engines also have the most experience with EEV emission limits. Among the Otto-cycle engines, propane-fuelled engines appear to have the upper hand since propane is very cost-effective, whereas CNG tanks and infrastructure are expensive. Diesel engines have ...
This is the Fiscal Year 1995 Annual Report for the Advanced Manufacturing Science and Technology (AMST) sector of Los Alamos Tactical Goal 6, Industrial Partnering. During this past fiscal year, the AMST project leader formed a committee whose members represented the divisions and program offices with a manufacturing interest to examine the Laboratory`s expertise and needs in manufacturing. From a list of about two hundred interest areas, the committee selected nineteen of the most pressing needs for weapon manufacturing. Based upon Los Alamos mission requirements and the needs of the weapon manufacturing (Advanced Design and Production Technologies (ADaPT)) program plan and the other tactical goals, the committee selected four of the nineteen areas for strategic planning and possible industrial partnering. The areas selected were Casting Technology, Constitutive Modeling, Non-Destructive Testing and Evaluation, and Polymer Aging and Lifetime Prediction. For each area, the AMST ...
Tumor-targeted monoclonal antibodies (mAb) might be useful as diagnostic or therapeutic agents when linked to cytotoxic or imaging reagents. Our group is working to test this hypothesis by linking cytocidal and image-producing isotopes to mAb and testing the utility of the radioimmunoconjugates formed in animal model systems. Radioiodines were first employed for these purposes,but unfavorable nuclear properties (half-lives, #gamma#-ray and #beta#-particle energies) and chemical reactivity (deiodination in vivo) limit their utility. Labeling immunoproteins with metallic radionuclides offers more versatility in that the selection of potentially useful radiometals spans the periodic table.Of the metallic radionuclides with physical properties most suited for use with mAb in nuclear medicine, few are more available or desirable than those of bismuth ("2"1"2Bi) and lead ("2"0"3Pb, "2"1"2Pb), as listed in Table 1. "2"1"2Bi or "2"1"2Pb could serve as ...
Purpose: Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is based on the interaction of a photosensitizing (PS) agent, light, and oxygen. Few new PS agents are being developed to the in vivo stage, partly because of the difficulty in finding the right treatment conditions. Response surface methodology, an empirical modeling approach based on data resulting from a set of designed experiments, was suggested as a rational solution with which to select in vivo PDT conditions by using a new peptide-conjugated PS targeting agent, neuropilin-1. Methods and Materials: A Doehlert experimental design was selected to model effects and interactions of the PS dose, fluence, and fluence rate on the growth of U87 human malignant glioma cell xenografts in nude mice, using a fixed drug-light interval. All experimental results were computed by Nemrod-W software and Matlab. Results: Intrinsic diameter growth rate, a tumor growth parameter independent of the initial volume of the tumor, was selected as ...
Many hormones elicit effects on target cells by stimulating the enzyme phospholipase-C, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of phosphoinositides to the intracellular second messengers diacylglycerol and inositol phosphates. The present study examined the roles of FSH and guanine nucleotide-binding proteins (G-proteins) in regulating the hydrolysis of phosphoinositides in Sertoli cells. Sertoli cell cultures prepared from 16- to 18-day-old rats were incubated for 24 h with myo-[2-3H] inositol to label endogenous phospholipids. Treatment of cells from 0.5-20 min with preparations of ovine FSH ranging in potency from 1-60 times that of NIH FSH S1 did not affect accumulation of inositol phosphates. Levels of total [3H]inositol phosphates [[3H]inositol mono-, di-, and triphosphates (IP, IP2, and IP3)] in FSH-treated cultures was 75-120% the levels in control cultures over the various time intervals studied. Addition of testosterone and the combination of testosterone plus ...
In attempting to detect and map out underground facilities, whether they be large-scale hardened deeply-buried targets (HDBT's) or small-scale tunnels for clandestine border or perimeter crossing, seismic imaging using reflections from the tunnel interface has been seen as one of the better ways to both detect and delineate tunnels from the surface. The large seismic impedance contrast at the tunnel/rock boundary should provide a strong, distinguishable seismic response, but in practice, such strong indicators are often lacking. One explanation for the lack of a good seismic reflection at such a strong contrast boundary is that the damage caused by the tunneling itself creates a zone of altered seismic properties that significantly changes the nature of this boundary. This report examines existing geomechanical data that define the extent of an excavation damage zone around underground tunnels, and the potential impact on rock ...
Concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies continue to mature and are being deployed worldwide. Power towers will likely play an essential role in the future development of CSP due to their potential to provide dispatchable solar electricity at a low cost. This Power Tower Technology Roadmap has been developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to describe the current technology, the improvement opportunities that exist for the technology, and the specific activities needed to reach the DOE programmatic target of providing competitively-priced electricity in the intermediate and baseload power markets by 2020. As a first step in developing this roadmap, a Power Tower Roadmap Workshop that included the tower industry, national laboratories, and DOE was held in March 2010. A number of technology improvement opportunities (TIOs) were identified at this workshop and separated into four categories associated with power tower subsystems: solar ...
Protecting Earth and planets against the invasion of 'alien life forms' is not military science fiction, but it is the peaceful daily job of engineers and scientists of space agencies. 'Planetary Protection' is preventing microbial contamination of both the target planet and the Earth when sending robots on interplanetary space mission. It is important to preserve the 'natural' conditions of other planets and to not bring with robots 'earthly microbes' (forward contamination) when looking for 'spores of extra terrestrial life'. The Earth and its biosphere must be protected from potential extraterrestrial biological contamination when returning samples of other planets to the Earth (backward contamination). The NASA-Caltech Laboratory for Planetary Protection of Dr. Kasthuri Venkateswaran at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) (California, USA) routinely monitors and characterizes the microbes of NASA spacecraft assembly rooms and space robots ...
Formaldehyde, a well-identified indoor pollutant, was recently classified as carcinogenic. New regulations for the air quality are expected and therefore there is a need for low-cost sensors, sensitive and selective with a fast response time for the detection of formaldehyde at ppb level. In the present work, we had developed a chemical sensor based on nano-porous matrices doped with Fluoral-P and optical methods of detection. The nano-porous matrices, elaborated via the Sol-Gel process, display nano-pores whose cavity is tailored for the trapping of the targeted pollutant. They provide a first selectivity with the discrimination of the pollutants by their size. A second selectivity is obtained with a molecular probe, Fluoral-P, which reacts specifically with formaldehyde leading to the 3,5- di-acetyl-1,4-dihydro-lutidine (DDL). The kinetics of formation of DDL was studied as function of many parameters such as the concentration of Fluoral-P in the matrix, the ...
Insulitis is considered the histopathological hallmark of type I diabetes. In the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse, diabetes has never been observed in the absence of insulitis. The in vivo detection of insulitis could be of relevance for early prediction of diabetes. As approximately 15% of islet-infiltrating lymphocytes express interleukin 2 receptors, the authors have labelled recombinant inter-leukin 2 with "1"2"3I and used this radiopharmaceutical to detect insulitis by gamma camera imaging. The authors studied 71 prediabetic NOD and 27 normal Balb/c mice. Labelled #alpha#-lactalbumin was used as the control protein. In the first set of experiments the tissue distribution of radiolabelled interleukin 2 in isolated organs from animals sacrificed at different time points was studied. Higher radioactivity was detected in the pancreas of NOD mice injected with labelled interleukin 2, as compared to NOD mice receiving labelled #alpha#-lactalbumin. In another set of experiments, gamma ...
The objective of this paper is to reveal to what degree bio-based jet fuels (bio-jet) can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the US aviation sector. A model of the supply and demand chain of bio-jet involving farmers, bio-refineries, airlines, and policymakers is developed by considering factors that drive the decisions of actors (i.e. decision-makers and stakeholders) in the life cycle stages. Two kinds of feedstock are considered: oil-producing feedstock (i.e. camelina and algae) and lignocellulosic biomass (i.e. corn stover, switchgrass, and short rotation woody crops). By factoring in farmer/ feedstock producer and bio-refinery profitability requirements, land availability and suitability, as well as a time delay factor, a more realistic estimate of the level of bio-jet supply and emissions reduction can be developed under different oil price assumptions. Factors that drive bio-jet GHG emissions and unit production costs from each feedstock are identified and quantified. ...
This annual report describes the progress during the fifth year of the project which is targeted towards improving the reservoir performance of mature oil fields located in fluvially dominated deltaic geological environments. The project involves using an integrated approach to characterize the reservoir followed by proposing an appropriate reservoir management strategy to improve the field performance. In the first stage of the project, the type data the authors integrated include cross borehole seismic surveys, geological interpretation based on the logs and the cores, and the engineering information. In contrast, during the second stage of the project, they intend to use only conventional data to construct the reservoir description. This report covers the results of the implementation from the first stage of the project. It also discusses the work accomplished so far for the second stage of the project. The production from the Self Unit (location of Stage I) has ...
Based on the IAPWS technical guidance on ''Instrumentation for Monitoring and Control of Cycle Chemistry for Steam-Water Circuits of Fossil-Fired and Combined Cycle Power Plants,'' the latest situation regarding instrumentation for nuclear power plants is discussed. As a result of the discussion, it is concluded that: (1) Reliable and safe operation of plants is established by the application of suitable chemical conditions in plant cooling systems, which should be supported by the selection of suitable control targets for monitoring and by the application of reliable instruments. (2) The minimum level of key instrumentation consists of on-line as well as off-line instruments for monitoring the key parameters: - on-line: pH, conductivity, cation conductivity, O{sub 2} and H{sub 2} concentrations, electrochemical corrosion potential; - off-line: radioactive nuclides ({sup 60}Co, {sup 58}Co, {sup 131}I, etc.), ...
Inhibition of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway is an appealing method for decreasing the immunoresistance and augmenting T cell-mediated immunotherapy. A major impediment to this strategy is the impact of conventional PI3K/mTOR pathway inhibitors on T cell function. In particular, rapamycin, is a well-known immunosuppressant that can decrease the activity of the PI3K/mTOR pathway in tumor cells, but also has a profound inhibitory effect on T cells. Here we show that Honokiol, a natural dietary product isolated from an extract of seed cones from Magnolia grandiflora, can decrease PI3K/mTOR pathway-mediated immunoresistance of glioma, breast and prostate cancer cell lines, without affecting critical proinflammatory T cell functions. Specifically, we show that at doses sufficient to down-regulate levels of phospho-S6 and the negative immune regulator B7-H1 in tumor cells, Honokiol does not significantly impair T cell ...
We describe the synthesis and characterization of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticle based heavy metal sorbents with various surface chemistries that demonstrate an excellent affinity for the separation of heavy metals in contaminated water systems (i.e. spiked Columbia river water). The magnetic nanoparticle sorbents are prepared from an easy to synthesize iron oxide precursor, followed by a simple, one-step ligand exchange technique to introduce the organic surface functionality of interest chosen to target either specific or broader classes of heavy metals. Functionalized superparamagnetic nanoparticles are excellent sorbent materials for the extraction of heavy metal contaminants from environmental and clinical samples since they are easily removed from the media once bound to the contaminant by simply applying a magnetic field. These engineered magnetic nanoparticle sorbents have an inherently high active surface area (often > 100 m2/g), allowing for ...
One of the challenges facing Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects today is their limited ability to secure financing for the underlying greenhouse gas emission reduction activities, particularly in the least developed countries. Among the key reasons for this is the fact that most financial intermediaries in the CDM host countries have limited or no knowledge of the CDM Modalities and Procedures. Moreover, approaches, tools and skills for CDM project appraisal are lacking or are asymmetrical to the skills in comparable institutions in developed countries. Consequently, developing country financial institutions are unable to properly evaluate the risks and rewards associated with investing or lending to developers undertaking CDM projects, and therefore have, by-and-large, refrained from financing these projects. In addition, some potential project proponents lack experience in structuring arrangements for financing a project. This Guidebook - commissioned by ...
If geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) are to make a significant mark in the market, we believe that it will be through energy service pricing contracts offered by retailcos. The benefits of GHPs are ideally suited to energy service pricing (ESP) contractual arrangements; however, few retailcos are thoroughly familiar with the benefits of GHPs. Many of the same barriers that have prevented GHPs from reaching their full potential in the current market environment remain in place for retailcos. A lack of awareness, concerns over the actual efficiencies of GHPs, perceptions of extremely high first costs, unknown records for maintenance costs, etc. have all contributed to limited adoption of GHP technology. These same factors are of concern to retailcos as they contemplate long term customer contracts. The central focus of this project was the creation of models, using actual GHP operating data and the experience of seasoned professionals, to simulate the financial ...
In many parts of the United States, as well as other regions of the world, competing demands for fresh water or water suitable for desalination are outstripping sustainable supplies. In these areas, new water supplies are necessary to sustain economic development and agricultural uses, as well as support expanding populations, particularly in the Southwestern United States. Increasing the supply of water will more than likely come through desalinization of water reservoirs that are not suitable for present use. Surface-deployed seismic and electromagnetic (EM) methods have the potential for addressing these critical issues within large volumes of an aquifer at a lower cost than drilling and sampling. However, for detailed analysis of the water quality, some sampling utilizing boreholes would be required with geophysical methods being employed to extrapolate these sampled results to non-sampled regions of the aquifer. The research in this report addresses using ...
The Cretaceous rudist-bearing carbonates of the Arabian Gulf region are proven exploration targets for hydrocarbons and form the reservoirs of a number of giant fields, including Bu Hasa, Fateh, Fahud, Idd El Shargi, Rumaila, Shaybah, and Shah. Rudist buildups occur in three principal formations: (1) Aptian Shuaiba, (2) Cenomanian Mishrif, and (3) Maastrichtian Simsima. A regional subaerial unconformity marks the upper boundary of each of these formations. Associated with the rudists that dominate the Shuaiba Formation are calcareous algal crusts, foraminifera, and echinoid plates, which accumulated in mudstone, packstone, and carbonate sands. The Mishrif Formation contains mollusk fragments, bioclasitc packstones to grainstones, miliolid and nonrudist bivalves in muddy limestones, and rudist (mainly radiolitids and caprinids) conglomeratic floatstones, with fragmented rudists mixed with wackestone lithoclasts. The Mishrif sediments accumulated as a progradational, ...
This report describes the results of a program conducted at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) and Westinghouse Hanford Company (WHC) to identify alternative methods to measure the surface level in the waste tanks. This program examined commercially available devices for measuring the distance to a target. This is a continuation of a program started in FY93. In the first test sequence, tests were performed.on five devices to determine their applicability to measure the surface level in the waste tanks. The devices were the Enraf-Nonius{trademark} Model 872 Radar Gauge, the Enraf-Nonius{trademark} Model 854 Advanced Technology Gauge (ATG), the Stanley Tool Laser Measuring Device, the Robertshaw Inven-Tel{reg_sign} Precision Level Gauge, and the Micro Switch Model 942 Acoustic Sensor. In addition, discussions were held with several manufacturer representatives regarding other potential devices. The results of these tests were documented in a ...
Several short-lived, high-energy beta emitters are being proposed as the radionuclide components for molecular-targetedpotential cancer therapeutic agents. The laboratory mice used to determine the efficacy of these new agents have organs that are relatively small compared to the ranges of these high-energy particles. The dosimetry model developed by Hui et al. was extended to provide realistic beta-dose estimates for organs in mice that received therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals containing 90Y, 188Re, 166Ho, 149Pm, 64Cu, and 177 Lu. Major organs in this model included the liver, spleen, kidneys, lungs, heart, stomach, small and large bowel, thyroid, pancreas, bone, marrow, carcass, and a 0.025-g tumor. The study as reported in this paper verifies their results for 90Y and extends them by using their organ geometry factors combined with newly calculated organ self-absorbed fractions from PEREGRINE and MCNP. PEREGRINE and MCNP agree to within 8% ...
'Energy Nation Norway' looks at Norway as an energy nation from both a national and an international perspective. Its purpose is to provide a basis for political and industrial decisions relating to the petroleum industry. The report is particular concerned with the petroleum sector, besides considering the Norwegian energy cluster from a broader perspective. The energy cluster has been and will continue to be a crucial vehicle for economic growth and the development of wealth in Norway. These are the report's main conclusions: The petroleum industry has played a significant part in Norway's economic development, the side-effects of which have benefited the country's entire population. The world's economic growth and wealth development require energy. In the next few decades oil and gas will continue to form a large part of the world's energy consumption. Norway has great opportunities and competitive advantages over other ...
This paper presents efforts to date and prospective goals towards development of a modelling and analysis framework which is comprehensive enough to address the global climate crisis, and detailed enough to provide policymakers with concrete targets and achievable outcomes. In terms of energy efficiency policy, this requires coverage of the entire world, with emphasis on countries and regions with large and/or rapidly growing energy-related emissions, and analysis at the 'technology' level-building end use, transport mode or industrial process. These elements have not been fully addressed by existing modelling efforts, which usually take either a top-down approach, or concentrate on a few fully industrialized countries where energy demand is well-understood. Inclusion of details such as appliance ownership rates, use patterns and efficiency levels throughout the world allows for a deeper understanding of the demand for energy today and, more ...
Perinatal exposure to cadmium (Cd) or methylmercury (MeHg) results in impaired neurodevelopment. Thyroid hormone is essential for normal brain development. However, the issue whether Cd or MeHg, especially at low doses, interrupts thyroid hormone action remains to be investigated. In the present study, effects of perinatal exposure to low levels of Cd or MeHg on thyroid hormone metabolism were examined using metallothionein I and II (MT-I/II) null or wild-type neonatal mice. Dams were exposed to 10 mg/L water of Cd or 5 mg/kg chow of MeHg from gestational day 0 to post-natal day 10 (PND 10). Sera, livers and brains were collected from neonates on PND 10. Iodothyronine deiodinase activities and serum thyroxine (T4) concentrations were measured. MeHg exposure failed to induce changes in serum T4 levels and liver type 1 deiodinase (D1) and brain type 2 deiodinase (D2) activities regardless of the MT genotype. However, exposure to MeHg resulted in a decrease in brain type 3 deiodinase (D3) ...
Besides differentiation and apoptosis, cell migration is a basic process in brain development in which neural cells migrate several centimeters within the developing brain before reaching their proper positions and forming the right connections. For identifying signaling events that control neural migration and are therefore potentialtargets of chemicals to disturb normal brain development, we developed a human neurosphere-based migration assay based on normal human neural progenitor (NHNP) cells, in which the distance is measured that cells wander over time. Applying this assay, we investigated the role of the extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) in the regulation of NHNP cell migration. Exposure to model substances like ethanol or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) revealed a correlation between ERK1/2 activation and cell migration. The participation of phospho-(P-) ERK1/2 was confirmed by exposure of the cells to the ...
Autoreactive cytotoxic CD8 T-cells (CTLs) play a key pathogenic role in the destruction of insulin-producing beta-cells resulting in type 1 diabetes. However, knowledge regarding their targets is limited, restricting the ability to monitor the course of the disease and immune interventions. In a multi-step discovery process to identify novel CTL epitopes in human preproinsulin (PPI), PPI was digested with purified human proteasomes, and resulting COOH-fragments aligned with algorithm-predicted HLA-binding peptides to yield nine potential HLA-A1, -A2, -A3 or -B7-restricted candidates. An UV-exchange method allowed the generation of a repertoire of multimers including low-affinity HLA-binding peptides. These were labeled with quantum dot-fluorochromes and encoded in a combinatorial fashion, allowing parallel and sensitive detection of specific, low-avidity T-cells. Significantly increased frequencies of T-cells against four novel PPI epitopes ...
Oryctes agamemnon (Burmeister 1847) (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) was accidentally introduced in the southwestern oases of Tunisia (Tozeur) around 1980 and spread to the Rjim Maatoug region. In these areas O. agamemnon was specific to date palm trees causing severe damage that can result in potential danger due to collapse of the tree. This study was conducted from April 2004 to March 2006 in 4 sites in the region of Rjim Maatoug. Different levels of palm tree attack were determined, ovioposition sites were identified, and pest damage was described in detail to specify their relative importance and to indicate factors governing palm tree attack. Eggs were individually oviposited in the attacked parts. Dead parts of palm trees were the main target of O. agamemnon including the respiratory roots, tough, trunk bark, dry petiole and the periphery of the crown. The crown itself was not attacked. Feeding by larvae caused significant damage. The biggest ...
A wide variety of thin film coatings, deposited by different techniques and with potential applications in various important areas, have been characterised by the Phase Modulated Spectroscopic Ellipsometer, installed recently in the Spectroscopy Division, B.A.R.C. The Phase Modulated technique provides a faster and more accurate data acquisition process than the conventional ellipsometry. The measured Ellipsometry spectra are fitted with theoretical spectra generated assuming an appropriate model regarding the sample. The fittings have been done objectively by minimising the squared difference (#chi#"2) between the measured and calculated values of the ellipsometric parameters and thus accurate information have been derived regarding the thickness and optical constants (viz, the refractive index and extinction coefficient) of the different layers, the surface roughness and the inhomogeneities present in the layers. Measurements have been done on (i) ion-implanted ...
This article is a case study of an Internet chat room outreach project in Perth, Western Australia. The CyberReach project sought to adapt current peer based health promotion outreach, training and supervision frameworks to an online outreach setting in a way that was effective and supported by the online community. It targeted marginalised groups to trial the provision of online mental and sexual health promotion incorporating a participatory action research model into its development and implementation. Three 6-week trial periods were conducted and significant changes were made in response to changes in the online environment and to improve sustainability and effectiveness of the protocols. Four themes arose from CyberReach's experience: online group processes are unique due to the creation of extensive personal networks and occurrence of disclosure without face-to-face contact across potentially large geographic barriers; flexibility is ...
Due to depletion of fossil fuel, bio-fuels have generated a significant interest as an alternative fuel for the future. The use of bio-fuels to fuel gas turbine seems a viable solution for the problems of decreasing fossil-fuel reserves and environmental concerns. Bio-fuels are alternative fuels, made from renewable sources and having environmental benefit. In recent years, the desire for energy independence, foreseen depletion of nonrenewable fuel resources, fluctuating petroleum fuel costs, the necessity of stimulating agriculture based economy, and the reality of climate change have created an interest in the development of bio-fuels. The application of bio-fuels in automobiles and heating applications is increasing day by day. Therefore the use of these fuels in gas turbines would extend this application to aviation field. The impact of costly petroleum-based aviation fuel on the environment is harmful. So the development of alternative fuels in aviation is important and useful. ...
Purpose: An inverse treatment planning algorithm for tomotherapy is described. Methods and Materials: The algorithm iteratively computes a set of nonnegative beam intensity profiles that minimizes the least-squares residual dose defined in the target and selected normal tissue regions of interest. At each iteration the residual dose distribution is transformed into a set of residual beam profiles using an inversion method derived from filtered backprojection image reconstruction theory. These 'residual' profiles are used to correct the current beam profile estimates resulting in new profile estimates. Adaptive filtering is incorporated into the inversion model so that the gross structure of the dose distribution is optimized during initial iterations of the algorithm, and the fine structure corresponding to edges is obtained at later iterations. A three dimensional, kernel based, convolution/superposition dose model is used to compute dose during each iteration. ...
Over the past 40 years, cavern storage of LPG's, petrochemicals, such as ethylene and propylene, and other petroleum products has increased dramatically. In 1991, the Gas Processors Association (GPA) lists the total U.S. underground storage capacity for LPG's and related products of approximately 519 million barrels (82.5 million cubic meters) in 1,122 separate caverns. Of this total, 70 are hard rock caverns and the remaining 1,052 are caverns in salt deposits. However, along the eastern seaboard of the U.S. and the Pacific northwest, salt deposits are not available and therefore, storage in hard rocks is required. Limited demand and high cost has prevented the construction of hard rock caverns in this country for a number of years. The storage of natural gas in mined caverns may prove technically feasible if the geology of the targeted market area is suitable; and economically feasible if the cost and convenience of service is competitive with ...
The report presents a long-range plan for a broad-based, coordinated research, development and market transformation program for reducing the lighting energy intensities in commercial and residential buildings in California without compromising lighting quality. An effective program to advance lighting energy efficiency in California must be based on an understanding that lighting is a mature field and the lighting industry has developed many specialized products that meet a wide variety of light needs for different building types. Above all else, the lighting field is diverse and there are applications for a wide range of lighting products, systems, and strategies. Given the range of existing lighting solutions, an effective energy efficient lighting research portfolio must be broad-based and diverse to match the diversity of the lighting market itself. The belief that there is one solution--a magic bullet, such as a better lamp, for example--that will propel lighting efficiency ...
As part of an ongoing strategic research project to find barrels of radioactive waste off San Francisco, the U.S. Navy (USN), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary (GFNMS) pooled their expertise, resources, and technology to form a partnership to verify new computer enhancement techniques developed for detecting targets the size of 55 gallon barrels on sidescan sonar images. Between 1946 and 1970, approximately 47,800 large barrels and other containers of radioactive waste were dumped in the ocean west of San Francisco; the containers litter an area of the sea floor of at least 1400 km {sup 2} knows as the Farallon Island Radioactive Waste Dump. The exact location of the containers and the potential hazard the containers pose to the environment is unknown. The USGS developed computer techniques and contracted with private industry to enhance sidescan data, collected in cooperation with the ...
We investigate the relationship between spiral arms and star formation in the grand-design spirals NGC 5194 and NGC 628 and in the flocculent spiral NGC 6946. Filtered maps of near-IR (3.6 #mu#m) emission allow us to identify 'arm regions' that should correspond to regions of stellar mass density enhancements. The two grand-design spirals show a clear two-armed structure, while NGC 6946 is more complex. We examine these arm and interarm regions, looking at maps that trace recent star formation-far-ultraviolet (GALEX NGS) and 24 #mu#m emission (Spitzer SINGS)-and cold gas-CO (HERACLES) and H I (THINGS). We find the star formation tracers and CO more concentrated in the spiral arms than the stellar 3.6 #mu#m flux. If we define the spiral arms as the 25% highest pixels in the filtered 3.6 #mu#m images, we find that the majority (60%) of star formation tracers occur in the interarm regions; this result persists qualitatively even when considering the potential impact ...
The aim of this paper is to obtain the effective potential of the non-topological soliton model at finite temperature with the assumption that the chemical potential {mu} of the system is different from zero and to analyse how the effective potential is influenced by changes in the chemical potential and temperature. (author)
Because of limitation on neutron-incident data, it is difficult to obtain global optical model potential for neutrons. In contrast, there are some global optical model potentials for proton in detail. It is interesting to convert the proton-incident global optical potentials into neutron-incident ones. In this study we introduce (N-Z)/A dependent symmetry potential terms into the global proton-incident optical potentials, and then obtain neutron-incident ones. The neutron potentials reproduce total cross sections in an acceptable degree. However, a comparison with potentials proposed by other authors brings about a confused situation in the sign of the symmetry terms. (author).
Purpose: Various published reports involving intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) plans developed using automated optimization (inverse planning) have demonstrated highly conformal plans. These reported conformal IMRT plans involve significant target dose inhomogeneity, including both overdosage and underdosage within the target volume. In this study, we demonstrate the development of optimized beamlet IMRT plans that satisfy rigorous dose homogeneity requirements for all target volumes (e.g., #+-#5%), while also sparing the parotids and other normal structures. Methods and Materials: The treatment plans of 15 patients with oropharyngeal cancer who were previously treated with forward-planned multisegmental IMRT were planned again using an automated optimization system developed in-house. The optimization system allows for variable sized beamlets computed using a three-dimensional convolution/superposition dose ...
The levels of General Transcription Factor (TF) IIA were examined during mammalian brain development and in rat embryo fibroblasts and transformed cell lines. The large TFIIA subunit paralogues ab and t are largely produced in unsynchronized cell lines, yet only TFIIA ab is observed in a number of differentiated tissue extracts. Steady-state protein levels of the TFIIA t, ab, and g subunits were significantly reduced when human embryonal (ec) and hepatic carcinoma cell lines were stimulated to differentiate with either all-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA) or sodium butyrate. ATRA-treated NT2-ec cells required replating to induce a neuronal phenotype and loss of detectable TFIIA t and g proteins. High levels of TFIIA t, ab, and g and Sp factors were identified in extracts from human fetal and rat...
The loss of #alpha#-globin gene transcriptional activity rarely occurs as an acquired abnormality during the evolution of myeloproliferative disease or preleukemia. To test whether the mutation responsible for the loss of #alpha#-globin gene expression (hemoglobin H disease) in these patients is linked with the #alpha#-globin genes on chromosome 16, the authors transferred chromosome 16 from preleukemic patients with acquired hemoglobin H disease to mouse erythroleukemia cells and measured the transcriptional activity of the human #alpha#-globin genes. After transfer to mouse erythroleukemia cells, the expression of human #alpha#-globin genes from the peripheral blood or marrow cells of preleukemic patients with acquired hemoglobin H disease was similar to that of human #alpha#-globin genes transferred to mouse erythroleukemia cells from normal donors. These data showed that factor(s) in the mouse erythroleukemia cell can genetically complement ...
NFAT involvement in adipocyte physiological processes was examined by treatment with CsA and/or GSK3{beta} inhibitors (Li{sup +} or TZDZ-8), which prevent or increase NFAT nuclear translocation, respectively. CsA treatment reduced basal and TNF{alpha}-induced rates of lipolysis by 50%. Adipocytes preincubated with Li{sup +} or TZDZ-8 prior to CsA and/or TNF{alpha}, exhibited enhanced basal rates of lipolysis and complete inhibition of CsA-mediated decreased rates of lipolysis. CsA treatment dramatically reduced the mRNA levels of adipocyte-specific genes (aP2, HSL, PPAR{gamma}, ACS and Adn), compared with control or TNF{alpha}-treatment, whereas Li{sup +} pretreatment blocked the inhibitory effects of CsA, and mRNA levels of aP2, HSL, PPAR{gamma}, and ACS were found at or above control levels. NFAT nuclear localization, assessed by EMSA, confirmed that CsA or Li{sup +} treatments inhibited or increased NFAT nuclear translocation, respectively. These results show that NFAT proteins in ...
Metabolic engineering of photosynthetic organisms is required for utilization of light energy and for reducing carbon emissions.Control of transcriptional regulators is a powerful approach for changing cellular dynamics, because a set of genes is concomitantly regulated. Here, we show that overexpression of a group 2 ? factor, SigE, enhances the expressions of sugar catabolic genes in the unicellular cyanobacterium, Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. Transcriptome analysis revealed that genes for the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway and glycogen catabolism are induced by overproduction of SigE. Immunoblotting showed that protein levels of sugar catabolic enzymes, such as glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase, glycogen phosphorylase, and isoamylase, are increased. Glycogen levels are reduced in the SigE-overexpressing strain grown under light. Metabolome analysis revealed that metabolite levels of the TCA cycle and acetyl-CoA are ...
Epidemiological studies have revealed that butyrate and 17?-estradiol (E2) may decrease the incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC). In peripheral tissue, E2 can be produced locally by 17?-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 1 (HSD17B1) estrone (E1) reduction. Using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and western blotting analysis, we found that sodium butyrate significantly upregulates HSD17B1 long and short transcripts and protein levels in HT29 and SW707 CRC cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis showed that upregulation of these transcript levels correlated with an increase in binding of Polymerase II to proximal and distal promoters of HSD17B1. Moreover, we observed that upregulation of HSD17B1 protein levels was associated with increased conversion of E1 to E2 in HT29 and S...
Boron (B) is an essential plant micronutrient that is toxic at higher levels. NIP5;1 is a boric acid channel required for B uptake and growth under B deficiency. Accumulation of the NIP5;1 transcript is upregulated under B deficiency in Arabidopsis thaliana roots. To elucidate the mechanism of regulation, the 5' untranslated region (UTR) of NIP5;1 was tested for its ability to confer B-dependent regulation using ?-glucuronidase and green fluorescent protein as reporters. This analysis showed that the 5' UTR was involved in NIP5;1 transcript accumulation in response to B conditions. We also found that high-B conditions trigger NIP5;1 mRNA degradation and that the sequence from +182 to +200 bp in the 5' UTR is required for this mRNA destabilization. In the nip5;1-1 mutant background, a NIP5;1 complementation construct without the 5' UTR produced high levels of mRNA accumulation, increased B concentrations in tissues, and reduced growth under ...
We describe a method for affinity purification of sequence-specific DNA binding proteins that is fast and effective. Complementary chemically synthesized oligodeoxynucleotides that contain a recognition site for a sequence-specific DNA binding protein are annealed and ligated to give oligomers. This DNA is then covalently coupled to Sepharose CL-2B with cyanogen bromide to yield the affinity resin. A partially purified protein fraction is combined with competitor DNA and subsequently passed through the DNA-Sepharose resin. The desired sequence-specific DNA binding protein is purified because it preferentially binds to the recognition sites in the affinity resin rather than to the nonspecific competitor DNA in solution. For example, a protein fraction that is enriched for transcription factor Sp1 can be further purified 500- to 1000-fold by two sequential affinity chromatography steps to give Sp1 of an estimated 90% homogeneity with 30% yield. In addition, the use ...
The online communicative environment is expected to revolutionize political discourse as it expands to cover underrepresented groups and ideas. In this platform, marginalized groups such as indigenous communities from the developing world can articulate claims, strategically mobilize and participate in the forms of meaning-making that constitute them. However, there is skepticism on the actual value of online spaces in effecting agency in an internet-mediated environment. Using James Scott's notion of 'hidden transcripts' and Andrew Feenberg's 'democratic rationalization of technology', the paper explores strategic approaches and historical, social, and political conditions embedded in the construction, negotiation, and transformation of indigenous online activist media. In-depth interview...
Redd1, a recently discovered stress-response gene, is regulated by hypoxia via hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) and by DNA damage via p53/p63; however, the signaling pathway by which its expression is induced by hypoxia has not been elucidated. We demonstrated that the up-regulation of Redd1 transcription by hypoxia and high cell density (HCD) depends on cooperation between Sp1 and HIF-1#alpha# downstream of the PI3K/Akt pathway.
Innate immune responses are regulated by microorganisms and cell death, as well as by a third class of stress signal from the nervous and endocrine systems. The innate immune system also feeds back, through the production of cytokines, to regulate the function of the central nervous system (CNS), and this has effects on behaviour. These signals provide an extrinsic regulatory circuit that links physiological, social and environmental conditions, as perceived by the CNS, with transcriptional 'decision-making' in leukocytes. CNS-mediated regulation of innate immune responses optimizes total organism fitness and provides new opportunities for therapeutic control of chronic infectious, inflammatory and neuropsychiatric diseases.
Transdifferentiation of an individual's own cells into functional differentiated cells to replace an organ's lost function would be a personalized approach to therapeutics. In this two part series, we will describe the progress toward establishing functional transdifferentiated adrenal cortical cells. In this article (Part 1), we describe adrenal development and function, and discuss genes involved in these processess and selected for use in our pilot studies of transdifferentiation that are presented in the second article (Part 2).
Comparative sequence analysis of the human and the pufferfish Fugu rubripes (fugu) genomes has revealed several novel functional coding and noncoding regions in the human genome. In particular, the fugu genome has been extremely valuable for identifying transcriptional regulatory elements in human loci harboring unusually high levels of evolutionary conservation to rodent genomes. In such regions, the large evolutionary distance between human and fishes provides an additional filter through which functional noncoding elements can be detected with high efficiency.
Two aspects of the chromatin repeat length (r_l) are discussed: (i) Why is r_l longer for slowly dividing cells than in rapidly dividing cells?, and (ii) Why is the temporal evolution of r_l a decreasing function of time (t) in mammalian cortical neurons whereas it is an increasing function of t for granule cells around the time of birth? These questions are discussed in terms of a hypothesis which assumes a correlation between deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) packaging, transcription, and replication. (author). 27 refs.
The herpes simplex virus type 1 thymidine kinase (HSV1-TK) reporter system is being used to directly and indirectly monitor therapeutic gene expression, immune cell trafficking and protein-protein interactions in various living animals. However, the issues of HSV1-TK enzyme stability in living cells and whether this reporter system is optimal for dynamic studies of gene expression events in genetic imaging have not be addressed. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the application of this reporter system in dynamic studies of transcriptional gene regulation. To achieve this purpose, we established two tetracycline-inducible murine sarcoma cell lines, tetracycline-turn-off HSV1-tk-expressing cell line (NG4TL4/tet-off-HSV1-tk) and tetracycline-turn-off Luc-expressing cell line (NG4TL4/tet-off-Luc), to create an artificially regulated gene expression model in vitro. The dynamic transcriptional events mediating a series of doxycycline ...
The production methods for seven radioisotopes, Ga-67, Sr-85, Pd-103, In-111, Tm-167, Hg-197 and Pb-203, by using a classical 1.5m cyclotron in the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering, Obninsk, USSR, are described. At present, more than 50 cyclotrons in different countries are used for the production of radioisotopes applied to medicine. Radioisotopes are produced with the cyclotron in the I.Ph.P.E. in the form of irradiated targets, which are delivered to Moscow radiopharmaceutical factory, where radiopharmaceuticals are produced on the base of these targets. The cyclotron is operated in two regimes providing the acceleration of protons, deuterons and alpha -particles. Two types of target assemblies are used for irradiation, the one is intended for the internal beam, and the other is for the external beam. The reactions used for the production of seven radioisotopes described above, the types of ...