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Sample records for expressions quadruplement priodiques

  1. Quadrupling Inhaled Glucocorticoid Dose to Abort Asthma Exacerbations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKeever, Tricia; Mortimer, Kevin; Wilson, Andrew; Walker, Samantha; Brightling, Christopher; Skeggs, Andrew; Pavord, Ian; Price, David; Duley, Lelia; Thomas, Mike; Bradshaw, Lucy; Higgins, Bernard; Haydock, Rebecca; Mitchell, Eleanor; Devereux, Graham; Harrison, Timothy

    2018-03-08

    Asthma exacerbations are frightening for patients and are occasionally fatal. We tested the concept that a plan for patients to manage their asthma (self-management plan), which included a temporary quadrupling of the dose of inhaled glucocorticoids when asthma control started to deteriorate, would reduce the incidence of severe asthma exacerbations among adults and adolescents with asthma. We conducted a pragmatic, unblinded, randomized trial involving adults and adolescents with asthma who were receiving inhaled glucocorticoids, with or without add-on therapy, and who had had at least one exacerbation in the previous 12 months. We compared a self-management plan that included an increase in the dose of inhaled glucocorticoids by a factor of 4 (quadrupling group) with the same plan without such an increase (non-quadrupling group), over a period of 12 months. The primary outcome was the time to a first severe asthma exacerbation, defined as treatment with systemic glucocorticoids or an unscheduled health care consultation for asthma. A total of 1922 participants underwent randomization, of whom 1871 were included in the primary analysis. The number of participants who had a severe asthma exacerbation in the year after randomization was 420 (45%) in the quadrupling group as compared with 484 (52%) in the non-quadrupling group, with an adjusted hazard ratio for the time to a first severe exacerbation of 0.81 (95% confidence interval, 0.71 to 0.92; P=0.002). The rate of adverse effects, which were related primarily to local effects of inhaled glucocorticoids, was higher in the quadrupling group than in the non-quadrupling group. In this trial involving adults and adolescents with asthma, a personalized self-management plan that included a temporary quadrupling of the dose of inhaled glucocorticoids when asthma control started to deteriorate resulted in fewer severe asthma exacerbations than a plan in which the dose was not increased. (Funded by the Health Technology

  2. The extension of quadrupled xed point results in K-metric spaces

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ghasem Soleimani Rad

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Recently, Rahimi et al. [Comp. Appl. Math. 2013, In press] dened the conceptof quadrupled xed point in K-metric spaces and proved several quadrupled  xed point theorems for solid cones on K-metric spaces. In this paper some quadrupled xed point results for T-contraction on K-metric spaces without normality condition are proved. Obtained results extend and generalize well-known comparable results in the literature.

  3. Sandwich-type tetrakis(phthalocyaninato) dysprosium-cadmium quadruple-decker SMM.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hailong; Qian, Kang; Wang, Kang; Bian, Yongzhong; Jiang, Jianzhuang; Gao, Song

    2011-09-14

    Homoleptic tetrakis[2,3,9,10,16,17,23,24-octa(butyloxy)phthalocyaninato] dysprosium-cadmium quadruple-decker complex 1 was isolated in relatively good yield of 43% from a simple one-pot reaction. This compound represents the first sandwich-type tetrakis(phthalocyaninato) rare earth-cadmium quadruple-decker SMM that has been structurally characterized. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

  4. Helicobacter pylori second-line rescue therapy with levofloxacin- and bismuth-containing quadruple therapy, after failure of standard triple or non-bismuth quadruple treatments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gisbert, J P; Romano, M; Gravina, A G; Solís-Muñoz, P; Bermejo, F; Molina-Infante, J; Castro-Fernández, M; Ortuño, J; Lucendo, A J; Herranz, M; Modolell, I; Del Castillo, F; Gómez, J; Barrio, J; Velayos, B; Gómez, B; Domínguez, J L; Miranda, A; Martorano, M; Algaba, A; Pabón, M; Angueira, T; Fernández-Salazar, L; Federico, A; Marín, A C; McNicholl, A G

    2015-04-01

    The most commonly used second-line Helicobacter pylori eradication regimens are bismuth-containing quadruple therapy and levofloxacin-containing triple therapy, both offering suboptimal results. Combining bismuth and levofloxacin may enhance the efficacy of rescue eradication regimens. To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of a second-line quadruple regimen containing levofloxacin and bismuth in patients whose previous H. pylori eradication treatment failed. This was a prospective multicenter study including patients in whom a standard triple therapy (PPI-clarithromycin-amoxicillin) or a non-bismuth quadruple therapy (PPI-clarithromycin-amoxicillin-metronidazole, either sequential or concomitant) had failed. Esomeprazole (40 mg b.d.), amoxicillin (1 g b.d.), levofloxacin (500 mg o.d.) and bismuth (240 mg b.d.) was prescribed for 14 days. Eradication was confirmed by (13) C-urea breath test. Compliance was determined through questioning and recovery of empty medication envelopes. Incidence of adverse effects was evaluated by questionnaires. 200 patients were included consecutively (mean age 47 years, 67% women, 13% ulcer). Previous failed therapy included: standard clarithromycin triple therapy (131 patients), sequential (32) and concomitant (37). A total of 96% took all medications correctly. Per-protocol and intention-to-treat eradication rates were 91.1% (95%CI = 87-95%) and 90% (95%CI = 86-94%). Cure rates were similar regardless of previous (failed) treatment or country of origin. Adverse effects were reported in 46% of patients, most commonly nausea (17%) and diarrhoea (16%); 3% were intense but none was serious. Fourteen-day bismuth- and levofloxacin-containing quadruple therapy is an effective (≥90% cure rate), simple and safe second-line strategy in patients whose previous standard triple or non-bismuth quadruple (sequential or concomitant) therapies have failed. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  5. Simulation of growing grains under orientation relation - dependent quadruple point dragging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ito, K

    2015-01-01

    The growth behaviour of a specified grain embedded in matrix grains, for which the migration mobility of the quadruple points depended on the relation between the orientations of the growing and shrinking grains, was studied using a modified Potts MC-type threedimensional simulation. Large embedded grains continued to grow without being overcome by coarsening matrix grains, whereas small embedded grains disappeared, under the influence of the relative mobilities of the quadruple points, the composition of the matrix grain texture and the width of the grain size distribution of the matrix grains. These results indicate that orientation relation-dependent quadruple point dragging can affect the recrystallization texture during the grain coarsening stage. (paper)

  6. Generation of CMAHKO/GTKO/shTNFRI-Fc/HO-1 quadruple gene modified pigs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Geon A; Lee, Eun Mi; Jin, Jun-Xue; Lee, Sanghoon; Taweechaipaisankul, Anukul; Hwang, Jong Ik; Alam, Zahid; Ahn, Curie; Lee, Byeong Chun

    2017-08-01

    As an alternative source of organs for transplantation into humans, attention has been directed to pigs due to their similarities in biological features and organ size. However, severe immune rejection has prevented successful xenotransplantation using pig organs and tissues. To overcome immune rejection, recently developed genetic engineering systems such as TALEN coupled with somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) to make embryos could be used to produce pigs compatible with xenotransplantation. We used the TALEN system to target the non-Gal antigen cytidine monophosphate-N-acetylneuraminic acid hydroxylase (CMAH) gene in pigs that is naturally deleted in humans. Gal-deleted cells expressing both soluble human tumor necrosis factor receptor I IgG 1 -Fc (shTNFRI-Fc) and human hemagglutinin -tagged-human heme oxygenase-1 (hHO-1) were transfected with a TALEN target for CMAH. Cells lacking CMAH were negatively selected using N-glyconeuraminic acid (Neu5Gc)/magnetic beads and the level of Neu5Gc expression of isolated cells were analyzed by FACS and DNA sequencing. Cloned embryos using 3 different genetically modified cell clones were respectively transferred into 3 recipients, with 55.6% (5/9) becoming pregnant and three cloned pigs were produced. Successful genetic disruption of the CMAH gene was confirmed by sequencing, showing lack of expression of CMAH in tail-derived fibroblasts of the cloned piglets. Besides decreased expression of Neu5Gc in piglets produced by SCNT, antibody-mediated complement-dependent cytotoxicity assays and natural antibody binding for examining immuno-reactivity of the quadruple gene modified pigs derived from endothelial cells and fibroblasts were reduced significantly compared to those of wild type animals. We conclude that by combining the TALEN system and transgenic cells, targeting of multiple genes could be useful for generating organs for xenotransplantation. We produced miniature pigs with quadruple modified genes CMAHKO

  7. The Quadruple Helix Model Enhancing Innovative Performance Of Indonesian Creative Industry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sri Wahyu Lelly Hana Setyanti

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available The creative industry in Indonesia has contributed positively to the national economic growth. Creative industry grows from the creativity and innovation performance of the business actors. The challenge of creative industry is how to completely understand the creative and innovative processes in business management. Therefore it requires an approach that combines the synergy between academicians entrepreneurs government and society in a quadruple helix model. The objective of this research is to develop a creativity model through a quadruple helix model in improving innovation performance of the creative industry.

  8. [Influence of Saccharomyces boulardii Sachets combined with bismuth quadruple therapy for initial Helicobacter pylori eradication].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, X Y; Du, J; Wu, J; Zhao, L W; Meng, X; Liu, G F

    2017-08-08

    Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Saccharomyces boulardii Sachets combined with bismuth quadruple therapy for initial Helicobacter pylori ( H . pylori ) eradication. Methods: From March 2014 to March 2015, 240 participants from the third hospital of Hebei medical university with H . pylori infection were recruited and randomized into three groups: Quadruple therapy group received bismuth potassium citrate 220 mg bid + Rabeprazole 10 mg bid + amoxicillin 1 000 mg bid+ furazolidone 100 mg bid for 10 days. Short-term group and long-term group received the same quadruple therapy for 10 days as above, as well as Saccharomyces boulardii Sachets 500 mg bid for 14 days and 28 days, respectively. H . pylori eradication was confirmed by (13)C/(14)C-UBT at least 4 weeks after completion of therapy. And side effects were investigated during the therapy. Results: The H . pylori eradication rates in quadruple therapy, short-term and long-term group were 80%, 87.5% and 87.5% by ITT analysis ( P =0.321) and 92.8%, 94.6% and 95.9% by PP analysis ( P =0.717), respectively. The overall side effect rate and occurrence of diarrhea and abdominal distension were significantly lower in short-term or long-term group as compared with quadruple therapy group( P =0.007, 0.003, 0.004), but there was no significant difference between the two probiotics groups. Conclusions: Both short and long-term Saccharomyces boulardii Sachets reduced the overall side effect rate and occurrence of diarrhea or abdominal distension when combined with bismuth quadruple therapy for initial H . pylori eradication and no difference was observed in efficacy or safety between the two groups.

  9. Control the length of beam trajectory with a quadruple triplet for heavy ion accelerator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang, Zhan; Wei, Shaoqing; Lee, Sang Jin; Kim, Do Gyun; Kim, Jang Youl

    2016-01-01

    Beam trajectory is needed to be controlled in heavy ion accelerator system. Quadruple magnets are widely used in heavy ion accelerator for focusing the transporting particles. A quadruple triplet system which consists of three consecutive quadrupoles, Q1, Q2 and Q3, is used to control beam trajectory at a focused position. Q1 and Q3 have symmetry with respect to Q2. The beam trajectory in magnet system is affected by higher order fields existed in real fields. For quadrupoles, the representation simulation of beam trajectory was carried out to study the beam trajectory and to estimate an effect of higher order field in triplet system. SCALA program was used to simulate the beam trajectory in OperaTM. SCALA can analyze a large number of beam trajectories at the same time by adjusting the size of finite element of the emitter. With OperaTM and MatlabTM programs, the position of focused beam spot in quadruple triplet system can be increased or decreased using evolution strategy (ES) method, therefore the length of triplet system can be controlled. Finally, the quadruple triplet system with the appropriate length and expected beam spot range was suggested in this paper

  10. Control the length of beam trajectory with a quadruple triplet for heavy ion accelerator

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhang, Zhan; Wei, Shaoqing; Lee, Sang Jin [Uiduk University, Gyeongju (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Do Gyun; Kim, Jang Youl [Rare Isotope Science Project, Institute for Basic Science, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-12-15

    Beam trajectory is needed to be controlled in heavy ion accelerator system. Quadruple magnets are widely used in heavy ion accelerator for focusing the transporting particles. A quadruple triplet system which consists of three consecutive quadrupoles, Q1, Q2 and Q3, is used to control beam trajectory at a focused position. Q1 and Q3 have symmetry with respect to Q2. The beam trajectory in magnet system is affected by higher order fields existed in real fields. For quadrupoles, the representation simulation of beam trajectory was carried out to study the beam trajectory and to estimate an effect of higher order field in triplet system. SCALA program was used to simulate the beam trajectory in OperaTM. SCALA can analyze a large number of beam trajectories at the same time by adjusting the size of finite element of the emitter. With OperaTM and MatlabTM programs, the position of focused beam spot in quadruple triplet system can be increased or decreased using evolution strategy (ES) method, therefore the length of triplet system can be controlled. Finally, the quadruple triplet system with the appropriate length and expected beam spot range was suggested in this paper.

  11. Filterless low-phase-noise frequency-quadrupled microwave generation based on a multimode optoelectronic oscillator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teng, Yichao; Zhang, Pin; Zhang, Baofu; Chen, Yiwang

    2018-02-01

    A scheme to realize low-phase-noise frequency-quadrupled microwave generation without any filter is demonstrated. In this scheme, a multimode optoelectronic oscillator is mainly contributed by dual-parallel Mach-Zehnder modulators, fiber, photodetector, and microwave amplifier. The local source signal is modulated by a child MZM (MZMa), which is worked at maximum transmission point. Through properly adjusting the bias voltages of the other child MZM (MZMb) and the parent MZM (MZMc), optical carrier is effectively suppressed and second sidebands are retained, then the survived optical signal is fed back to the photodetector and MZMb to form an optoelectronic hybrid resonator and realize frequency-quadrupled signal generation. Due to the high Q-factor and mode selection effect of the optoelectronic hybrid resonator, compared with the source signal, the generated frequency-quadrupled signal has a lower phase noise. The approach has verified by experiments, and 18, 22, and 26 GHz frequency-quadrupled signal are generated by 4.5, 5.5, and 6.5 GHz local source signals. Compared with 4.5 GHz source signal, the phase noise of generated 18 GHz signal at 10 kHz frequency offset has 26.5 dB reduction.

  12. Preparation of supramolecular polymers by copolymerization of monomers containing quadruple hydrogen bonding units with regular monomers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2004-01-01

    The invention relates to the synthesis of polymers containing self-complementary quadruple hydrogen groups by copolymerizing monomers containing a quadruple hydrogen bonding group with one or more monomers of choice. The resulting polymers show unique new characteristics due to the presence of

  13. Preparation of supramolecular polymers by copolymerization of monomers containing quadruple hydrogen bonding units with regular monomers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2004-01-01

    The invention relates to the synthesis of polymers contg. self-complementary quadruple H groups by copolymg. monomers contg. a quadruple H bonding group with ³1 monomers of choice. The resulting polymers show unique new characteristics due to the presence of addnl. phys. interactions between the

  14. Self-Focusing of Quadruple Gaussian Laser Beam in an Inhomogenous Magnetized Plasma with Ponderomotive Non-Linearity: Effect of Linear Absorption

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aggarwal, Munish; Vij, Shivani; Kant, Niti

    2015-01-01

    The propagation of quadruple Gaussian laser beam in a plasma characterized by axial inhomogeneity and nonlinearity due to ponderomotive force in the paraxial ray approximation is investigated. An appropriate expression for the nonlinear dielectric constant has been developed in the presence of external magnetic field, with linear absorption and due to saturation effects for arbitrary large intensity. The effects of different types of plasma axial inhomogeneities on self-focusing of laser beam have been studied with the typical laser and plasma parameters. Self-focusing of quadruple Gaussian laser beam in the presence of externally applied magnetic field and saturating parameter is found significantly improved in the case of extraordinary mode. Our results reveal that initially converging beam shows oscillatory convergence whereas initially diverging beam shows oscillatory divergence. The beam is more focussed at lower intensity in both cases viz. extraordinary and ordinary mode. (paper)

  15. Modeling and Simulation of a Modified Quadruple Tank System

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mohd. Azam, Sazuan Nazrah; Jørgensen, John Bagterp

    2015-01-01

    to model and control. In this paper, a modified quadruple-tank system has been described, all the important variables has been outlined and a mathematical model has been presented. We developed deterministic and stochastic models using differential equations and simulate the models using Matlab...

  16. A new quadruple gravitational lens system : CLASS B0128+437

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Phillips, PM; Norbury, MA; Koopmans, LVE; Browne, IWA; Jackson, NJ; Wilkinson, PN; Biggs, AD; Blandford, RD; de Bruyn, AG; Fassnacht, CD; Helbig, P; Mao, S; Marlow, DR; Myers, ST; Pearson, TJ; Readhead, ACS; Rusin, D; Xanthopoulos, E

    2000-01-01

    High-resolution MERLIN observations of a newly discovered four-image gravitational lens system, B0128+437, are presented. The system was found after a careful re-analysis of the entire CLASS data set. The MERLIN observations resolve four components in a characteristic quadruple-image configuration;

  17. Efficacy and safety of sequential versus quadruple therapy as second-line treatment for helicobacter pylori infection-A randomized controlled trial.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniela Munteanu

    Full Text Available Quadruple therapy is recommended as second-line treatment for Helicobacter pylori eradication failure. However, high cost, multiple side effects, and low adherence rates are major drawbacks to its routine use. Our aim was to compare the efficacy and safety of sequential versus quadruple regimens as second line treatment for persistent Helicobacter pylori infection.Prospective, randomized, open label trial was conducted at a large academic, tertiary care center in Israel. Patients who previously failed a standard triple treatment eradication course were randomly assigned (1:1 to receive a 10-day sequential therapy course, or a 14-day quadruple regimen. Compliance and adverse events were evaluated by telephone questionnaires. The primary endpoint for analysis was the rate of Helicobacter pylori eradication as defined by either a negative 13C-urea breath-test, or stool antigen test, 4-16 weeks after treatment assessed under the non-inferiority hypothesis. The trial was terminated prematurely due to low recruitment rates. See S1 Checklist for CONSORT checklist.One hundred and one patients were randomized. Per modified intention-to-treat analysis, eradication rate was 49% in the sequential versus 42.5% in the quadruple regimen group (p-value for non-inferiority 0.02. Forty-two (84.0% versus 33 (64.7% patients completed treatment in the sequential and quadruple groups respectively (p 0.027. Gastrointestinal side effects were more common in the quadruple regimen group.Sequential treatment when used as a second line regimen, was non-inferior to the standard of care quadruple regimen in achieving Helicobacter pylori eradication, and was associated with better compliance and fewer adverse effects. Both treatment protocols failed to show an adequate eradication rate in the population of Southern Israel.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01481844.

  18. Dynamics of quadruple systems composed of two binaries: stars, white dwarfs, and implications for Ia supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fang, Xiao; Thompson, Todd A.; Hirata, Christopher M.

    2018-05-01

    We investigate the long-term secular dynamics and Lidov-Kozai (LK) eccentricity oscillations of quadruple systems composed of two binaries at quadrupole and octupole orders in the perturbing Hamiltonian. We show that the fraction of systems reaching high eccentricities is enhanced relative to triple systems, over a broader range of parameter space. We show that this fraction grows with time, unlike triple systems evolved at quadrupole order. This is fundamentally because with their additional degrees of freedom, quadruple systems do not have a maximal set of commuting constants of the motion, even in secular theory at quadrupole order. We discuss these results in the context of star-star and white dwarf-white dwarf (WD) binaries, with emphasis on WD-WD mergers and collisions relevant to the Type Ia supernova problem. For star-star systems, we find that more than 30 per cent of systems reach high eccentricity within a Hubble time, potentially forming triple systems via stellar mergers or close binaries. For WD-WD systems, taking into account general relativistic and tidal precession and dissipation, we show that the merger rate is enhanced in quadruple systems relative to triple systems by a factor of 3.5-10, and that the long-term evolution of quadruple systems leads to a delay-time distribution ˜1/t for mergers and collisions. In gravitational wave-driven mergers of compact objects, we classify the mergers by their evolutionary patterns in phase space and identify a regime in about 8 per cent of orbital shrinking mergers, where eccentricity oscillations occur on the general relativistic precession time-scale, rather than the much longer LK time-scale. Finally, we generalize previous treatments of oscillations in the inner binary eccentricity (evection) to eccentric mutual orbits. We assess the merger rate in quadruple and triple systems and the implications for their viability as progenitors of stellar mergers and Type Ia supernovae.

  19. V379 Cephei: a quadruple system of two binaries

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Harmanec, P.; Mayer, P.; Prša, A.; Božić, H.; Eenens, P.; Guinan, E. F.; McCook, G.; Koubský, Pavel; Ruždjak, D.; Engle, S.; Sudar, D.; Škoda, Petr; Šlechta, Miroslav; Wolf, M.; Yang, S.

    2007-01-01

    Roč. 463, č. 3 (2007), s. 1061-1069 ISSN 0004-6361 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA205/03/0788; GA ČR GA205/06/0584 Grant - others:US National Science Foundation(US) NSF/RUI AST-0507536. Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10030501 Source of funding: V - iné verejné zdroje Keywords : V379 Cep * quadruple systems Subject RIV: BN - Astronomy, Celestial Mechanics, Astrophysics Impact factor: 4.259, year: 2007

  20. Quadruple-first line drug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Vietnam: What can we learn from genes?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, Huy Quang; Nguyen, Nhung Viet; Contamin, Lucie; Tran, Thanh Hoa Thi; Vu, Thuong Thi; Nguyen, Hung Van; Nguyen, Ngoc Lan Thi; Nguyen, Son Thai; Dang, Anh Duc; Bañuls, Anne-Laure; Nguyen, Van Anh Thi

    2017-06-01

    In Vietnam, a country with high tuberculosis (137/100.000 population) and multidrug-resistant (MDR)-TB burdens (7.8/100.000 population), little is known about the molecular signatures of drug resistance in general and more particularly of second line drug (SLD) resistance. This study is specifically focused on Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates resistant to four first-line drugs (FLDs) that make TB much more difficult to treat. The aim is to determine the proportion of SLD resistance in these quadruple drug resistant isolates and the genetic determinants linked to drug resistance to better understand the genetic processes leading to quadruple and extremely drug resistance (XDR). 91 quadruple (rifampicin, isoniazid, ethambutol and streptomycin) FLD resistant and 55 susceptible isolates were included. Spoligotyping and 24-locus MIRU-VNTR techniques were performed and 9 genes and promoters linked to FLD and SLD resistance were sequenced. SLD susceptibility testing was carried out on a subsample of isolates. High proportion of quadruple-FLD resistant isolates was resistant to fluoroquinolones (27%) and second-line injectable drugs (30.2%) by drug susceptibility testing. The sequencing revealed high mutation diversity with prevailing mutations at positions katG315, inhA-15, rpoB531, embB306, rrs1401, rpsL43 and gyrA94. The sensitivity and specificity were high for most drug resistances (>86%), but the sensitivity was lower for injectable drug resistances (resistance. Nevertheless, particular mutation patterns linked to high-level resistance and low fitness costs seem to be favored. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Assessment of the accuracy of coupled cluster perturbation theory for open-shell systems. II. Quadruples expansions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eriksen, Janus J; Matthews, Devin A; Jørgensen, Poul; Gauss, Jürgen

    2016-05-21

    We extend our assessment of the potential of perturbative coupled cluster (CC) expansions for a test set of open-shell atoms and organic radicals to the description of quadruple excitations. Namely, the second- through sixth-order models of the recently proposed CCSDT(Q-n) quadruples series [J. J. Eriksen et al., J. Chem. Phys. 140, 064108 (2014)] are compared to the prominent CCSDT(Q) and ΛCCSDT(Q) models. From a comparison of the models in terms of their recovery of total CC singles, doubles, triples, and quadruples (CCSDTQ) energies, we find that the performance of the CCSDT(Q-n) models is independent of the reference used (unrestricted or restricted (open-shell) Hartree-Fock), in contrast to the CCSDT(Q) and ΛCCSDT(Q) models, for which the accuracy is strongly dependent on the spin of the molecular ground state. By further comparing the ability of the models to recover relative CCSDTQ total atomization energies, the discrepancy between them is found to be even more pronounced, stressing how a balanced description of both closed- and open-shell species-as found in the CCSDT(Q-n) models-is indeed of paramount importance if any perturbative CC model is to be of chemical relevance for high-accuracy applications. In particular, the third-order CCSDT(Q-3) model is found to offer an encouraging alternative to the existing choices of quadruples models used in modern computational thermochemistry, since the model is still only of moderate cost, albeit markedly more costly than, e.g., the CCSDT(Q) and ΛCCSDT(Q) models.

  2. EPIC 219217635: A Doubly Eclipsing Quadruple System Containing an Evolved Binary

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Borkovits, T.; Albrecht, S.; Rappaport, S.

    2018-01-01

    We have discovered a doubly eclipsing, bound, quadruple star system in the field of K2 Campaign 7. EPIC 219217635 is a stellar image with Kp = 12.7 that contains an eclipsing binary (‘EB’) with PA = 3.59470 d and a second EB with PB = 0.61825 d. We have obtained followup radial-velocity (‘RV’) sp...

  3. Tensile properties of quadruple melted Zr-2.5Nb pressure tubes evaluated from pressure tube offcuts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shah, Priti Kotak; Dubey, J.S.; Anantharaman, S.

    2013-12-01

    Rajasthan Atomic Power Station-2 (RAPS-2) is the first Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) in India having quadruple melted Zr-2.5Nb pressure tubes. Front-end and back-end off-cuts of sixteen pressure tubes were selected for studying the mechanical properties in axial and transverse directions of the tube. Tension tests were carried out at room temperature and at 300℃ using miniature tensile test specimens. The report presents the experimental details and discusses the base line tensile property data for the quadruple melted pressure tubes of RAPS-2. This data will be useful for the reactor life management. (author)

  4. Comparison of Second-Line Quadruple Therapies with or without Bismuth for Helicobacter pylori Infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guang-Hong Jheng

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The bismuth-based quadruple regimen has been applied in Helicobacter pylori rescue therapy worldwide. The non-bismuth-based quadruple therapy or “concomitant therapy” is an alternative option in first-line eradication but has not been used in second-line therapy. Discovering a valid regimen for rescue therapy in bismuth-unavailable countries is important. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to compare the efficacies of the standard quadruple therapy and a modified concomitant regimen. One hundred and twenty-four patients were randomly assigned into two groups: RBTM (rabeprozole 20 mg bid., bismuth subcitrate 120 mg qid, tetracycline 500 mg qid, and metronidazole 250 mg qid and RATM (rabeprozole 20 mg bid., amoxicillin 1 g bid., tetracycline 500 mg qid, and metronidazole 250 mg qid for 10 days. The eradication rate of the RBTM and RATM regimen was 92.1% and 90.2%, respectively, in intention-to-treat analysis. Patients in both groups had good compliance (~96%. The overall incidence of adverse events was higher in the RATM group (42.6% versus 22.2%, P=0.02, but only seven patients (11.5% experienced grades 2-3 events. In conclusion, both regimens had good efficacy, compliance, and acceptable side effects. The 10-day RATM treatment could be an alternative rescue therapy in bismuth-unavailable countries.

  5. [Drug susceptibility test guided therapy and novel empirical quadruple therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection: a network Meta-analysis].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gou, Q Y; Yu, R B; Shi, R H

    2017-05-10

    Objective: To compare the efficacy and the risk of adverse effect of drug susceptibility test guided therapy and novel empirical quadruple therapy for Helicobacter ( H .) pylori infection. Methods: Literature retrieval was conducted by using major databases. Related papers published up to June 2015 were considered eligible if they were randomized control trials comparing different pharmacological formulations for H. pylori infection and used in a network Meta-analysis and a single rate Meta-analysis to evaluate the relative and absolute rates of H. pylori eradication and the risk of adverse effect. The Jadad score was used to evaluate the methodological quality. Funnel plot was constructed to evaluate the risk of publication bias. Begg's rank correlation test or Egger's regression intercept test was done for the asymmetry of funnel plot. Results: Twenty randomized control trials for the treatment of 6 753 initial treated patients with H. pylori infection were included. Drug susceptibility test guided therapy was significantly superior to concomitant therapy, hybrid therapy, sequential therapy and bismuth quadruple therapy. The culture-based therapy had the highest likelihood of improving clinical efficacy, with lowest risk of adverse effect. Concomitant therapy had the highest probability of causing adverse effect despite its effectiveness. Hybrid therapy and bismuth quadruple therapy were associated with lower risk of adverse effect and higher effectiveness. Conclusion: Drug susceptibility test guided therapy showed superiority to other 4 interventions for H. pylori eradication mentioned above. Hybrid therapy and bismuth quadruple therapy might be applied in the settings where the culture-based strategy is not available.

  6. Epi-detected quadruple-modal nonlinear optical microscopy for label-free imaging of the tooth

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang, Zi; Zheng, Wei; Huang, Zhiwei, E-mail: biehzw@nus.edu.sg [Optical Bioimaging Laboratory, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117576 (Singapore); Stephen Hsu, Chin-Ying [Department of Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Singapore and National University Health System, Singapore 119083 (Singapore)

    2015-01-19

    We present an epi-detected quadruple-modal nonlinear optical microscopic imaging technique (i.e., coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS), second-harmonic generation (SHG), third-harmonic generation (THG), and two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF)) based on a picosecond (ps) laser-pumped optical parametric oscillator system for label-free imaging of the tooth. We demonstrate that high contrast ps-CARS images covering both the fingerprint (500–1800 cm{sup −1}) and high-wavenumber (2500–3800 cm{sup −1}) regions can be acquired to uncover the distributions of mineral and organic biomaterials in the tooth, while high quality TPEF, SHG, and THG images of the tooth can also be acquired under ps laser excitation without damaging the samples. The quadruple-modal nonlinear microscopic images (CARS/SHG/THG/TPEF) acquired provide better understanding of morphological structures and biochemical/biomolecular distributions in the dentin, enamel, and the dentin-enamel junction of the tooth without labeling, facilitating optical diagnosis and characterization of the tooth in dentistry.

  7. Flow structure and heat transfer in a square duct fitted with dual/quadruple twisted-tapes: Influence of tape configuration

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Eiamsa-ard, S.; Changcharoen, W.

    2015-01-01

    Numerical predictions reported of thermohydraulic characteristics of square ducts equipped with dual and quadruple twisted tapes (DTs and QTs) with different configurations. The studied cases include (1) dual co-tapes (Co-DTs), (2) dual counter-tapes (C-DTs), (3) diagonal dual counter-tapes (C-DDTs), (4) diagonal dual co-tapes (Co-DDTs), (5) quadruple co-tapes (Co-QTs), (6) quadruple counter tapes (CC-QTs) and (7) quadruple counter-tapes (PC-QTs). The results of these cases are compared with those of a smooth duct (a duct without tape insert) and also the one with a single tape (ST). The prediction involves using the RNG k-ε turbulent model under constant wall heat flux condition in the turbulent flow regime for the Reynolds number ranging from 6000 to 14000. The prediction indicates that thermohydraulic characteristics in ducts with twisted tape are strongly dependent on number and configuration of tapes. However, the influence of tape number is more significant than that of tape configuration. Heat transfer and friction increase as tape number increases. QTs offer superior heat transfer to DTs but their thermal performance factors are lower. For the tape inserts determined, DTs with diagonal configuration (Co-DDTs and C-DDTs) is the best design as the tapes offer the best thermal performance. The highest thermal performance factors given by Co-DTs, Co-DDTs, C-DTs, C-DDTs, Co-QTs, PC-QTs and CC-QTs, are around 1.21, 1.35, 1.25, 1.38, 1.08, 1.18, and 1.22, respectively

  8. A New Strain Collection for Improved Expression of Outer Membrane Proteins

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ina Meuskens

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Almost all integral membrane proteins found in the outer membranes of Gram-negative bacteria belong to the transmembrane β-barrel family. These proteins are not only important for nutrient uptake and homeostasis, but are also involved in such processes as adhesion, protein secretion, biofilm formation, and virulence. As surface exposed molecules, outer membrane β-barrel proteins are also potential drug and vaccine targets. High production levels of heterologously expressed proteins are desirable for biochemical and especially structural studies, but over-expression and subsequent purification of membrane proteins, including outer membrane proteins, can be challenging. Here, we present a set of deletion mutants derived from E. coli BL21(DE3 designed for the over-expression of recombinant outer membrane proteins. These strains harbor deletions of four genes encoding abundant β-barrel proteins in the outer membrane (OmpA, OmpC, OmpF, and LamB, both single and in all combinations of double, triple, and quadruple knock-outs. The sequences encoding these outer membrane proteins were deleted completely, leaving only a minimal scar sequence, thus preventing the possibility of genetic reversion. Expression tests in the quadruple mutant strain with four test proteins, including a small outer membrane β-barrel protein and variants thereof as well as two virulence-related autotransporters, showed significantly improved expression and better quality of the produced proteins over the parent strain. Differences in growth behavior and aggregation in the presence of high salt were observed, but these phenomena did not negatively influence the expression in the quadruple mutant strain when handled as we recommend. The strains produced in this study can be used for outer membrane protein production and purification, but are also uniquely useful for labeling experiments for biophysical measurements in the native membrane environment.

  9. Ten-day bismuth-containing quadruple therapy is effective as first-line therapy for Helicobacter pylori-related chronic gastritis: a prospective randomized study in China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, L; Lin, Z; Chen, S; Li, J; Chen, C; Huang, Z; Ye, B; Ding, J; Li, W; Wu, L; Jiang, Y; Meng, L; Du, Q; Si, J

    2017-06-01

    To investigate the effectiveness of 10-day bismuth-containing quadruple (B-quadruple) treatment as first-line therapy in patients with Helicobacter pylori-related chronic gastritis. A randomized controlled trial was conducted from October 2011 to December 2013 in Zhejiang, China, including patients with H. pylori-related chronic gastritis who were randomly provided either 10-day omeprazole-based triple therapy (OM-triple; omeprazole 20 mg twice daily, clarithromycin 500 mg twice daily and amoxicillin 1 g twice daily) or 10-day B-quadruple therapy (OM-triple + bismuth subcitrate 120 mg four times daily). H. pylori status, pathologic findings and dyspeptic symptoms were assessed at baseline and after 3 months. The primary outcome was H. pylori eradication rates by intention-to-treat (ITT) and per-protocol (PP) analyses. The secondary outcomes were the histologic and symptomatic benefits from H. pylori eradication. A total of 351 patients with H. pylori-related chronic gastritis were recruited. The eradication rates of the OM-triple and B-quadruple groups were 58.4% (108/185) and 86.1% (143/166) respectively according to ITT analysis (p gastritis and intestinal metaplasia did not regress in both groups (n=326). The reduction of dyspeptic symptoms score was significantly higher in the B-quadruple group than in the OM-triple group (0.59±0.057 vs. 0.39±0.046) (p gastritis in China. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  10. Relativistic double-zeta, triple-zeta, and quadruple-zeta basis sets for the lanthanides La–Lu

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Dyall, K.G.; Gomes, A.S.P.; Visscher, L.

    2010-01-01

    Relativistic basis sets of double-zeta, triple-zeta, and quadruple-zeta quality have been optimized for the lanthanide elements La-Lu. The basis sets include SCF exponents for the occupied spinors and for the 6p shell, exponents of correlating functions for the valence shells (4f, 5d and 6s) and the

  11. HE 1113-0641: THE SMALLEST-SEPARATION QUADRUPLE LENS IDENTIFIED BY A GROUND-BASED OPTICAL TELESCOPE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blackburne, Jeffrey A.; Schechter, Paul L.; Wisotzki, Lutz

    2008-01-01

    The Hamburg/ESO quasar HE 1113-0641 is found to be a quadruple gravitational lens, based on observations with the twin 6.5 m Magellan telescopes at the Las Campanas Observatory, and subsequently with the Hubble Space Telescope. The z S = 1.235 quasar appears in a cross configuration, with i' band magnitudes ranging from 18.0 to 18.8. With a maximum image separation of 0''.67, this is the smallest-separation quadruple ever identified using a ground-based optical telescope. Point-spread function (PSF) subtraction reveals a faint lensing galaxy. A simple lens model succeeds in predicting the observed positions of the components, but fails to match their observed flux ratios by up to a magnitude. We estimate the redshift of the lensing galaxy to be z L ∼ 0.7. Time delay estimates are on the order of a day, suggesting that the flux ratio anomalies are not due to variability of the quasar, but may result from substructure or microlensing in the lens galaxy.

  12. Update on quadruple suspension design for Advanced LIGO

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aston, S M; Carbone, L; Cutler, R M; Hoyland, D; Barton, M A; Bland, B; Bell, A S; Beveridge, N; Cagnoli, G; Cantley, C A; Cumming, A V; Cunningham, L; Hammond, G D; Haughian, K; Hough, J; Brummitt, A J; Greenhalgh, R J S; Hayler, T M; Heptonstall, A; Heefner, J

    2012-01-01

    We describe the design of the suspension systems for the major optics for Advanced LIGO, the upgrade to LIGO—the Laser Interferometric Gravitational-Wave Observatory. The design is based on that used in GEO600—the German/UK interferometric gravitational wave detector, with further development to meet the more stringent noise requirements for Advanced LIGO. The test mass suspensions consist of a four-stage or quadruple pendulum for enhanced seismic isolation. To minimize suspension thermal noise, the final stage consists of a silica mirror, 40 kg in mass, suspended from another silica mass by four silica fibres welded to silica ears attached to the sides of the masses using hydroxide-catalysis bonding. The design is chosen to achieve a displacement noise level for each of the seismic and thermal noise contributions of 10 −19 m/√Hz at 10 Hz, for each test mass. We discuss features of the design which has been developed as a result of experience with prototypes and associated investigations. (paper)

  13. Impact of Relational Coordination on Nurse Job Satisfaction, Work Engagement and Burnout: Achieving the Quadruple Aim.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Havens, Donna Sullivan; Gittell, Jody Hoffer; Vasey, Joseph

    2018-03-01

    To explore how relational coordination, known to enhance quality and efficiency outcomes for patients and hospitals, impacts direct care nurse outcomes such as burnout, work engagement, and job satisfaction, addressing the "Quadruple Aim," to improve the experience of providing care. Hospitals are complex organizations in which multiple providers work interdependently, under conditions of uncertainty and time constraints, to deliver safe quality care despite differences in specialization, training, and status. Relational coordination-communicating and relating for the purpose of task integration-is known to improve quality, safety, and efficiency under these conditions, but less is known about its impact on the well-being of direct care providers themselves. Surveys measuring relational coordination among nurses and other types of providers as well as job-related outcomes in 5 acute care community hospitals were completed by direct care RNs. Relational coordination was significantly related to increased job satisfaction, increased work engagement, and reduced burnout. Relational coordination contributes to the well-being of direct care nurses, addressing the Quadruple Aim by improving the experience of providing care.

  14. Augmented Quadruple-Phase Contrast Media Administration and Triphasic Scan Protocol Increases Image Quality at Reduced Radiation Dose During Computed Tomography Urography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saade, Charbel; Mohamad, May; Kerek, Racha; Hamieh, Nadine; Alsheikh Deeb, Ibrahim; El-Achkar, Bassam; Tamim, Hani; Abdul Razzak, Farah; Haddad, Maurice; Abi-Ghanem, Alain S; El-Merhi, Fadi

    The aim of this article was to investigate the opacification of the renal vasculature and the urogenital system during computed tomography urography by using a quadruple-phase contrast media in a triphasic scan protocol. A total of 200 patients with possible urinary tract abnormalities were equally divided between 2 protocols. Protocol A used the conventional single bolus and quadruple-phase scan protocol (pre, arterial, venous, and delayed), retrospectively. Protocol B included a quadruple-phase contrast media injection with a triphasic scan protocol (pre, arterial and combined venous, and delayed), prospectively. Each protocol used 100 mL contrast and saline at a flow rate of 4.5 mL. Attenuation profiles and contrast-to-noise ratio of the renal arteries, veins, and urogenital tract were measured. Effective radiation dose calculation, data analysis by independent sample t test, receiver operating characteristic, and visual grading characteristic analyses were performed. In arterial circulation, only the inferior interlobular arteries in both protocols showed a statistical significance (P contrast-to-noise ratio than protocol A (protocol B: 22.68 ± 13.72; protocol A: 14.75 ± 5.76; P contrast media and triphasic scan protocol usage increases the image quality at a reduced radiation dose.

  15. Second-line rescue triple therapy with levofloxacin after failure of non-bismuth quadruple "sequential" or "concomitant" treatment to eradicate H. pylori infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gisbert, Javier P; Molina-Infante, Javier; Marin, Alicia C; Vinagre, Gemma; Barrio, Jesus; McNicholl, Adrian Gerald

    2013-06-01

    Non-bismuth quadruple "sequential" and "concomitant" regimens, including a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), amoxicillin, clarithromycin and a nitroimidazole, are increasingly used as first-line treatments for Helicobacter pylori infection. Eradication with rescue regimens may be challenging after failure of key antibiotics such as clarithromycin and nitroimidazoles. To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of a second-line levofloxacin-containing triple regimen (PPI-amoxicillin-levofloxacin) in the eradication of H. pylori after non-bismuth quadruple-containing treatment failure. prospective multicenter study. in whom a non-bismuth quadruple regimen, administered either sequentially (PPI + amoxicillin for 5 days followed by PPI + clarithromycin + metronidazole for 5 more days) or concomitantly (PPI + amoxicillin + clarithromycin + metronidazole for 10 days) had previously failed. levofloxacin (500 mg b.i.d.), amoxicillin (1 g b.i.d.) and PPI (standard dose b.i.d.) for 10 days. eradication was confirmed with (13)C-urea breath test 4-8 weeks after therapy. Compliance and tolerance: compliance was determined through questioning and recovery of empty medication envelopes. Incidence of adverse effects was evaluated by means of a questionnaire. 100 consecutive patients were included (mean age 50 years, 62% females, 12% peptic ulcer and 88% dyspepsia): 37 after "sequential", and 63 after "concomitant" treatment failure. All patients took all medications correctly. Overall, per-protocol and intention-to-treat H. pylori eradication rates were 75.5% (95% CI 66-85%) and 74% (65-83%). Respective intention-to-treat cure rates for "sequential" and "concomitant" failure regimens were 74.4% and 71.4%, respectively. Adverse effects were reported in six (6%) patients; all of them were mild. Ten-day levofloxacin-containing triple therapy constitutes an encouraging second-line strategy in patients with previous non-bismuth quadruple "sequential" or "concomitant" treatment failure.

  16. A Lagrangian framework for deriving triples and quadruples corrections to the CCSD energy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Eriksen, Janus Juul; Kristensen, Kasper; Kjærgaard, Thomas

    2014-01-01

    Using the coupled cluster Lagrangian technique, we have determined perturbative corrections to the coupled cluster singles and doubles (CCSD) energy that converge towards the coupled cluster singles, doubles, and triples (CCSDT) and coupled cluster singles, doubles, triples, and quadruples (CCSDTQ......) energies, considering the CCSD state as the unperturbed reference state and the fluctua- tion potential as the perturbation. Since the Lagrangian technique is utilized, the energy corrections satisfy Wigner’s 2n + 1 rule for the cluster amplitudes and the 2n + 2 rule for the Lagrange multi- pliers...

  17. BD -22 5866: A Low-Mass, Quadruple-lined Spectroscopic and Eclipsing Binary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shkolnik, Evgenya; Liu, Michael C.; Reid, I. Neill; Hebb, Leslie; Cameron, Andrew C.; Torres, Carlos A.; Wilson, David M.

    2008-08-01

    We report our discovery of an extremely rare, low-mass, quadruple-lined spectroscopic binary BD -22 5866 (=NLTT 53279, integrated spectral type = M0 V), found during an ongoing search for the youngest M dwarfs in the solar neighborhood. From the cross-correlation function, we are able to measure relative flux levels, estimate the spectral types of the components, and set upper limits on the orbital periods and separations. The resulting system is hierarchical, composed of a K7 + K7 binary and an M1 + M2 binary with semimajor axes of aAsin iA system was unresolved with published adaptive optics imaging, limits the projected physical separation of the two binaries at the time of the observation to dABlesssim 4.1 AU at the photometric distance of 51 pc. The maximum observed radial velocity difference between the A and B binaries limits the orbit to aABsin iAB systems, we speculate that an early dynamical process reduced the size of the system, such as the interaction of the two binaries with a circumquadruple disk. Intensive photometric, spectroscopic, and interferometric monitoring, as well as a parallax measurement of this rare quadruple system, is certainly warranted. Based on observations collected at the W. M. Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT). The Keck Observatory is operated as a scientific partnership between the California Institute of Technology, the University of California, and NASA, and was made possible by the generous financial support of the W. M. Keck Foundation. The CFHT is operated by the National Research Council of Canada, the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique of France, and the University of Hawaii.

  18. Quadruple suspension design for Advanced LIGO

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Robertson, N A; Cagnoli, G; Crooks, D R M; Elliffe, E; Faller, J E; Fritschel, P; Gossler, S; Grant, A; Heptonstall, A; Hough, J; Lueck, H; Mittleman, R; Perreur-Lloyd, M; Plissi, M V; Rowan, S; Shoemaker, D H; Sneddon, P H; Strain, K A; Torrie, C I; Ward, H; Willems, P

    2002-01-01

    In this paper, we describe the conceptual design for the suspension system for the test masses for Advanced LIGO, the planned upgrade to LIGO, the US laser interferometric gravitational-wave observatory. The design is based on the triple pendulum design developed for GEO 600 - the German/UK interferometric gravitational wave detector. The GEO design incorporates fused silica fibres of circular cross-section attached to the fused silica mirror (test mass) in the lowest pendulum stage, in order to minimize the thermal noise from the pendulum modes. The damping of the low-frequency modes of the triple pendulum is achieved by using co-located sensors and actuators at the highest mass of the triple pendulum. Another feature of the design is that global control forces acting on the mirrors, used to maintain the output of the interferometer on a dark fringe, are applied via a triple reaction pendulum, so that these forces can be implemented via a seismically isolated platform. These techniques have been extended to meet the more stringent noise levels planned for in Advanced LIGO. In particular, the Advanced LIGO baseline design requires a quadruple pendulum with a final stage consisting of a 40 kg sapphire mirror, suspended on fused silica ribbons or fibres. The design is chosen to aim to reach a target noise contribution from the suspension corresponding to a displacement sensitivity of 10 -19 m Hz -1/2 at 10 Hz at each of the test masses

  19. High-precision quadruple isotope dilution method for simultaneous determination of nitrite and nitrate in seawater by GCMS after derivatization with triethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pagliano, Enea, E-mail: enea.pagliano@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca; Meija, Juris; Mester, Zoltán

    2014-05-01

    Highlights: • High-precision determination of nitrite and nitrate in seawater. • Use of quadruple isotope dilution. • Aqueous Et₃O⁺BF₄]⁻ derivatization chemistry for GCMS analysis of nitrite and nitrate. Abstract: Quadruple isotope dilution mass spectrometry (ID⁴MS) has been applied for simultaneous determination of nitrite and nitrate in seawater. ID⁴MS allows high-precision measurements and entails the use of isotopic internal standards (¹⁸O-nitrite and ¹⁵N-nitrate). We include a tutorial on ID⁴MS outlining optimal experimental design which generates results with low uncertainties and obviates the need for direct (separate) evaluation of the procedural blank. Nitrite and nitrate detection was achieved using a headspace GCMS procedure based on single-step aqueous derivatization with triethyloxonium tetrafluoroborate at room temperature. In this paper the sample preparation was revised and fundamental aspects of this chemistry are presented. The proposed method has detection limits in the low parts-per-billion for both analytes, is reliable, precise, and has been validated using a seawater certified reference material (MOOS-2). Simplicity of the experimental design, low detection limits, and the use of quadruple isotope dilution makes the present method superior to the state-of-the-art for determination of nitrite and nitrate, and an ideal candidate for reference measurements of these analytes in seawater.

  20. Application of the RPN methodology for quantification of the operability of the quadruple-tank process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.O. Trierweiler

    2002-04-01

    Full Text Available The RPN indicates how potentially difficult it is for a given system to achieve the desired performance robustly. It reflects both the attainable performance of a system and its degree of directionality. Two new indices, RPN ratio and RPN difference are introduced to quantify how realizable a given desired performance can be. The predictions made by RPN are verified by closed-loop simulations. These indices are applied to quantify the IO-controllability of the quadruple-tank process.

  1. Integrated quadruple stress echocardiography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Picano, Eugenio; Morrone, Doralisa; Scali, Maria C; Huqi, Alda; Coviello, Katia; Ciampi, Quirino

    2018-04-11

    Stress Echocardiography (SE) is an established diagnostic technique. For 40 years, the cornerstone of the technique has been the detection of regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMA), due to the underlying physiologically-relevant epicardial coronary artery stenosis. In the last decade, three new parameters (more objective than RWMA) have shown the potential to integrate and comple- ment RWMA: 1- B-lines, also known as ultrasound lung comets, as a marker of extra-vascular lung water, measured using lung ultrasound with the 4-site simplified scan symmetrically of the antero- lateral thorax on the third intercostal space, from mid-axillary to anterior axillary and mid- clavicular line; 2-left ventricular contractile reserve (LVCR), assessed as the peak stress/rest ratio of left ventricular force, also known as elastance (systolic arterial pressure by cuff sphygmomanome- ter/end-systolic volume from 2D echocardiography); 3- coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR) on left anterior descending coronary artery, calculated as peak stress/rest ratio of diastolic peak flow velocity assessed using pulsed-wave Doppler. The 4 parameters (RWMA, B-lines, LVCR and CFVR) now converge conceptually, logistically, and methodologically in the Integrated Quadruple (IQ)-SE. IQ-SE optimizes the versatility of SE to include in a one-stop shop the core "ABCD" (Asynergy+B-lines+Contractile reserve+Doppler flowmetry) protocol. It allows a synoptic assess- ment of parameters mirroring the epicardial artery stenosis (RWMA), interstitial lung water (B- lines), myocardial function (LVCR) and small coronary vessels (CFVR). Each variable has a clear clinical correlate, different and complementary to all others: RWMA identify an ischemic vs non- ischemic heart; B-lines a wet vs dry lung; LVCR a strong vs weak heart; CFVR a warm vs cold heart. IQ-SE is highly feasible, with minimal increase in the imaging and analysis time, and obvi- ous diagnostic and prognostic impact also beyond coronary artery

  2. Democracy and environment as references for quadruple and quintuple helix innovation systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carayannis, Elias G.; Campbell, David F. J.; Orr, Barron J.

    2015-04-01

    The perspective of democracy and the ecological context define key references for knowledge production and innovation in innovation systems. Particularly under conditions of environmental change where enhancing the potential for adaptation is critical, this requires a closer look at ecological responsibility and sensitivity in the different innovation models and governance regimes. The "Quintuple Helix" innovation model is an approach that stresses the necessary socio-ecological transition of society and economy by adding an environment helix to an innovation system already made up of three (university-industry-government) or four (civil society relations) helices in a way that supports adaptation by incorporating global warming as both a challenge to and a driver of innovation. There is the proposition that knowledge production and innovation co-evolve with democracy (Carayannis and Campbell, 2014). In the Triple Helix model (Etzkowitz and Leydesdorff, 2000) the existence of a democracy does not appear to be necessary for knowledge production and innovation. However, the Quadruple Helix (Carayannis and Campbell, 2009, 2010 and 2014) is defined and represented by additional key attributes and components: "media-based and culture-based public", "civil society" and "arts, artistic research and arts-based innovation" (Bast, Carayannis and Campbell, 2015). Implications of this are that the fourth helix in the Quadruple Helix innovation systems brings in and represents the perspective of "dimension of democracy" or the "context of democracy" for knowledge in general and knowledge production and innovation in more particular. Within theories of democracy there is a competition between narrow and broader concepts of democracy (Campbell, 2013). This is particularly true when democracy is to be understood to transcend more substantially the narrow understanding of being primarily based on or being primarily rooted in government institutions (within a Triple Helix

  3. THE QUADRUPLE PRE-MAIN-SEQUENCE SYSTEM LkCa 3: IMPLICATIONS FOR STELLAR EVOLUTION MODELS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torres, Guillermo; Latham, David W.; Ruíz-Rodríguez, Dary; Prato, L.; Wasserman, Lawrence H.; Badenas, Mariona; Schaefer, G. H.; Mathieu, Robert D.

    2013-01-01

    We report the discovery that the pre-main-sequence (PMS) object LkCa 3 in the Taurus-Auriga star-forming region is a hierarchical quadruple system of M stars. It was previously known to be a close (∼0.''5) visual pair, with one component being a moderately eccentric 12.94 day single-lined spectroscopic binary. A re-analysis of archival optical spectra complemented by new near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy shows both visual components to be double lined; the second one has a period of 4.06 days and a circular orbit. In addition to the orbital elements, we determine optical and NIR flux ratios, effective temperatures, and projected rotational velocities for all four stars. Using existing photometric monitoring observations of the system that had previously revealed the rotational period of the primary in the longer-period binary, we also detect the rotational signal of the primary in the 4.06 day binary, which is synchronized with the orbital motion. With only the assumption of coevality, a comparison of all of these constraints with current stellar evolution models from the Dartmouth series points to an age of 1.4 Myr and a distance of 133 pc, consistent with previous estimates for the region and suggesting that the system is on the near side of the Taurus complex. Similar comparisons of the properties of LkCa 3 and the well-known quadruple PMS system GG Tau with the widely used models from the Lyon series for a mixing length parameter of α ML = 1.0 strongly favor the Dartmouth models

  4. Measurement and analysis of quadruple (αγγ) angular correlations for high spin states of 24Mg

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wiedenhoever, I.; Wuosmaa, A. H.; Lister, C. J.; Carpenter, M. P.; Janssens, R. V. F.; Amro, H.; Caggiano, J.; Heinz, A.; Kondev, F. G.; Lauritsen, T.; Siem, S.; Sonzogni, A.; Bhattacharyya, P.; Devlin, M.; Sarantites, D. G.; Sobotka, L. G.

    2000-01-01

    The high-lying, α-decaying states in 24 Mg have been studied by measuring the complete decay path of α and γ emissions using five segmented Silicon detectors in conjunction with GAMMASPHERE. The authors analyzed the (αγ) triple angular correlations and, for the first time, (αγγ) quadruple correlations. The data analysis is based on a new Fourier transformation technique. The power of the technique is demonstrated

  5. Quadruple-layered perovskite (CuCl)Ca2NaNb4O13

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kitada, A.; Tsujimoto, Y.; Yamamoto, T.; Kobayashi, Y.; Narumi, Y.; Kindo, K.; Aczel, A.A.; Luke, G.M.; Uemura, Y.J.; Kiuchi, Y.; Ueda, Y.; Yoshimura, K.; Ajiro, Y.; Kageyama, H.

    2012-01-01

    We will present the synthesis, structure and magnetic properties of a new quadruple-layered perovskite (CuCl)Ca 2 NaNb 4 O 13 . Through a topotactic ion-exchange reaction with CuCl 2 , the precursor RbCa 2 NaNb 4 O 13 presumably having an incoherent octahederal tliting changes into (CuCl)Ca 2 NaNb 4 O 13 with a 2a p ×2a p ×2c p superstructure (tetragonal; a=7.73232(5) Å, c=39.2156(4) Å). The well-defined superstructure for the ion-exchanged product should be stabilized by the inserted CuCl 4 O 2 octahedral layers that firmly connect with neighboring perovskite layers. Magnetic studies show the absence of long-range magnetic ordering down to 2 K despite strong in-plane interactions. Aleksandrov′s group theory and Rietveld refinement of synchrotron X-ray diffraction data suggest the structure to be of I4/mmm space group with in-phase tilting along the a and b axes, a two-tilt system (++0). - Graphical Abstract: We present a quadruple-layered copper oxyhalide (CuCl)Ca 2 NaNb 4 O 13 synthesized through a topotactic ion-exchange reaction of RbCa 2 NaNb 4 O 13 with CuCl 2 . The compound has a well-defined superstructure. Magnetic studies suggest the absence of magnetic order even at 2 K. Highlights: ► (CuCl)Ca 2 NaNb 4 O 13 was prepared by ion-exchange reaction of RbCa 2 NaNb 4 O 13 with CuCl 2 . ► Compound has a 2a p ×2a p ×2c p superstructure (tetragonal; a=7.73 Å, c=39.21 Å). ► Such a well-defined superstructure was not observed in the precursor compound. ► Aleksandrov′s theory and Rietveld study suggest a (++0) octahedral tilting (I4/mmm). ► Magnetic studies revealed the absence of magnetic order down to 2 K.

  6. Two-week, high-dose proton pump inhibitor, moxifloxacin triple Helicobacter pylori therapy after failure of standard triple or non-bismuth quadruple treatments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gisbert, Javier P; Romano, Marco; Molina-Infante, Javier; Lucendo, Alfredo J; Medina, Enrique; Modolell, Inés; Rodríguez-Tellez, Manuel; Gomez, Blas; Barrio, Jesús; Perona, Monica; Ortuño, Juan; Ariño, Inés; Domínguez-Muñoz, Juan Enrique; Perez-Aisa, Ángeles; Bermejo, Fernando; Domínguez, Jose Luis; Almela, Pedro; Gomez-Camarero, Judith; Millastre, Judith; Martin-Noguerol, Elisa; Gravina, Antonietta G; Martorano, Marco; Miranda, Agnese; Federico, Alessandro; Fernandez-Bermejo, Miguel; Angueira, Teresa; Ferrer-Barcelo, Luis; Fernández, Nuria; Marín, Alicia C; McNicholl, Adrián G

    2015-02-01

    Aim was to evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of a moxifloxacin-containing second-line triple regimen in patients whose previous Helicobacter pylori eradication treatment failed. Prospective multicentre study including patients in whom a triple therapy or a non-bismuth-quadruple-therapy failed. Moxifloxacin (400mg qd), amoxicillin (1g bid), and esomeprazole (40 mg bid) were prescribed for 14 days. Eradication was confirmed by (13)C-urea-breath-test. Compliance was determined through questioning and recovery of empty medication envelopes. 250 patients were consecutively included (mean age 48 ± 15 years, 11% with ulcer). Previous (failed) therapy included: standard triple (n = 179), sequential (n = 27), and concomitant (n = 44); 97% of patients took all medications, 4 were lost to follow-up. Intention-to-treat and per-protocol eradication rates were 82.4% (95% CI, 77-87%) and 85.7% (95% CI, 81-90%). Cure rates were similar independently of diagnosis (ulcer, 77%; dyspepsia, 82%) and previous treatment (standard triple, 83%; sequential, 89%; concomitant, 77%). At multivariate analysis, only age was associated with eradication (OR = 0.957; 95% CI, 0.933-0.981). Adverse events were reported in 25.2% of patients: diarrhoea (9.6%), abdominal pain (9.6%), and nausea (9.2%). 14-day moxifloxacin-containing triple therapy is an effective and safe second-line strategy in patients whose previous standard triple therapy or non-bismuth quadruple (sequential or concomitant) therapy has failed, providing a simple alternative to bismuth quadruple regimen. Copyright © 2014 Editrice Gastroenterologica Italiana S.r.l. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. A child with acute encephalopathy associated with quadruple viral infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Keiko eNakata

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available infection does not always result in AE. The risk factors for developing infantile AE upon such infection remain to be determined. Here we report an infant with AE coinfected with human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6 and three picornaviruses: coxsackievirus A6 (CVA6, enterovirus D68 (EV-D68, and human parechovirus (HPeV. EV-D68 was vertically transmitted to the infant from his mother. CVA6 and HPeV were likely transmitted to the infant at the nursery school. HHV-6 might have been re-activated in the patient. It remains undetermined which pathogen played the central role in the AE pathogenesis. However, active, simultaneous infection by four viruses likely evoke a cytokine storm, leading to the pathogenesis of AE. Conclusion: Infant cases with active quadruple infection by potentially AE-causing viruses have seldom been reported, partly because systematic nucleic acid-based laboratory tests on picornaviruses are not common. We propose that simultaneous viral infection may serve as a risk factor for the development of AE.

  8. Nanosecond-timescale spin transfer using individual electrons in a quadruple-quantum-dot device

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Baart, T. A.; Jovanovic, N.; Vandersypen, L. M. K. [QuTech and Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, P.O. Box 5046, 2600 GA Delft (Netherlands); Reichl, C.; Wegscheider, W. [Solid State Physics Laboratory, ETH Zürich, 8093 Zürich (Switzerland)

    2016-07-25

    The ability to coherently transport electron-spin states between different sites of gate-defined semiconductor quantum dots is an essential ingredient for a quantum-dot-based quantum computer. Previous shuttles using electrostatic gating were too slow to move an electron within the spin dephasing time across an array. Here, we report a nanosecond-timescale spin transfer of individual electrons across a quadruple-quantum-dot device. Utilizing enhanced relaxation rates at a so-called hot spot, we can upper bound the shuttle time to at most 150 ns. While actual shuttle times are likely shorter, 150 ns is already fast enough to preserve spin coherence in, e.g., silicon based quantum dots. This work therefore realizes an important prerequisite for coherent spin transfer in quantum dot arrays.

  9. SELDI-TOF MS of quadruplicate urine and serum samples to evaluate changes related to storage conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Traum, Avram Z; Wells, Meghan P; Aivado, Manuel; Libermann, Towia A; Ramoni, Marco F; Schachter, Asher D

    2006-03-01

    Proteomic profiling with SELDI-TOF MS has facilitated the discovery of disease-specific protein profiles. However, multicenter studies are often hindered by the logistics required for prompt deep-freezing of samples in liquid nitrogen or dry ice within the clinic setting prior to shipping. We report high concordance between MS profiles within sets of quadruplicate split urine and serum samples deep-frozen at 0, 2, 6, and 24 h after sample collection. Gage R&R results confirm that deep-freezing times are not a statistically significant source of SELDI-TOF MS variability for either blood or urine.

  10. Quadruple labelled dual oxygen and pH-sensitive ratiometric nanosensors

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veeren M. Chauhan

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Nanosensors capable of simultaneously measuring dissolved oxygen concentrations from 0 to 100% saturation and pH over the full physiological range, from pH 3.5 to 7.5, that advance the methods towards understanding of key biological gradients, were synthesised. A library of water soluble oxygen-sensitive porphyrins, with three substituted charged functional groups and a chemically flexible carboxylate functional group were spectroscopically analysed to assess their sensitivity to changes in dissolved oxygen concentrations as free species in solution and in suspension as nanoparticle conjugates. A platinum cationic porphyrin was taken forward to fabricate ratiometric oxygen-sensitive nanosensors, using 5-(and-6-carboxytetramethylrhodamine (TAMRA as internal standard. In addition, quadruple labelled dual oxygen and pH-sensitive nanosensors were synthesised using the cationic Pt porphyrin, pH-sensitive fluorescein dyes, carboxyfluorescein (FAM and Oregon Green (OG, in a 1:1 ratio, and TAMRA. We envisage the dual oxygen and pH nanosensors will find broad utility in the characterisation of diverse microenvironments, where there are complex interactions between molecular oxygen and pH. Keywords: Fluorescent, Phosphorescent, Nanosensor, Oxygen, pH, Ratiometric, Platinum metalloporphyrin

  11. Linear discrete-time state space realization of a modified quadruple tank system with state estimation using Kalman filter

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mohd. Azam, Sazuan Nazrah

    2017-01-01

    In this paper, we used the modified quadruple tank system that represents a multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) system as an example to present the realization of a linear discrete-time state space model and to obtain the state estimation using Kalman filter in a methodical mannered. First, an existing...... part of the Kalman filter is used to estimates the current state, based on the model and the measurements. The static and dynamic Kalman filter is compared and all results is demonstrated through simulations....

  12. Reduction of measurement uncertainty by experimental design in high-order (double, triple, and quadruple) isotope dilution mass spectrometry: application to GC-MS measurement of bromide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pagliano, Enea; Mester, Zoltán; Meija, Juris

    2013-03-01

    Since its introduction a century ago, isotope dilution analysis has played a central role in developments of analytical chemistry. This method has witnessed many elaborations and developments over the years. To date, we have single, double, and even triple isotope dilution methods. In this manuscript, we summarize the conceptual aspects of isotope dilution methods and introduce the quadruple dilution and the concept of exact matching triple and quadruple dilutions. The comparison of isotope dilution methods is performed by determination of bromide ions in groundwater using novel ethyl-derivatization chemistry in conjunction with GC/MS. We show that the benefits of higher-order isotope dilution methods are countered with a greater need for careful experimental design of the isotopic blends. Just as for ID(2)MS, ID(3)MS and ID(4)MS perform best when the isotope ratio of one sample/spike blend is matched with that of a standard/spike blend (exact matching).

  13. Optimal Design of a Center Support Quadruple Mass Gyroscope (CSQMG

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tian Zhang

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available This paper reports a more complete description of the design process of the Center Support Quadruple Mass Gyroscope (CSQMG, a gyro expected to provide breakthrough performance for flat structures. The operation of the CSQMG is based on four lumped masses in a circumferential symmetric distribution, oscillating in anti-phase motion, and providing differential signal extraction. With its 4-fold symmetrical axes pattern, the CSQMG achieves a similar operation mode to Hemispherical Resonant Gyroscopes (HRGs. Compared to the conventional flat design, four Y-shaped coupling beams are used in this new pattern in order to adjust mode distribution and enhance the synchronization mechanism of operation modes. For the purpose of obtaining the optimal design of the CSQMG, a kind of applicative optimization flow is developed with a comprehensive derivation of the operation mode coordination, the pseudo mode inhibition, and the lumped mass twisting motion elimination. The experimental characterization of the CSQMG was performed at room temperature, and the center operation frequency is 6.8 kHz after tuning. Experiments show an Allan variance stability 0.12°/h (@100 s and a white noise level about 0.72°/h/√Hz, which means that the CSQMG possesses great potential to achieve navigation grade performance.

  14. On the rates of type Ia supernovae originating from white dwarf collisions in quadruple star systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamers, Adrian S.

    2018-04-01

    We consider the evolution of stellar hierarchical quadruple systems in the 2+2 (two binaries orbiting each other's barycentre) and 3+1 (triple orbited by a fourth star) configurations. In our simulations, we take into account the effects of secular dynamical evolution, stellar evolution, tidal evolution and encounters with passing stars. We focus on type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) driven by collisions of carbon-oxygen (CO) white dwarfs (WDs). Such collisions can arise from several channels: (1) collisions due to extremely high eccentricities induced by secular evolution, (2) collisions following a dynamical instability of the system, and (3) collisions driven by semisecular evolution. The systems considered here have initially wide inner orbits, with initial semilatus recti larger than 12 {au}, implying no interaction if the orbits were isolated. However, taking into account dynamical evolution, we find that ≈0.4 (≈0.6) of 2+2 (3+1) systems interact. In particular, Roche Lobe overflow can be triggered possibly in highly eccentric orbits, dynamical instability can ensue due to mass-loss-driven orbital expansion or secular evolution, or a semisecular regime can be entered. We compute the delay-time distributions (DTDs) of collision-induced SNe Ia, and find that they are flatter compared to the observed DTD. Moreover, our combined SNe Ia rates are (3.7± 0.7) × 10^{-6} M_⊙^{-1} and (1.3± 0.2) × 10^{-6} M_⊙^{-1} for 2+2 and 3+1 systems, respectively, three orders of magnitude lower compared to the observed rate, of order 10^{-3} M_⊙^{-1}. The low rates can be ascribed to interactions before the stars evolve to CO WDs. However, our results are lower limits given that we considered a subset of quadruple systems.

  15. Light and Electrically Induced Phase Segregation and Its Impact on the Stability of Quadruple Cation High Bandgap Perovskite Solar Cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Duong, The; Mulmudi, Hemant Kumar; Wu, YiLiang; Fu, Xiao; Shen, Heping; Peng, Jun; Wu, Nandi; Nguyen, Hieu T; Macdonald, Daniel; Lockrey, Mark; White, Thomas P; Weber, Klaus; Catchpole, Kylie

    2017-08-16

    Perovskite material with a bandgap of 1.7-1.8 eV is highly desirable for the top cell in a tandem configuration with a lower bandgap bottom cell, such as a silicon cell. This can be achieved by alloying iodide and bromide anions, but light-induced phase-segregation phenomena are often observed in perovskite films of this kind, with implications for solar cell efficiency. Here, we investigate light-induced phase segregation inside quadruple-cation perovskite material in a complete cell structure and find that the magnitude of this phenomenon is dependent on the operating condition of the solar cell. Under short-circuit and even maximum power point conditions, phase segregation is found to be negligible compared to the magnitude of segregation under open-circuit conditions. In accordance with the finding, perovskite cells based on quadruple-cation perovskite with 1.73 eV bandgap retain 94% of the original efficiency after 12 h operation at the maximum power point, while the cell only retains 82% of the original efficiency after 12 h operation at the open-circuit condition. This result highlights the need to have standard methods including light/dark and bias condition for testing the stability of perovskite solar cells. Additionally, phase segregation is observed when the cell was forward biased at 1.2 V in the dark, which indicates that photoexcitation is not required to induce phase segregation.

  16. Simulation study on control of spill structure of slow extracted beam from a medical synchrotron with feed-forward and feedback using a fast quadruple magnet and RF-knockout system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Muraoka, Ryo; Nakanishi, Tetsuya, E-mail: nakanishi.tetsuya@nihon-u.ac.jp

    2017-02-21

    A feedback control of the spill structure for the slow beam extraction from the medical synchrotron using a fast quadruple and radio frequency (RF)-knockout (QAR method) is studied to obtain the designed spill structure. In addition the feed-forward control is used so that the feedback control is performed effectively. In this extraction method, the spill of several ms are extracted continuously with an interval time of less than 1 ms. Beam simulation showed that a flat spill structure was effectively obtained with feed-forward and feedback control system as well as a step-wise structure which is useful for the shortening of an irradiation time in a spot scanning operation. The effect of current ripples from main quadruple magnet's power supplies could be also reduced with the feedback control application.

  17. The closest M-dwarf quadruple system to the Sun

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Davison, Cassy L.; White, R. J.; Jao, W.-C.; Henry, T. J.; Quinn, S. N.; Cantrell, J. R.; Winters, J. G.; Bailey, J. I. III; Riedel, A. R.; Subasavage, J. P.; Crockett, C. J.

    2014-01-01

    We report new infrared radial velocity measurements obtained with CSHELL at NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility that reveal the M3.5 dwarf GJ 867B to be a single-lined spectroscopic binary with a period of 1.795 ± 0.017 days. Its velocity semi-amplitude of 21.4 ± 0.5 km s –1 corresponds to a minimum mass of 61 ± 7 M JUP ; the new companion, which we call GJ 867D, could be a brown dwarf. Stable astrometric measurements of GJ 867BD obtained with CTIO's 0.9 m telescope over the last decade exclude the presence of any massive planetary companions (7-18 M JUP ) with longer orbital periods (2-10 yr) for the majority of orientations. These complementary observations are also used to determine the trigonometric distance and proper motion of GJ 867BD; the measurements are consistent with the HIPPARCOS measured values of the M2 dwarf GJ 867AC, which is itself a 4.1 day double-lined spectroscopic binary at a projected separation of 24.''5 (216 AU) from GJ 867BD. These new measurements strengthen the case that GJ 867AC and GJ 867BD are physically associated, making the GJ 867 system one of only four quadruple systems within 10 pc of the Sun (d = 8.82 ± 0.08 pc) and the only among these with all M-dwarf (or cooler) components.

  18. Pattern optimizing verification of self-align quadruple patterning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yamato, Masatoshi; Yamada, Kazuki; Oyama, Kenichi; Hara, Arisa; Natori, Sakurako; Yamauchi, Shouhei; Koike, Kyohei; Yaegashi, Hidetami

    2017-03-01

    Lithographic scaling continues to advance by extending the life of 193nm immersion technology, and spacer-type multi-patterning is undeniably the driving force behind this trend. Multi-patterning techniques such as self-aligned double patterning (SADP) and self-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQP) have come to be used in memory devices, and they have also been adopted in logic devices to create constituent patterns in the formation of 1D layout designs. Multi-patterning has consequently become an indispensible technology in the fabrication of all advanced devices. In general, items that must be managed when using multi-patterning include critical dimension uniformity (CDU), line edge roughness (LER), and line width roughness (LWR). Recently, moreover, there has been increasing focus on judging and managing pattern resolution performance from a more detailed perspective and on making a right/wrong judgment from the perspective of edge placement error (EPE). To begin with, pattern resolution performance in spacer-type multi-patterning is affected by the process accuracy of the core (mandrel) pattern. Improving the controllability of CD and LER of the mandrel is most important, and to reduce LER, an appropriate smoothing technique should be carefully selected. In addition, the atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique is generally used to meet the need for high accuracy in forming the spacer film. Advances in scaling are accompanied by stricter requirements in the controllability of fine processing. In this paper, we first describe our efforts in improving controllability by selecting the most appropriate materials for the mandrel pattern and spacer film. Then, based on the materials selected, we present experimental results on a technique for improving etching selectivity.

  19. A quadruple-scanning-probe force microscope for electrical property measurements of microscopic materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Higuchi, Seiji; Kubo, Osamu; Kuramochi, Hiromi; Aono, Masakazu; Nakayama, Tomonobu

    2011-01-01

    Four-terminal electrical measurement is realized on a microscopic structure in air, without a lithographic process, using a home-built quadruple-scanning-probe force microscope (QSPFM). The QSPFM has four probes whose positions are individually controlled by obtaining images of a sample in the manner of atomic force microscopy (AFM), and uses the probes as contacting electrodes for electrical measurements. A specially arranged tuning fork probe (TFP) is used as a self-detection force sensor to operate each probe in a frequency modulation AFM mode, resulting in simultaneous imaging of the same microscopic feature on an insulator using the four TFPs. Four-terminal electrical measurement is then demonstrated in air by placing each probe electrode in contact with a graphene flake exfoliated on a silicon dioxide film, and the sheet resistance of the flake is measured by the van der Pauw method. The present work shows that the QSPFM has the potential to measure the intrinsic electrical properties of a wide range of microscopic materials in situ without electrode fabrication.

  20. A quadruple quasar coincident with a giant Ly-alpha nebula and a protocluster at z=2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vignali, Cristian

    2016-09-01

    We propose to observe the only known quadruple AGN system in the Universe, embedded in a giant Ly-alpha nebula at z 2. These active nuclei and the large number of Ly-alpha emitting galaxies at the same redshift are clear indications that this is one of the most overdense protoclusters known z 2. We request a 140 ks Chandra exposure to (a) define the basic X-ray properties of all the AGN and then their bolometric luminosities and Eddington ratios, and compare these with those of "isolated" quasars at similar redshifts/luminosities; (b) detect the hot gas emission in the protocluster. Chandra is unique for this investigation: the close (few arcsec) distance of some of the AGN needs high spatial resolution, and the extended emission requires low background contribution.

  1. Marker Protein Expression Combined With Expression Heterogeneity is a Powerful Indicator of Malignancy in Acral Lentiginous Melanomas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cintra Lopes Carapeto, Fernando; Neves Comodo, Andréia; Germano, Andressa; Pereira Guimarães, Daiane; Barcelos, Denise; Fernandes, Mariana; Landman, Gilles

    2017-02-01

    Samples of acral lentiginous melanomas (ALMs) were obtained from the Department of Pathology at Escola Paulista de Medicina-Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, Brazil. Demographic, clinical, and follow-up data were obtained from the charts of Hospital São Paulo. From 2 tissue microarrays containing 60 nevi and quadruplicate samples of ≥1.0-mm of 49 ALM, sections were stained to evaluate SCF, KIT, BRAF, CYCLIND1, MYC, and PTEN immunohistochemical protein expression. Nevi and ALM from 2006 to 2010 were reviewed and collected. All specimens were in the vertical growth phase, and histopathological parameters indicated that tumors were at an advanced stage at diagnosis. Average tumor thickness was 6.95 mm, 63% were ulcerated, average mitotic index was 5 mitotic cells per mm, and 43% were at Clark's level V. Compared with nevi, the χ test showed that ALM significantly correlated with SCF protein expression (P = 0.001) and expression heterogeneity (P < 0.000). Similar findings were observed for KIT (P = 0.005, P = 0.003, respectively), MYC (P < 0.000, P < 0.000), and PTEN (P = 0.005, P < 0.000). Malignancy did not correlate with BRAF and CYCLIN D1 expression (P = 0.053 and P = 0.259, respectively), but it did significantly correlate with their heterogeneous expression (P < 0.000, P = 0.024, respectively). Combined protein expression had an odds ratio of greater malignancy when BRAF and MYC were positive and/or heterogeneously expressed (OR of 78 and 95, respectively). We show that marker protein expression, when combined with heterogeneous expression as shown by immunohistochemistry, is a powerful indicator of malignancy in ALMs, especially, when protein pairs are combined.

  2. Quadruple Cone Coil with improved focality than Figure-8 coil in Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rastogi, Priyam; Lee, Erik G.; Hadimani, Ravi L.; Jiles, David C.

    Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive therapy which uses a time varying magnetic field to induce an electric field in the brain and to cause neuron depolarization. Magnetic coils play an important role in the TMS therapy since their coil geometry determines the focality and penetration's depth of the induced electric field in the brain. Quadruple Cone Coil (QCC) is a novel coil with an improved focality when compared to commercial Figure-8 coil. The results of this newly designed QCC coil are compared with the Figure-8 coil at two different positions of the head - vertex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, over the 50 anatomically realistic MRI derived head models. Parameters such as volume of stimulation, maximum electric, area of stimulation and location of maximum electric field are determined with the help of computer modelling of both coils. There is a decrease in volume of brain stimulated by 11.6 % and a modest improvement of 8 % in the location of maximum electric field due to QCC in comparison to the Figure-8 coil. The Carver Charitable Trust and The Galloway Foundation.

  3. Application of CaCu3Ti4O12 based quadruple perovskites as a promising candidate for optoelectronic devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pal, Kamalesh; Jana, Rajkumar; Dey, Arka; Ray, Partha P.; Seikh, Md Motin; Gayen, Arup

    2018-05-01

    We report the synthesis of nanosized (40-50 nm) CaCu3-xMnxTi4-xMnxO12 (x = 0, 0.5 and 1) quadruple perovskite (QP) semiconductor via a modified combustion method for use as Schottky barrier diode (SBD) at the Al/QP junction. The fabricated SBD is analysed on the basis of thermionic emission theory to observe its quality and some important diode parameters. For insight analysis of charge transport mechanism through metal-semiconductor junction, theory of space charge limited currents is applied and discussed in the light of parameters like carrier concentration, mobility-lifetime product and diffusion length. The Mn-doped exhibit better device performance compared to parent material.

  4. Using the Quadruple Aim Framework to Measure Impact of Heath Technology Implementation: A Case Study of eConsult.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liddy, Clare; Keely, Erin

    2018-01-01

    Health technology solutions are too often implemented without a true understanding of the system-level problem they seek to address, resulting in excessive costs, poor adoption, ineffectiveness, and ultimately failure. Before implementing or adopting health care innovations, stakeholders should complete a thorough assessment to ensure effectiveness and value. In this article, we describe how to evaluate the impact of a health technology innovation through the 4 dimensions of care outlined by the Quadruple Aim Framework, using our experience with the Champlain Building Access to Specialists through eConsultation (BASE) eConsult service as a case example. A descriptive overview of data was collected between April 1, 2011, and August 31, 2017, using 4 dimensions of care outlined by the Quadruple Aim Framework: patient experience, provider experience, costs, and population health. Findings were drawn from use data, primary care provider closeout surveys, surveys/interviews with patients and provider, and costing data. Overall, patients have received access to specialist advice within days and find the advice useful in 86% of cases. Provider experience is very positive, with satisfaction ratings of high/very high value in 94% of cases. The service cost a weighted average of $47.35/case, compared with $133.60/case for traditional referrals. In total, 1,299 primary care providers have enrolled in the service, completing 28,838 cases since 2011. Monthly case volumes have grown from an average of 13 cases/month in 2011 to 969 cases/month in 2016. The eConsult service has been widely adopted in our region and is currently expanding to new jurisdictions across Canada. However, although we successfully demonstrated eConsult's impact on patient experience, provider satisfaction, and reducing costs, we met several challenges in evaluating its impact on population health. More work is needed to evaluate eConsult's impact on key population health metrics (eg, mortality, morbidity

  5. The Relationship between Preeclampsia and Quadruple Screening Test in Nuliparous

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Farnaz Zand Vakili

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Early diagnosis and prediction of preeclampsia needs appropriate obstetric care. Preeclampsia predicting methods are important. This study was designed to determine the correlation between preeclampsia and quadruple screening test in the nulliparous. Materials and Methods:  This case - control study was conducted on 54 pregnant women with preeclampsia (case group and 108 healthy pregnant women (control group who referred to health centers in Sanandaj, Iran. Ultrasonography was performed to determine the gestational age by a radiologist. Maternal serum levels of alpha fetoprotein (AFP, human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG, unconjugated estriol (uE3, and inhibin-A were measured in the second trimester of pregnancy. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software and Chi-square test, T-test, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values. Results: The results showed that the sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of preeclampsia in pregnant women for hCG were 35.2% and 79.6 respectively. These findings for estriol were 20.4% and 88.9%, for inhibin-A were 38.8% and 88% and for alpha fetoprotein were 38.8% and 74.1%. The positive predictive value for hCG, estriol, inhibin-A and alpha fetoprotein were 46.3%, 47.8%, 61.8% and 42.9% respectively. The negative predictive value for hCG, estriol, inhibin-A and alpha fetoprotein were also 71%, 69.1%, 74.2% and 70.8% respectively. Conclusion: There was a relationship between preeclampsia and high levels of inhibin-A and hCG. Further studies on these markers and evaluating their usefulness in the diagnosis and management of preeclampsia are recommended.

  6. Roughness and uniformity improvements on self-aligned quadruple patterning technique for 10nm node and beyond by wafer stress engineering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Eric; Ko, Akiteru; O'Meara, David; Mohanty, Nihar; Franke, Elliott; Pillai, Karthik; Biolsi, Peter

    2017-05-01

    Dimension shrinkage has been a major driving force in the development of integrated circuit processing over a number of decades. The Self-Aligned Quadruple Patterning (SAQP) technique is widely adapted for sub-10nm node in order to achieve the desired feature dimensions. This technique provides theoretical feasibility of multiple pitch-halving from 193nm immersion lithography by using various pattern transferring steps. The major concept of this approach is to a create spacer defined self-aligned pattern by using single lithography print. By repeating the process steps, double, quadruple, or octuple are possible to be achieved theoretically. In these small architectures, line roughness control becomes extremely important since it may contribute to a significant portion of process and device performance variations. In addition, the complexity of SAQP in terms of processing flow makes the roughness improvement indirective and ineffective. It is necessary to discover a new approach in order to improve the roughness in the current SAQP technique. In this presentation, we demonstrate a novel method to improve line roughness performances on 30nm pitch SAQP flow. We discover that the line roughness performance is strongly related to stress management. By selecting different stress level of film to be deposited onto the substrate, we can manipulate the roughness performance in line and space patterns. In addition, the impact of curvature change by applied film stress to SAQP line roughness performance is also studied. No significant correlation is found between wafer curvature and line roughness performance. We will discuss in details the step-by-step physical performances for each processing step in terms of critical dimension (CD)/ critical dimension uniformity (CDU)/line width roughness (LWR)/line edge roughness (LER). Finally, we summarize the process needed to reach the full wafer performance targets of LWR/LER in 1.07nm/1.13nm on 30nm pitch line and space pattern.

  7. Influence of vitamin C and E supplementation on the eradication rates of triple and quadruple eradication regimens for Helicobacter pylori infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demirci, Hakan; Uygun İlikhan, Sevil; Öztürk, Kadir; Üstündağ, Yücel; Kurt, Ömer; Bilici, Muammer; Köktürk, Furuzan; Uygun, Ahmet

    2015-11-01

    In our study, we aimed to assess the effect of vitamin E and C supplementation to triple and quadruple Helicobacter pylori eradication regimens. Four hundred patients with H. pylori infection were classified into four groups. Patients in group A (n=100) received amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and lansoprazole for 2 weeks. In group B, patients (n=100) received vitamins C and E for a month, in addition to amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and lansoprazole for 2 weeks. Patients in group C (n=100) received amoxicillin, clarithromycin, lansoprazole, and bismuth subcitrate for 2 weeks, whereas those in group D (n=100) received vitamins C and E for a month, in addition to amoxicillin, clarithromycin, lansoprazole, and bismuth subcitrate for 2 weeks. H. pylori eradication was assessed with the C14 urea breath test 2 months after the end of the therapy. The eradication rate was assessed using per-protocol (PP) and intention-to-treat (ITT) analyses. Three hundred forty-eight patients finished the study. The eradication of H. pylori was achieved in 63 of 84 patients (75%) by PP and 63 of 100 (63%) by ITT analysis in group A, 60 of 84 (71.4%) by PP and 60 of 100 (60%) by ITT analysis in group B, 72 of 89 (80.9 %) by PP and 72 of 100 (72%) by ITT analysis in group C, and 76 of 91 (83.5%) by PP and 76 of 100 (76%) by ITT analysis in group D. There was no remarkable change between groups A and B (p>0.05). Similar results were also found between groups D and C (p>0.05). This study revealed that supplementing vitamins C and E to either the triple or quadruple therapies did not provide an additional advantage for achieving significantly higher eradication rates for H. pylori.

  8. Design of dual band FSS by using quadruple L-slot technique

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fauzi, Noor Azamiah Md; Aziz, Mohamad Zoinol Abidin Abd.; Said, Maizatul Alice Meor; Othman, Mohd Azlishah; Ahmad, Badrul Hisham; Malek, Mohd Fareq Abd

    2015-05-01

    This paper presents a new design of dual band frequency selective surface (FSS) for band pass microwave transmission application. FSS can be used on energy saving glass to improve the transmission of wireless communication signals through the glass. The microwave signal will be attenuate when propagate throughout the different structure such as building. Therefore, some of the wireless communication system cannot be used in the optimum performance. The aim of this paper is designed, simulated and analyzed the new dual band FSS structure for microwave transmission. This design is based on a quadruple L slot combined with cross slot to produce pass band at 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz. The vertical of pair inverse L slot is used as the band pass for the frequency of 2.4GHz. While, the horizontal of pair inverse L slot is used as the band pass at frequency 900MHz. This design is simulated and analyzed by using Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Microwave Studio (MWS) software. The characteristics of the transmission (S21) and reflection (S11) of the dual band FSS were simulater and analyzed. The bandwidth of the first band is 118.91MHz which covered the frequency range from 833.4MHz until 952.31MHz. Meanwhile, the bandwidth for the second band is 358.84MHz which covered the frequency range from 2.1475GHz until 2.5063GHz. The resonance/center frequency of this design is obtained at 900MHz with a 26.902dB return loss and 2.37GHz with 28.506dB a return loss. This FSS is suitable as microwave filter for GSM900 and WLAN 2.4GHz application.

  9. Design and reliability, availability, maintainability, and safety analysis of a high availability quadruple vital computer system

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Ping TAN; Wei-ting HE; Jia LIN; Hong-ming ZHAO; Jian CHU

    2011-01-01

    With the development of high-speed railways in China,more than 2000 high-speed trains will be put into use.Safety and efficiency of railway transportation is increasingly important.We have designed a high availability quadruple vital computer (HAQVC) system based on the analysis of the architecture of the traditional double 2-out-of-2 system and 2-out-of-3 system.The HAQVC system is a system with high availability and safety,with prominent characteristics such as fire-new internal architecture,high efficiency,reliable data interaction mechanism,and operation state change mechanism.The hardware of the vital CPU is based on ARM7 with the real-time embedded safe operation system (ES-OS).The Markov modeling method is designed to evaluate the reliability,availability,maintainability,and safety (RAMS) of the system.In this paper,we demonstrate that the HAQVC system is more reliable than the all voting triple modular redundancy (AVTMR) system and double 2-out-of-2 system.Thus,the design can be used for a specific application system,such as an airplane or high-speed railway system.

  10. Third-line rescue therapy with bismuth-containing quadruple regimen after failure of two treatments (with clarithromycin and levofloxacin) for H. pylori infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gisbert, J P; Perez-Aisa, A; Rodrigo, L; Molina-Infante, J; Modolell, I; Bermejo, F; Castro-Fernández, M; Antón, R; Sacristán, B; Cosme, A; Barrio, J; Harb, Y; Gonzalez-Barcenas, M; Fernandez-Bermejo, M; Algaba, A; Marín, A C; McNicholl, A G

    2014-02-01

    Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy with a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), clarithromycin, and amoxicillin fails in >20 % of cases. A rescue therapy with PPI-amoxicillin-levofloxacin still fails in >20 % of patients. To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of a bismuth-containing quadruple regimen in patients with two consecutive eradication failures. Prospective multicenter study of patients in whom 1st treatment with PPI-clarithromycin-amoxicillin and 2nd with PPI-amoxicillin-levofloxacin had failed. A 3rd eradication regimen with a 7- to 14-day PPI (standard dose b.i.d.), bismuth subcitrate (120 mg q.i.d. or 240 mg b.i.d.), tetracycline (from 250 mg t.i.d. to 500 mg q.i.d.) and metronidazole (from 250 mg t.i.d. to 500 mg q.i.d.). Eradication was confirmed by (13)C-urea-breath-test 4-8 weeks after therapy. Compliance was determined through questioning and recovery of empty medication envelopes. Adverse effects were evaluated by means of a questionnaire. Two hundred patients (mean age 50 years, 55 % females, 20 % peptic ulcer/80 % uninvestigated-functional dyspepsia) were initially included, and two were lost to follow-up. In all, 97 % of patients complied with the protocol. Per-protocol and intention-to-treat eradication rates were 67 % (95 % CI 60-74 %) and 65 % (58-72 %). Adverse effects were reported in 22 % of patients, the most common being nausea (12 %), abdominal pain (11 %), metallic taste (8.5 %), and diarrhea (8 %), none of them severe. A bismuth-containing quadruple regimen is an acceptable third-line strategy and a safe alternative after two previous H. pylori eradication failures with standard clarithromycin- and levofloxacin-containing triple therapies.

  11. Line roughness improvements on self-aligned quadruple patterning by wafer stress engineering

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Eric; Ko, Akiteru; Biolsi, Peter; Chae, Soo Doo; Hsieh, Chia-Yun; Kagaya, Munehito; Lee, Choongman; Moriya, Tsuyoshi; Tsujikawa, Shimpei; Suzuki, Yusuke; Okubo, Kazuya; Imai, Kiyotaka

    2018-04-01

    In integrated circuit and memory devices, size shrinkage has been the most effective method to reduce production cost and enable the steady increment of the number of transistors per unit area over the past few decades. In order to reduce the die size and feature size, it is necessary to minimize pattern formation in the advance node development. In the node of sub-10nm, extreme ultra violet lithography (EUV) and multi-patterning solutions based on 193nm immersionlithography are the two most common options to achieve the size requirement. In such small features of line and space pattern, line width roughness (LWR) and line edge roughness (LER) contribute significant amount of process variation that impacts both physical and electrical performances. In this paper, we focus on optimizing the line roughness performance by using wafer stress engineering on 30nm pitch line and space pattern. This pattern is generated by a self-aligned quadruple patterning (SAQP) technique for the potential application of fin formation. Our investigation starts by comparing film materials and stress levels in various processing steps and material selection on SAQP integration scheme. From the cross-matrix comparison, we are able to determine the best stack of film selection and stress combination in order to achieve the lowest line roughness performance while obtaining pattern validity after fin etch. This stack is also used to study the step-by-step line roughness performance from SAQP to fin etch. Finally, we will show a successful patterning of 30nm pitch line and space pattern SAQP scheme with 1nm line roughness performance.

  12. Synthesis and properties of a new quadruple perovskite: A-site ordered PbMn{sub 3}Mn{sub 4}O{sub 12}

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Locherer, T.; Dinnebier, R.; Kremer, R.K. [Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Heisenbergstr. 1, D-70569 Stuttgart (Germany); Greenblatt, M., E-mail: martha@rutchem.rutgers.edu [Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854 (United States); Jansen, M. [Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Heisenbergstr. 1, D-70569 Stuttgart (Germany)

    2012-06-15

    PbMn{sub 3}Mn{sub 4}O{sub 12} a quadruple perovskite was prepared by high pressure and high temperature synthesis. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXD) and differential scanning calorimetry reveal a structural phase transition at {approx}380 K. Rietveld refinement of the synchrotron room temperature data indicate rhombohedral symmetry (R-3) with a=6.43675(4) A and {alpha}=109.556(2) Degree-Sign . Similar 423 K PXD data refined in a body centered cubic cell (Im-3) with a=7.4283(9) A. The temperature variation of magnetization, shows a magnetic field dependent antiferromagnetic-like transition at 68 K, and dynamic fluctuations indicative of magnetic frustration. The semiconducting electrical behavior indicates a large decrease in the conductivity near 68 K. The temperature dependence of the real part of the dielectric constant, {epsilon}{sub real} increases dramatically at {approx}68 K, and shows relaxor-type ferroelectric behavior as a function of frequency. The intimate coupling of magnetic, electrical and dielectric properties at 68 K in PbMn{sub 3}Mn{sub 4}O{sub 12} suggests possible multiferroic behavior. - Graphical abstract: Resistance vs. temperature plot showing drastically increasing resistances at temperatures below 68 K (a). Formation of a frequency dependency of the dielectric constant between 68 K and ambient temperature (b). Sharp cusp in the magnetic susceptibility observed at 68 K which is suppressed with increasing magnetic field (c) indicates coupling of magnetic, electric and dielectric effects. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer PbMn{sub 3}Mn{sub 4}O{sub 12} a quadruple perovskite was prepared at high pressure. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A structural transition is seen at 380 K from space group R-3-to-Im-3. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer An antiferromagnetic transition is observed at 68 K. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer It is semiconducting with a large decrease in the conductivity near 68 K. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The temperature dependence

  13. The Quadruple Helix-Based Innovation Model of Reference Sites for Active and Healthy Ageing in Europe: The Ageing@Coimbra Case Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malva, João O; Amado, Alda; Rodrigues, Alexandra; Mota-Pinto, Anabela; Cardoso, Ana F; Teixeira, Ana M; Todo-Bom, Ana; Devesa, António; Ambrósio, António F; Cunha, António L; Gomes, Bárbara; Dantas, Carina; Abreu, Cidalina; Santana, Isabel; Bousquet, Jean; Apóstolo, João; Santos, Lúcia; Meneses de Almeida, Lúcio; Illario, Maddalena; Veríssimo, Rafaela; Rodrigues, Vitor; Veríssimo, Manuel T

    2018-01-01

    Challenges posed by demographic changes and population aging are key priorities for the Horizon 2020 Program of the European Commission. Aligned with the vision of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing (EIP on AHA), the development, exchange, and large-scale adoption of innovative good practices is a key element of the responses required to ensure all European citizens remain as active and healthy as possible as they age. Urged by the need of developing scalable disruptive innovation across Europe, the European Commission and the EIP on AHA created the Reference Sites; local coalition of partners that develop good practices to support AHA. Ageing@Coimbra is an example of how this can be achieved at a regional level. The consortium comprises over 70 institutions that develop innovative practices to support AHA in Portugal. Ageing@Coimbra partners support a regional network of stakeholders that build a holistic ecosystem in health and social care, taking into consideration the specificities of the territories, living environments and cultural resources (2,243,934 inhabitants, 530,423 aged 65 or plus live in the Centre Region of Portugal). Good practices in reducing the burden of brain diseases that affect cognition and memory impairment in older people and tackling social isolation in urban and rural areas are among the top priorities of Ageing@Coimbra. Profiting from the collaborative work of academia, business companies, civil society, and authorities, the quadruple helix of Ageing@Coimbra supports: early diagnosis of frailty and disease; care and cure; and active, assisted, and independent living. This paper describes, as a Community Case Study, the creation of a Reference Site of the EIP on AHA, Ageing@Coimbra, and its impact in Portugal. This Reference Site can motivate other regions to develop innovative formulas to federate stakeholders and networks, building consortia at regional level. This growing movement, across Europe, is

  14. The Quadruple Helix-Based Innovation Model of Reference Sites for Active and Healthy Ageing in Europe: The Ageing@Coimbra Case Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    João O. Malva

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Challenges posed by demographic changes and population aging are key priorities for the Horizon 2020 Program of the European Commission. Aligned with the vision of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing (EIP on AHA, the development, exchange, and large-scale adoption of innovative good practices is a key element of the responses required to ensure all European citizens remain as active and healthy as possible as they age. Urged by the need of developing scalable disruptive innovation across Europe, the European Commission and the EIP on AHA created the Reference Sites; local coalition of partners that develop good practices to support AHA. Ageing@Coimbra is an example of how this can be achieved at a regional level. The consortium comprises over 70 institutions that develop innovative practices to support AHA in Portugal. Ageing@Coimbra partners support a regional network of stakeholders that build a holistic ecosystem in health and social care, taking into consideration the specificities of the territories, living environments and cultural resources (2,243,934 inhabitants, 530,423 aged 65 or plus live in the Centre Region of Portugal. Good practices in reducing the burden of brain diseases that affect cognition and memory impairment in older people and tackling social isolation in urban and rural areas are among the top priorities of Ageing@Coimbra. Profiting from the collaborative work of academia, business companies, civil society, and authorities, the quadruple helix of Ageing@Coimbra supports: early diagnosis of frailty and disease; care and cure; and active, assisted, and independent living. This paper describes, as a Community Case Study, the creation of a Reference Site of the EIP on AHA, Ageing@Coimbra, and its impact in Portugal. This Reference Site can motivate other regions to develop innovative formulas to federate stakeholders and networks, building consortia at regional level. This growing movement

  15. Quadruple burden of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, chronic intestinal parasitoses, and multiple micronutrient deficiency in ethiopia: a summary of available findings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Amare, Bemnet; Moges, Beyene; Mulu, Andargachew; Yifru, Sisay; Kassu, Afework

    2015-01-01

    Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), tuberculosis (TB), and helminthic infections are among the commonest public health problems in the sub-Saharan African countries like Ethiopia. Multiple micronutrient deficiencies also known as the "hidden hunger" are common in people living in these countries either playing a role in their pathogenesis or as consequences. This results in a vicious cycle of multiple micronutrient deficiencies and infection/disease progression. As infection is profoundly associated with nutritional status resulting from decreased nutrient intake, decreased nutrient absorption, and nutrient losses, micronutrient deficiencies affect immune system and impact infection and diseases progression. As a result, micronutrients, immunity, and infection are interrelated. The goal of this review is therefore to provide a summary of available findings regarding the "quadruple burden trouble" of HIV, TB, intestinal parasitic infections, and multiple micronutrient deficiencies to describe immune-modulating effects related to disorders.

  16. Investigation of shape, position, and permeability of shielding material in quadruple butterfly coil for focused transcranial magnetic stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rastogi, Priyam; Zhang, Bowen; Tang, Yalun; Lee, Erik G.; Hadimani, Ravi L.; Jiles, David C.

    2018-05-01

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation has been gaining popularity in the therapy for several neurological disorders. A time-varying magnetic field is used to generate electric field in the brain. As the development of TMS methods takes place, emphasis on the coil design increases in order to improve focal stimulation. Ideally reduction of stimulation of neighboring regions of the target area is desired. This study, focused on the improvement of the focality of the Quadruple Butterfly Coil (QBC) with supplemental use of different passive shields. Parameters such as shape, position and permeability of the shields have been explored to improve the focus of stimulation. Results have been obtained with the help of computer modelling of a MRI derived heterogeneous head model over the vertex position and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex position using a finite element tool. Variables such as maximum electric field induced on the grey matter and scalp, volume and area of stimulation above half of the maximum value of electric field on the grey matter, and ratio of the maximum electric field in the brain versus the scalp have been investigated.

  17. Quadruple high-resolution α-glucosidase/α-amylase/PTP1B/radical scavenging profiling combined with high-performance liquid chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry-solid-phase extraction-nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for identification of antidiabetic constituents in crude root bark of Morus alba L.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Yong; Kongstad, Kenneth Thermann; Jäger, Anna Katharina; Nielsen, John; Staerk, Dan

    2018-06-29

    In this paper, quadruple high-resolution α-glucosidase/α-amylase/PTP1B/radical scavenging profiling combined with HPLC-HRMS-SPE-NMR were used for studying the polypharmacological properties of crude root bark extract of Morus alba L. This species is used as an anti-diabetic principle in many traditional treatment systems around the world, and the crude ethyl acetate extract of M. alba root bark was found to inhibit α-glucosidase, α-amylase and protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) with IC 50 values of 1.70 ± 0.72, 5.16 ± 0.69, and 5.07 ± 0.68 μg/mL as well as showing radical scavenging activity equaling a TEAC value of (3.82 ± 0.14) × 10 4  mM per gram extract. Subsequent investigation of the crude extract using quadruple high-resolution α-glucosidase/α-amylase/PTP1B/radical scavenging profiling provided a quadruple biochromatogram that allowed direct correlation of the HPLC peaks with one or more of the tested bioactivities. This was used to target subsequent HPLC-HRMS-SPE-NMR analysis towards peaks representing bioactive analytes, and led to identification of a new Diels-Alder adduct named Moracenin E as well as a series of Diels-Alder adducts and isoprenylated flavonoids as potent α-glucosidase and α-amylase inhibitors with IC 50 values in the range of 0.60-27.15 μM and 1.22-69.38 μM, respectively. In addition, these compounds and two 2-arylbenzofurans were found to be potent PTP1B inhibitors with IC 50 values ranging from 4.04 to 21.67 μM. The high-resolution radical scavenging profile also revealed that almost all of the compounds possess radical scavenging activity. In conclusion the quadruple high-resolution profiling method presented here allowed a detailed profiling of individual constituents in crude root bark extract of M. alba, and the method provides a general tool for detailed mapping of bioactive constituents in polypharmacological herbal remedies. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. The quadruple bottom line: the advantages of incorporating Green Chemistry into the undergraduate chemistry major

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bodner, George M.

    2017-08-01

    When the author first became involved with the Green Chemistry movement, he noted that his colleagues in industry who were involved in one of the ACS Green Chemistry Institute® industrial roundtables emphasized the take-home message they described as the "triple bottom line." They noted that introducing Green Chemistry in industrial settings had economic, social, and environmental benefits. As someone who first went to school at age 5, and has been "going to school" most days for 65 years, it was easy for the author to see why introducing Green Chemistry into academics had similar beneficial effects within the context of economic, social and environmental domains at the college/university level. He was prepared to understand why faculty who had taught traditional courses often saw the advantage of incorporating Green Chemistry into the courses they teach. What was not as obvious is why students who were encountering chemistry for the first time were often equally passionate about the Green Chemistry movement. Recent attention has been paid, however, to a model that brings clarity to the hitherto vague term of "relevance" that might explain why integrating Green Chemistry into the undergraduate chemistry classroom can achieve a "quadruple bottom-line" for students because of potentially positive effects of adding a domain of "relevance" to the existing economic, social, and environmental domains.

  19. On a clean power generation system with the co-gasification of biomass and coal in a quadruple fluidized bed gasifier.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yan, Linbo; He, Boshu

    2017-07-01

    A clean power generation system was built based on the steam co-gasification of biomass and coal in a quadruple fluidized bed gasifier. The chemical looping with oxygen uncoupling technology was used to supply oxygen for the calciner. The solid oxide fuel cell and the steam turbine were combined to generate power. The calcium looping and mineral carbonation were used for CO 2 capture and sequestration. The aim of this work was to study the characteristics of this system. The effects of key operation parameters on the system total energy efficiency (ŋ ten ), total exergy efficiency (ŋ tex ) and carbon sequestration rate (R cs ) were detected. The energy and exergy balance calculations were implemented and the corresponding Sankey and Grassmann diagrams were drawn. It was found that the maximum energy and exergy losses occurred in the steam turbine. The system ŋ ten and ŋ tex could be ∼50% and ∼47%, and R cs could be over unit. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Reduction of a cerium(III) siloxide complex to afford a quadruple-decker arene-bridged cerium(II) sandwich

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kelly, Rory P.; Scopelliti, Rosario; Mazzanti, Marinella [Institut des Sciences et Ingenierie Chimiques, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne (Switzerland); Maron, Laurent [Laboratoire de Physique et Chimie des Nano-objets, Institut National des Sciences Appliquees, Toulouse (France)

    2017-12-04

    Organometallic multi-decker sandwich complexes containing f-elements remain rare, despite their attractive magnetic and electronic properties. The reduction of the Ce{sup III} siloxide complex, [KCeL{sub 4}] (1; L=OSi(OtBu){sub 3}), with excess potassium in a THF/toluene mixture afforded a quadruple-decker arene-bridged complex, [K(2.2.2-crypt)]{sub 2}[{(KL_3Ce)(μ-η"6:η"6-C_7H_8)}{sub 2}Ce] (3). The structure of 3 features a [Ce(C{sub 7}H{sub 8}){sub 2}] sandwich capped by [KL{sub 3}Ce] moieties with a linear arrangement of the Ce ions. Structural parameters, UV/Vis/NIR data, and DFT studies indicate the presence of Ce{sup II} ions involved in δ bonding between the Ce cations and toluene dianions. Complex 3 is a rare lanthanide multi-decker complex and the first containing non-classical divalent lanthanide ions. Moreover, oxidation of 1 by AgOTf (OTf=O{sub 3}SCF{sub 3}) yielded the Ce{sup IV} complex, [CeL{sub 4}] (2), showing that siloxide ligands can stabilize Ce in three oxidation states. (copyright 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  1. Multiple Genetic Analysis System-Based Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing in Helicobacter pylori and High Eradication Rate With Phenotypic Resistance-Guided Quadruple Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dong, Fangyuan; Ji, Danian; Huang, Renxiang; Zhang, Fan; Huang, Yiqin; Xiang, Ping; Kong, Mimi; Nan, Li; Zeng, Xianping; Wu, Yong; Bao, Zhijun

    2015-11-01

    Antibiotics resistance in Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is the major factor for eradication failure. Molecular tests including fluorescence in situ hybridization, PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism, and dual priming oligonucleotide-PCR (DPO-PCR) play critical roles in the detection of antibiotic susceptibility; however, limited knowledge is known about application of multiple genetic analysis system (MGAS) in the area of H. pylori identification and antibiotics resistance detection.The aim of this study is to determine the antibiotics resistance using different molecular tests and evaluate the treatment outcomes of E-test-based genotypic resistance.A total of 297 patients with dyspepsia complaint were recruited for gastroscopies. Ninety patients with H. pylori culture positive were randomly divided into 2 groups (test group and control group). E-test, general PCR, and MGAS assay were performed in test group. Patients in control group were treated with empirical therapy (rabeprazole + bismuth potassium citrate + amoxicillin [AMX] + clarithromycin [CLR]), whereas patients in test group received quadruple therapy based on E-test results twice daily for 14 consecutive days. The eradication effect of H. pylori was confirmed by C-urea breath test after at least 4 weeks when treatment was finished.Rapid urease test showed 46.5% (128/297) patients with H. pylori infection, whereas 30.3% (90/297) patients were H. pylori culture positive. E-test showed that H. pylori primary resistance rate to CLR, AMX, metronidazole, tetracycline, and levofloxacin (LVX) was 40.0% (18/45), 4.4% (2/45), 53.3% (24/45), 0% (0/45), and 55.6% (25/45), respectively. In addition, there are many multidrug resistant (MDR) phenotypes, and the MDR strains have higher minimum inhibitory concentration than their single-drug resistant counterparts. Considering E-test as the reference test, the sensitivities of general PCR and MGAS in detecting CLR resistance were 83.3% (15/18) and 94.4% (17

  2. Applying the Quadruple Process model to evaluate change in implicit attitudinal responses during therapy for panic disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clerkin, Elise M; Fisher, Christopher R; Sherman, Jeffrey W; Teachman, Bethany A

    2014-01-01

    This study explored the automatic and controlled processes that may influence performance on an implicit measure across cognitive-behavioral group therapy for panic disorder. The Quadruple Process model was applied to error scores from an Implicit Association Test evaluating associations between the concepts Me (vs. Not Me) + Calm (vs. Panicked) to evaluate four distinct processes: Association Activation, Detection, Guessing, and Overcoming Bias. Parameter estimates were calculated in the panic group (n = 28) across each treatment session where the IAT was administered, and at matched times when the IAT was completed in the healthy control group (n = 31). Association Activation for Me + Calm became stronger over treatment for participants in the panic group, demonstrating that it is possible to change automatically activated associations in memory (vs. simply overriding those associations) in a clinical sample via therapy. As well, the Guessing bias toward the calm category increased over treatment for participants in the panic group. This research evaluates key tenets about the role of automatic processing in cognitive models of anxiety, and emphasizes the viability of changing the actual activation of automatic associations in the context of treatment, versus only changing a person's ability to use reflective processing to overcome biased automatic processing. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Transportal anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction with quadrupled hamstring tendon graft: A prospective outcome study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chandan Kumar

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL reconstruction has been one of the most commonly performed procedures throughout the world. Unsatisfactory outcome with conventional ACL reconstruction has been attributed to nonanatomic graft placement. Researchers have advised placing the graft in the native footprint of ACL to avoid nonanatomic graft placement. The goal of this study was to analyze the outcome of anatomic single bundle ACL reconstruction using transportal technique. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective outcome study conducted on 85 consecutive patients of ACL reconstruction of which 62 patients met inclusion and exclusion criteria and were analyzed for final results. All the patients underwent ACL reconstruction by quadrupled hamstring tendon graft using transportal technique and the accessory anteromedial (AAM portal for femoral tunnel creation. The graft was fixed with endobutton on femoral side and bioabsorbable screw on the tibial side. Patients were evaluated for range of motion, International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC score, and Lysholm scores at a minimum followup period of 2 years. The mean pre- and postoperative scores were compared using Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: The mean Lysholm and IKDC scores improved significantly (P < 0.0001 from preoperative value. According to IKDC score, 90.3% (n = 56 were either normal or near normal at final followup. According to Lysholm score, 75.8% of patients had excellent and 13.3% had good results. Preoperatively, pivot shift was present in 85.5% (n = 53 of patients which reduced to 4.8% (n = 3 postoperatively. Infection and knee stiffness occurred in two patients, and femoral tunnel blowout and graft re-rupture occurred in one patient each. Conclusion: Anatomic ACL reconstruction by AAM portal is a reproducible technique which gives good clinical outcome at short-term followup.

  4. Influence of intramolecular f-f interactions on nuclear spin driven quantum tunneling of magnetizations in quadruple-decker phthalocyanine complexes containing two terbium or dysprosium magnetic centers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fukuda, Takamitsu; Matsumura, Kazuya; Ishikawa, Naoto

    2013-10-10

    Nuclear spin driven quantum tunneling of magnetization (QTM) phenomena, which arise from admixture of more than two orthogonal electronic spin wave functions through the couplings with those of the nuclear spins, are one of the important magnetic relaxation processes in lanthanide single molecule magnets (SMMs) in the low temperature range. Although recent experimental studies have indicated that the presence of the intramolecular f-f interactions affects their magnetic relaxation processes, little attention has been given to their mechanisms and, to the best of our knowledge, no rational theoretical models have been proposed for the interpretations of how the nuclear spin driven QTMs are influenced by the f-f interactions. Since quadruple-decker phthalocyanine complexes with two terbium or dysprosium ions as the magnetic centers show moderate f-f interactions, these are appropriate to investigate the influence of the f-f interactions on the dynamic magnetic relaxation processes. In the present paper, a theoretical model including ligand field (LF) potentials, hyperfine, nuclear quadrupole, magnetic dipolar, and the Zeeman interactions has been constructed to understand the roles of the nuclear spins for the QTM processes, and the resultant Zeeman plots are obtained. The ac susceptibility measurements of the magnetically diluted quadruple-decker monoterbium and diterbium phthalocyanine complexes, [Tb-Y] and [Tb-Tb], have indicated that the presence of the f-f interactions suppresses the QTMs in the absence of the external magnetic field (H(dc)) being consistent with previous reports. On the contrary, the faster magnetic relaxation processes are observed for [Tb-Tb] than [Tb-Y] at H(dc) = 1000 Oe, clearly demonstrating that the QTMs are rather enhanced in the presence of the external magnetic field. Based on the calculated Zeeman diagrams, these observations can be attributed to the enhanced nuclear spin driven QTMs for [Tb-Tb]. At the H(dc) higher than 2000 Oe, the

  5. Identification and quantification of flavonoids and chromes in Baeckea frutescens by using HPLC coupled with diode-array detection and quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jia, Bei-Xi; Huangfu, Qian-Qian; Ren, Feng-Xiao; Jia, Lu; Zhang, Yan-Bing; Liu, Hong-Min; Yang, Jie; Wang, Qiang

    2015-01-01

    This article marks the first report on high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with diode-array detection (DAD) and quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry (Q-TOF/MS) for the identification and quantification of main bioactive constituents in Baeckea frutescens. In total, 24 compounds were identified or tentatively characterised based on their retention behaviours, UV profiles and MS fragment information. Furthermore, a validated method with good linearity, sensitivity, precision, stability, repeatability and accuracy was successfully applied for simultaneous determination of five flavonoids and one chromone in different plant parts of B. frutescens collected at different harvest times, and their dynamic contents revealed the appropriate harvest times. The established HPLC-DAD-Q-TOF/MS using multi-bioactive markers was proved to be a validated strategy for the quality evaluation on both raw materials and related products of B. frutescens.

  6. Reduced Wall Acetylation Proteins Play Vital and Distinct Roles in Cell Wall O-Acetylation in Arabidopsis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Manabe, Yuzuki; Verhertbruggen, Yves; Gille, Sascha

    2013-01-01

    The Reduced Wall Acetylation (RWA) proteins are involved in cell wall acetylation in plants. Previously, we described a single mutant, rwa2, which has about 20% lower level of O-acetylation in leaf cell walls and no obvious growth or developmental phenotype. In this study, we generated double....... The quadruple rwa mutant can be completely complemented with the RWA2 protein expressed under 35S promoter, indicating the functional redundancy of the RWA proteins. Nevertheless, the degree of acetylation of xylan, (gluco) mannan, and xyloglucan as well as overall cell wall acetylation is affected differently...... in different combinations of triple mutants, suggesting their diversity in substrate preference. The overall degree of wall acetylation in the rwa quadruple mutant was reduced by 63% compared with the wild type, and histochemical analysis of the rwa quadruple mutant stem indicates defects in cell...

  7. A soluble diacylglycerol acyltransferase is involved in triacylglycerol biosynthesis in the oleaginous yeast Rhodotorula glutinis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rani, Sapa Hima; Saha, Saikat; Rajasekharan, Ram

    2013-01-01

    The biosynthesis of triacylglycerol (TAG) occurs in the microsomal membranes of eukaryotes. Here, we report the identification and functional characterization of diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT), a member of the 10 S cytosolic TAG biosynthetic complex (TBC) in Rhodotorula glutinis. Both a full-length and an N-terminally truncated cDNA clone of a single gene were isolated from R. glutinis. The DGAT activity of the protein encoded by RgDGAT was confirmed in vivo by the heterologous expression of cDNA in a Saccharomyces cerevisiae quadruple mutant (H1246) that is defective in TAG synthesis. RgDGAT overexpression in yeast was found to be capable of acylating diacylglycerol (DAG) in an acyl-CoA-dependent manner. Quadruple mutant yeast cells exhibit growth defects in the presence of oleic acid, but wild-type yeast cells do not. In an in vivo fatty acid supplementation experiment, RgDGAT expression rescued quadruple mutant growth in an oleate-containing medium. We describe a soluble acyl-CoA-dependent DAG acyltransferase from R. glutinis that belongs to the DGAT3 class of enzymes. The study highlights the importance of an alternative TAG biosynthetic pathway in oleaginous yeasts.

  8. PIF4 Promotes Expression of LNG1 and LNG2 to Induce Thermomorphogenic Growth in Arabidopsis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geonhee Hwang

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Arabidopsis plants adapt to high ambient temperature by a suite of morphological changes including elongation of hypocotyls and petioles and leaf hyponastic growth. These morphological changes are collectively called thermomorphogenesis and are believed to increase leaf cooling capacity by enhancing transpiration efficiency, thereby increasing tolerance to heat stress. The bHLH transcription factor PHYTOCHROME INTERACTING FACTOR4 (PIF4 has been identified as a major regulator of thermomorphogenic growth. Here, we show that PIF4 promotes the expression of two homologous genes LONGIFOLIA1 (LNG1 and LONGIFOLIA2 (LNG2 that have been reported to regulate leaf morphology. ChIP-Seq analyses and ChIP assays showed that PIF4 directly binds to the promoters of both LNG1 and LNG2. The expression of LNG1 and LNG2 is induced by high temperature in wild type plants. However, the high temperature activation of LNG1 and LNG2 is compromised in the pif4 mutant, indicating that PIF4 directly regulates LNG1 and LNG2 expression in response to high ambient temperatures. We further show that the activities of LNGs support thermomorphogenic growth. The expression of auxin biosynthetic and responsive genes is decreased in the lng quadruple mutant, implying that LNGs promote thermomorphogenic growth by activating the auxin pathway. Together, our results demonstrate that LNG1 and LNG2 are directly regulated by PIF4 and are new components for the regulation of thermomorphogenesis.

  9. Profiling analysis of low molecular weight heparins by multiple heart-cutting two dimensional chromatography with quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouyang, Yilan; Zeng, Yangyang; Rong, Yinxiu; Song, Yue; Shi, Lv; Chen, Bo; Yang, Xinlei; Xu, Naiyu; Linhardt, Robert J; Zhang, Zhenqing

    2015-09-01

    Low molecular weight heparins (LMWHs) are polydisperse and microheterogenous mixtures of polysaccharides used as anticoagulant drugs. Profiling analysis is important for obtaining deeper insights into the structure of LMWHs. Previous oligosaccharide mapping methods are relatively low resolution and are unable to show an entire picture of the structural complexity of LMWHs. In the current study a profiling method was developed relying on multiple heart-cutting, two-dimensional, ultrahigh performance liquid chromatography with quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry. This represents an efficient, automated, and robust approach for profiling LMWHs. Using size-exclusion chromatography and ion-pairing reversed-phase chromatography in a two-dimensional separation, LMW components of different sizes and LMW components of the same size but with different charges and polarities can be resolved, providing a more complete picture of a LMWH. Structural information on each component was then obtained with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. More than 80 and 120 oligosaccharides were observed and unambiguously assigned from the LMWHs, nadroparin and enoxaparin, respectively. This method might be useful for quality control of LMWHs and as a powerful tool for heparin-related glycomics.

  10. HH 222: A GIANT HERBIG-HARO FLOW FROM THE QUADRUPLE SYSTEM V380 ORI

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Reipurth, Bo; Aspin, Colin; Connelley, M. S. [Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 640 North Aohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720 (United States); Bally, John [Center for Astrophysics and Space Astronomy, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309 (United States); Geballe, T. R. [Gemini Observatory, 670 North Aohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720 (United States); Kraus, Stefan [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, MS-78, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Appenzeller, Immo [Landessternwarte Heidelberg, Königstuhl 12, D-69117 Heidelberg (Germany); Burgasser, Adam, E-mail: reipurth@ifa.hawaii.edu, E-mail: caa@ifa.hawaii.edu, E-mail: msc@ifa.hawaii.edu, E-mail: John.Bally@colorado.edu, E-mail: tgeballe@gemini.edu, E-mail: stefan.kraus@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: iappenze@lsw.uni-heidelberg.de, E-mail: aburgasser@ucsd.edu [Center for Astrophysics and Space Science, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093 (United States)

    2013-11-01

    HH 222 is a giant shocked region in the L1641 cloud, and is popularly known as the Orion Streamers or ''the waterfall'' on account of its unusual structure. At the center of these streamers are two infrared sources coincident with a nonthermal radio jet aligned along the principal streamer. The unique morphology of HH 222 has long been associated with this radio jet. However, new infrared images show that the two sources are distant elliptical galaxies, indicating that the radio jet is merely an improbable line-of-sight coincidence. Accurate proper motion measurements of HH 222 reveal that the shock structure is a giant bow shock moving directly away from the well-known, very young, Herbig Be star V380 Ori. The already known Herbig-Haro object HH 35 forms part of this flow. A new Herbig-Haro object, HH 1041, is found precisely in the opposite direction of HH 222 and is likely to form part of a counterflow. The total projected extent of this HH complex is 5.3 pc, making it among the largest HH flows known. A second outflow episode from V380 Ori is identified as a pair of HH objects, HH 1031 to the northwest and the already known HH 130 to the southeast, along an axis that deviates from that of HH 222/HH 1041 by only 3.°7. V380 Ori is a hierarchical quadruple system, including a faint companion of spectral type M5 or M6, which at an age of ∼1 Myr corresponds to an object straddling the stellar-to-brown dwarf boundary. We suggest that the HH 222 giant bow shock is a direct result of the dynamical interactions that led to the conversion from an initial non-hierarchical multiple system into a hierarchical configuration. This event occurred no more than 28,000 yr ago, as derived from the proper motions of the HH 222 giant bow shock.

  11. A quadruple mutant of Arabidopsis reveals a β-carotene hydroxylation activity for LUT1/CYP97C1 and a regulatory role of xanthophylls on determination of the PSI/PSII ratio.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fiore, Alessia; Dall'Osto, Luca; Cazzaniga, Stefano; Diretto, Gianfranco; Giuliano, Giovanni; Bassi, Roberto

    2012-04-18

    Xanthophylls are oxygenated carotenoids playing an essential role as structural components of the photosynthetic apparatus. Xanthophylls contribute to the assembly and stability of light-harvesting complex, to light absorbance and to photoprotection. The first step in xanthophyll biosynthesis from α- and β-carotene is the hydroxylation of ε- and β-rings, performed by both non-heme iron oxygenases (CHY1, CHY2) and P450 cytochromes (LUT1/CYP97C1, LUT5/CYP97A3). The Arabidopsis triple chy1chy2lut5 mutant is almost completely depleted in β-xanthophylls. Here we report on the quadruple chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant, additionally carrying the lut2 mutation (affecting lycopene ε-cyclase). This genotype lacks lutein and yet it shows a compensatory increase in β-xanthophylls with respect to chy1chy2lut5 mutant. Mutant plants show an even stronger photosensitivity than chy1chy2lut5, a complete lack of qE, the rapidly reversible component of non-photochemical quenching, and a peculiar organization of the pigment binding complexes into thylakoids. Biochemical analysis reveals that the chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant is depleted in Lhcb subunits and is specifically affected in Photosystem I function, showing a deficiency in PSI-LHCI supercomplexes. Moreover, by analyzing a series of single, double, triple and quadruple Arabidopsis mutants in xanthophyll biosynthesis, we show a hitherto undescribed correlation between xanthophyll levels and the PSI-PSII ratio. The decrease in the xanthophyll/carotenoid ratio causes a proportional decrease in the LHCII and PSI core levels with respect to PSII. The physiological and biochemical phenotype of the chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant shows that (i) LUT1/CYP97C1 protein reveals a major β-carotene hydroxylase activity in vivo when depleted in its preferred substrate α-carotene; (ii) xanthophylls are needed for normal level of Photosystem I and LHCII accumulation.

  12. A quadruple mutant of Arabidopsis reveals a β-carotene hydroxylation activity for LUT1/CYP97C1 and a regulatory role of xanthophylls on determination of the PSI/PSII ratio

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fiore Alessia

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Xanthophylls are oxygenated carotenoids playing an essential role as structural components of the photosynthetic apparatus. Xanthophylls contribute to the assembly and stability of light-harvesting complex, to light absorbance and to photoprotection. The first step in xanthophyll biosynthesis from α- and β-carotene is the hydroxylation of ε- and β-rings, performed by both non-heme iron oxygenases (CHY1, CHY2 and P450 cytochromes (LUT1/CYP97C1, LUT5/CYP97A3. The Arabidopsis triple chy1chy2lut5 mutant is almost completely depleted in β-xanthophylls. Results Here we report on the quadruple chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant, additionally carrying the lut2 mutation (affecting lycopene ε-cyclase. This genotype lacks lutein and yet it shows a compensatory increase in β-xanthophylls with respect to chy1chy2lut5 mutant. Mutant plants show an even stronger photosensitivity than chy1chy2lut5, a complete lack of qE, the rapidly reversible component of non-photochemical quenching, and a peculiar organization of the pigment binding complexes into thylakoids. Biochemical analysis reveals that the chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant is depleted in Lhcb subunits and is specifically affected in Photosystem I function, showing a deficiency in PSI-LHCI supercomplexes. Moreover, by analyzing a series of single, double, triple and quadruple Arabidopsis mutants in xanthophyll biosynthesis, we show a hitherto undescribed correlation between xanthophyll levels and the PSI-PSII ratio. The decrease in the xanthophyll/carotenoid ratio causes a proportional decrease in the LHCII and PSI core levels with respect to PSII. Conclusions The physiological and biochemical phenotype of the chy1chy2lut2lut5 mutant shows that (i LUT1/CYP97C1 protein reveals a major β-carotene hydroxylase activity in vivo when depleted in its preferred substrate α-carotene; (ii xanthophylls are needed for normal level of Photosystem I and LHCII accumulation.

  13. The Gaia-ESO Survey: double-, triple-, and quadruple-line spectroscopic binary candidates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merle, T.; Van Eck, S.; Jorissen, A.; Van der Swaelmen, M.; Masseron, T.; Zwitter, T.; Hatzidimitriou, D.; Klutsch, A.; Pourbaix, D.; Blomme, R.; Worley, C. C.; Sacco, G.; Lewis, J.; Abia, C.; Traven, G.; Sordo, R.; Bragaglia, A.; Smiljanic, R.; Pancino, E.; Damiani, F.; Hourihane, A.; Gilmore, G.; Randich, S.; Koposov, S.; Casey, A.; Morbidelli, L.; Franciosini, E.; Magrini, L.; Jofre, P.; Costado, M. T.; Jeffries, R. D.; Bergemann, M.; Lanzafame, A. C.; Bayo, A.; Carraro, G.; Flaccomio, E.; Monaco, L.; Zaggia, S.

    2017-12-01

    Context. The Gaia-ESO Survey (GES) is a large spectroscopic survey that provides a unique opportunity to study the distribution of spectroscopic multiple systems among different populations of the Galaxy. Aims: Our aim is to detect binarity/multiplicity for stars targeted by the GES from the analysis of the cross-correlation functions (CCFs) of the GES spectra with spectral templates. Methods: We developed a method based on the computation of the CCF successive derivatives to detect multiple peaks and determine their radial velocities, even when the peaks are strongly blended. The parameters of the detection of extrema (DOE) code have been optimized for each GES GIRAFFE and UVES setup to maximize detection. The DOE code therefore allows to automatically detect multiple line spectroscopic binaries (SBn, n ≥ 2). Results: We apply this method on the fourth GES internal data release and detect 354 SBn candidates (342 SB2, 11 SB3, and even one SB4), including only nine SBs known in the literature. This implies that about 98% of these SBn candidates are new because of their faint visual magnitude that can reach V = 19. Visual inspection of the SBn candidate spectra reveals that the most probable candidates have indeed a composite spectrum. Among the SB2 candidates, an orbital solution could be computed for two previously unknown binaries: CNAME 06404608+0949173 (known as V642 Mon) in NGC 2264 and CNAME 19013257-0027338 in Berkeley 81 (Be 81). A detailed analysis of the unique SB4 (four peaks in the CCF) reveals that CNAME 08414659-5303449 (HD 74438) in the open cluster IC 2391 is a physically bound stellar quadruple system. The SB candidates belonging to stellar clusters are reviewed in detail to discard false detections. We suggest that atmospheric parameters should not be used for these system components; SB-specific pipelines should be used instead. Conclusions: Our implementation of an automatic detection of spectroscopic binaries within the GES has allowed the

  14. Identification of a locus control region for quadruplicated green-sensitive opsin genes in zebrafish

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsujimura, Taro; Chinen, Akito; Kawamura, Shoji

    2007-01-01

    Duplication of opsin genes has a crucial role in the evolution of visual system. Zebrafish have four green-sensitive (RH2) opsin genes (RH2–1, RH2–2, RH2–3, and RH2–4) arrayed in tandem. They are expressed in the short member of the double cones (SDC) but differ in expression areas in the retina and absorption spectra of their encoding photopigments. The shortest and the second shortest wavelength subtypes, RH2–1 and RH2–2, are expressed in the central-to-dorsal retina. The longer wavelength subtype, RH2–3, is expressed circumscribing the RH2–1/RH2–2 area, and the longest subtype, RH2–4, is expressed further circumscribing the RH2–3 area and mainly occupying the ventral retina. The present report shows that a 0.5-kb region located 15 kb upstream of the RH2 gene array is an essential regulator for their expression. When the 0.5-kb region was deleted from a P1-artificial chromosome (PAC) clone encompassing the four RH2 genes and when one of these genes was replaced with a reporter GFP gene, the GFP expression in SDCs was abolished in the zebrafish to which a series of the modified PAC clones were introduced. Transgenic studies also showed that the 0.5-kb region conferred the SDC-specific expression for promoters of a non-SDC (UV opsin) and a nonretinal (keratin 8) gene. Changing the location of the 0.5-kb region in the PAC clone conferred the highest expression for its proximal gene. The 0.5-kb region was thus designated as RH2-LCR analogous to the locus control region of the L-M opsin genes of primates. PMID:17646658

  15. Clarithromycin vs. Gemifloxacin in Quadruple Therapy Regimens for Empiric Primary Treatment of Helicobacter pylori Infection: A Randomized Clinical Trial

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masoodi, Mohsen; Talebi-Taher, Mahshid; Tabatabaie, Khadijeh; Khaleghi, Siamak; Faghihi, Amir-Hossein; Agah, Shahram; Asadi, Reyhaneh

    2015-01-01

    BACKGROUND Eradication of Helicobacter pylori infection plays a crucial role in the treatment of peptic ulcer. Clarithromycin resistance is a major cause of treatment failure. This randomized clinical trial aimed at evaluating the efficacy of a clarithromycin versus gemifloxacin containing quadruple therapy regimen in eradication of H.pylori infection. METHODS In this randomized double blind clinical trial (RCT 2012102011054N2), a total of 120 patients were randomized to two groups of 60 patients each. Patients with proven H.pylori infection were consecutively assigned into two groups to receive OBAG or OBAC in gastroenterology clinic in Rasoul-e- Akram General Hospital in Tehran, Iran. The patients in the OBAG group received omeprazole (20 mg) twice daily, bismuth subcitrate (240 mg) twice daily, amoxicillin (1 gr) twice daily, and gemifloxacin (320 mg) once daily, and those in the OBAC group received omeprazole (20 mg) twice daily, 240 mg of bismuth subcitrate twice daily, amoxicillin (1 gr) twice daily, and clarithromycin (500 mg) twice daily for 10 days. RESULTS Five patients from each group were excluded from the study because of poor compliance, so 110 patients completed the study. The intention-to-treat eradication rate was 61.6% and 66.6% for the OBAC and OBAG groups, respectively. According to the per protocol analysis, the success rates of eradication of H.pylori infection were 67.2% and 72.7% for OBAC and OBAG groups, respectively (p=0.568). CONCLUSION The results of this study suggest that gemifloxacin containing regimen is at least as effective as clarithromycin regimen; hence, this new treatment could be considered as an alternative for the patients who cannot tolerate clarithromycin. PMID:26106468

  16. Maraviroc/raltegravir simplification strategy following 6 months of quadruple therapy with tenofovir/emtricitabine/maraviroc/raltegravir in treatment-naive HIV patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pradat, Pierre; Durant, Jacques; Brochier, Corinne; Trabaud, Mary-Anne; Cottalorda-Dufayard, Jacqueline; Izopet, Jacques; Raffi, François; Lucht, Frédéric; Gagnieu, Marie-Claude; Gatey, Caroline; Jacomet, Christine; Vassallo, Matteo; Dellamonica, Pierre; Cotte, Laurent

    2016-11-01

    We assessed the virological efficacy of a 6 month maraviroc/raltegravir simplification strategy following 6 months of quadruple therapy combining tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine with maraviroc/raltegravir. HIV-1-infected naive patients were enrolled in an open label, single-arm, Phase 2 trial. All patients received maraviroc 300 mg twice daily, raltegravir 400 mg twice daily and tenofovir/emtricitabine for 24 weeks. Patients with stable HIV-RNA HIV-RNA HIV-RNA was 4.3 log copies/mL. All patients had CCR5-tropic viruses by genotropism and phenotropism assays. All but one patient had an HIV-RNA < 50 copies/mL at W24 and entered the simplification phase. Virological success was maintained at W48 in 88% (90% CI 79%-97%) of patients. N155H mutation was detected at failure in one patient. No tropism switch was observed. Raltegravir and maraviroc plasma exposure were satisfactory in 92% and 79% of 41 samples from 21 patients. Five severe adverse events (SAEs) were observed up to W48; none was related to the study drugs. Four patients presented grade 3 AEs; none was related to the study. No grade 4 AE was observed. No patient died. Maraviroc/raltegravir maintenance therapy following a 6 month induction phase with maraviroc/raltegravir/tenofovir/emtricitabine was well tolerated and maintained virological efficacy in these carefully selected patients. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  17. Transcriptome analysis of paired primary colorectal carcinoma and liver metastases reveals fusion transcripts and similar gene expression profiles in primary carcinoma and liver metastases

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Ja-Rang; Kwon, Chae Hwa; Choi, Yuri; Park, Hye Ji; Kim, Hyun Sung; Jo, Hong-Jae; Oh, Nahmgun; Park, Do Youn

    2016-01-01

    Despite the clinical significance of liver metastases, the difference between molecular and cellular changes in primary colorectal cancers (CRC) and matched liver metastases is poorly understood. In order to compare gene expression patterns and identify fusion genes in these two types of tumors, we performed high-throughput transcriptome sequencing of five sets of quadruple-matched tissues (primary CRC, liver metastases, normal colon, and liver). The gene expression patterns in normal colon and liver were successfully distinguished from those in CRCs; however, RNA sequencing revealed that the gene expression between primary CRCs and their matched liver metastases is highly similar. We identified 1895 genes that were differentially expressed in the primary carcinoma and liver metastases, than that in the normal colon tissues. A major proportion of the transcripts, identified by gene expression profiling as significantly enriched in the primary carcinoma and metastases, belonged to gene ontology categories involved in the cell cycle, mitosis, and cell division. Furthermore, we identified gene fusion events in primary carcinoma and metastases, and the fusion transcripts were experimentally confirmed. Among these, a chimeric transcript resulting from the fusion of RNF43 and SUPT4H1 was found to occur frequently in primary colorectal carcinoma. In addition, knockdown of the expression of this RNF43-SUPT4H1 chimeric transcript was found to have a growth-inhibitory effect in colorectal cancer cells. The present study reports a high concordance of gene expression in the primary carcinoma and liver metastases, and reveals potential new targets, such as fusion genes, against primary and metastatic colorectal carcinoma. The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12885-016-2596-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

  18. Positive- and negative-acting regulatory elements contribute to the tissue-specific expression of INNER NO OUTER, a YABBY-type transcription factor gene in Arabidopsis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simon Marissa K

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The INNER NO OUTER (INO gene, which encodes a YABBY-type transcription factor, specifies and promotes the growth of the outer integument of the ovule in Arabidopsis. INO expression is limited to the abaxial cell layer of the developing outer integument of the ovule and is regulated by multiple regions of the INO promoter, including POS9, a positive element that when present in quadruplicate can produce low-level expression in the normal INO pattern. Results Significant redundancy in activity between different regions of the INO promoter is demonstrated. For specific regulatory elements, multimerization or the addition of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S general enhancer was able to activate expression of reporter gene constructs that were otherwise incapable of expression on their own. A new promoter element, POS6, is defined and is shown to include sufficient positive regulatory information to reproduce the endogenous pattern of expression in ovules, but other promoter regions are necessary to fully suppress expression outside of ovules. The full-length INO promoter, but not any of the INO promoter deletions tested, is able to act as an enhancer-blocking insulator to prevent the ectopic activation of expression by the 35S enhancer. Sequence conservation between the promoter regions of Arabidopsis thaliana, Brassica oleracea and Brassica rapa aligns closely with the functional definition of the POS6 and POS9 regions, and with a defined INO minimal promoter. The B. oleracea INO promoter is sufficient to promote a similar pattern and level of reporter gene expression in Arabidopsis to that observed for the Arabidopsis promoter. Conclusions At least two independent regions of the INO promoter contain sufficient regulatory information to direct the specific pattern but not the level of INO gene expression. These regulatory regions act in a partially redundant manner to promote the expression in a specific pattern in the ovule and

  19. On the energy scale involved in the metal to insulator transition of quadruple perovskite EuCu3Fe4O12: infrared spectroscopy and ab-initio calculations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brière, B; Kalinko, A; Yamada, I; Roy, P; Brubach, J B; Sopracase, R; Zaghrioui, M; Phuoc, V Ta

    2016-06-27

    Optical measurements were carried out by infrared spectroscopy on AA'3B4O12 A-site ordered quadruple perovskite EuCu3Fe4O12 (microscopic sample) as function of temperature. At 240 K (=TMI), EuCu3Fe4O12 undergoes a very abrupt metal to insulator transition, a paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic transition and an isostructural transformation with an abrupt large volume expansion. Above TMI, optical conductivity reveals a bad metal behavior and below TMI, an insulating phase with an optical gap of 125 meV is observed. As temperature is decreased, a large and abrupt spectral weight transfer toward an energy scale larger than 1 eV is detected. Concurrently, electronic structure calculations for both high and low temperature phases were compared to the optical conductivity results giving a precise pattern of the transition. Density of states and computed optical conductivity analysis identified Cu3dxy, Fe3d and O2p orbitals as principal actors of the spectral weight transfer. The present work constitutes a first step to shed light on EuCu3Fe4O12 electronic properties with optical measurements and ab-initio calculations.

  20. Common histological patterns in glomerular epithelial cells in secondary focal segmental glomerulosclerosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kuppe, Christoph; Gröne, Hermann-Josef; Ostendorf, Tammo; van Kuppevelt, Toin H; Boor, Peter; Floege, Jürgen; Smeets, Bart; Moeller, Marcus J

    2015-11-01

    Parietal epithelial cells (PECs) are involved in the development of sclerotic lesions in primary focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). Here, the role of PECs was explored in the more common secondary FSGS lesions in 68 patient biopsies, diagnosed with 11 different frequently or rarely encountered glomerular pathologies and additional secondary FSGS lesions. For each biopsy, one section was quadruple stained for PECs (ANXA3), podocytes (synaptopodin), PEC matrix (LKIV69), and Hoechst (nuclei), and a second was quadruple stained for activated PECs (CD44 and cytokeratin-19), PEC matrix, and nuclei. In all lesions, cellular adhesions (synechiae) between Bowman's capsule and the tuft were formed by cells expressing podocyte and/or PEC markers. Cells expressing PEC markers were detected in all FSGS lesions independent of the underlying glomerular disease and often stained positive for markers of activation. Small FSGS lesions, which were hardly identified on PAS sections previously, were detectable by immunofluorescent staining using PEC markers, potentially improving the diagnostic sensitivity to identify these lesions. Thus, similar patterns of cells expressing podocyte and/or PEC markers were found in the formation of secondary FSGS lesions independent of the underlying glomerular disease. Hence, our findings support the hypothesis that FSGS lesions follow a final cellular pathway to nephron loss that includes involvement of cells expressing PEC markers.

  1. Discovery of 7 ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Castro, N.; Clocchiatti, A.; Stone, G.; Nicholls, B.; Fernandez, J. M.; Cacella, P.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Bock, G.

    2018-06-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  2. Discovery of 9 ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Castro, N.; Clocchiatti, A.; Cacella, P.; Wiethoff, W.; Krannich, G.; Stone, G.; Kiyota, S.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Bock, G.

    2018-05-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  3. Discovery of 8 ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Kiyota, S.; Wiethoff, W.; Stone, G.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Bock, G.

    2018-06-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  4. Discovery of Six ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Stone, G.; Kiyota, S.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Bock, G.; Cornect, R.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  5. Discovery of 8 ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Tomasella, Lina; Krannich, G.; Stone, G.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Nicholls, B.; Cacella, P.; Kiyota, S.

    2018-05-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  6. Discovery of Eight ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stone, G.; Brimacombe, J.; Cacella, P.; Farfan, R. G.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Trappett, D.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  7. Discovery of Four ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Kiyota, S.; Cruz, I.; Stone, G.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  8. Discovery of Six ASAS-SN Supernova Candidates

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Stone, G.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Brown, J. S.; Kochanek, C. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Conseil, E.

    2018-01-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  9. Discovery of Nine ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cacella, P.; Brimacombe, J.; Fernandez, J. M.; Kiyota, S.; Krannich, G.; Koff, R. A.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.; Aslan, L.; Bock, G.; Stone, G.

    2018-01-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  10. Discovery of Five ASAS-SN Supernovae

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Stone, G.; Kiyota, S.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered several new transient sources.

  11. MODELING THE RADIO EMISSION FROM Cyg OB2 NO. 5: A QUADRUPLE SYSTEM?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kennedy, M.; Dougherty, S. M.; Fink, A.; Williams, P. M.

    2010-01-01

    literature suggests reflex motion of the binary due to Star C, for which a mass of 23 +22 -14 M sun is deduced. The natures of NE and Star D are also examined. If NE is a WCR, as suggested by other authors, then the required mass-loss rate is an order of magnitude higher than expected for an early B-type dwarf, and only just consistent with a supergiant. This raises the question of NE as a WCR, but its non-thermal luminosity is consistent with a WCR and a comparison of reddening between Cyg OB2 No. 5 and Star D do not rule out an association, implying Cyg OB2 No. 5 is a quadruple system. Pursuing alternative models for NE, such as an unassociated background source, would require very challenging observations.

  12. ASAS-SN Discovery of an Unprecedented >1.5 Magnitude Optical Flare from QSO B0346-279

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Shields, J. V.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Brutus" telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we have discovered an unprecedented optical brightening of QSO B0346-279 (z 0.9874).

  13. A Geometrical Application of Number Theory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srinivasan, V. K.

    2013-01-01

    Any quadruple of natural numbers {a, b, c, d} is called a "Pythagorean quadruple" if it satisfies the relationship "a[superscript 2] + b[superscript 2] + c[superscript 2]". This "Pythagorean quadruple" can always be identified with a rectangular box of dimensions "a greater than 0," "b greater than…

  14. Time-division-multiplex control scheme for voltage multiplier rectifiers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bin-Han Liu

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available A voltage multiplier rectifier with a novel time-division-multiplexing (TDM control scheme for high step-up converters is proposed in this study. In the proposed TDM control scheme, two full-wave voltage doubler rectifiers can be combined to realise a voltage quadrupler rectifier. The proposed voltage quadrupler rectifier can reduce transformer turn ratio and transformer size for high step-up converters and also reduce voltage stress for the output capacitors and rectifier diodes. An N-times voltage rectifier can be straightforwardly produced by extending the concepts from the proposed TDM control scheme. A phase-shift full-bridge (PSFB converter is adopted in the primary side of the proposed voltage quadrupler rectifier to construct a PSFB quadrupler converter. Experimental results for the PSFB quadrupler converter demonstrate the performance of the proposed TDM control scheme for voltage quadrupler rectifiers. An 8-times voltage rectifier is simulated to determine the validity of extending the proposed TDM control scheme to realise an N-times voltage rectifier. Experimental and simulation results show that the proposed TDM control scheme has great potential to be used in high step-up converters.

  15. 3+ and [Sb13Se16Br2] 5+ - Double and quadruple spiro cubanes from ionic liquids

    KAUST Repository

    Ahmed, Ejaz

    2014-01-08

    The reaction of antimony and selenium in the bromine-rich Lewis acidic ionic liquid [BMIm]Br·4.7AlBr3 (BMIm: 1-butyl-3- methylimidazolium) in the presence of a small amount of NbCl5 at 160 °C yielded dark-red crystals of [Sb7Se8Br 2][AlX4]3. For X = Cl0.15(1)Br 0.85(1), the compound is isostructural to [Sb7S 8Br2][AlCl4]3 [P212 121, a = 12.5132(5) Å, b = 17.7394(6) Å, c = 18.3013(6) Å]. For a higher chlorine content, X = Cl 0.58(1)Br0.42(1), a slightly disordered variant with a bisected unit cell is found [P21212, a = 12.3757(3) Å, b = 17.4116(5) Å, c = 9.0420(2) Å]. The [Sb 7Se8Br2]3+ heteropolycation (C 2 symmetry) is a spiro double-cubane with an antimony atom on the shared corner. From this distorted octahedrally coordinated central atom, tricoordinate selenium and antimony atoms alternate in the bonding sequence. The terminal antimony atoms each bind to a bromine atom. Quantum chemical calculations confirm polar covalent Sb-Se bonding within the cubes and indicate three-center, four-electron bonds for the six-coordinate spiro atoms. The calculated charge distribution reflects the electron-donor role of the antimony atoms. The use of a chlorine-rich ionic liquid resulted in the formation of triclinic [Sb13Se16Br2][AlX4] 5 with X = Cl0.80(1)Br0.20(1) [P$\\\\bar {1}$, a = 9.0842(5) Å, b = 19.607(1) Å, c = 21.511(1) Å, α = 64.116(6), β = 79.768(7), γ = 88.499(7)]. The cationic cluster [Sb13Se16Br2]5+ is a bromine-terminated spiro quadruple-cubane. This 31 atom concatenation of four cubes is assumed to be the largest known discrete main group polycation. A similar reaction in a chloride-free system yielded [Sb7Se 8Br2][Sb13Se16Br2] [AlBr4]8. In its monoclinic structure [P2/c, a = 27.214(5) Å, b = 9.383(2) Å, c = 22.917(4) Å, β = 101.68(1)], the two types of polycations alternate in layers along the a axis. In the series [Sb4+3nSe4+4nBr2](2+n)+, these cations are the members with n = 1 and 3. Copyright © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGa

  16. ASAS-SN Discovery of ASASSN-18dw, a 4+ Magnitudes Stellar Outburst Towards Orion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Shields, J. V.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Dong, Subo; Stritzinger, M.

    2018-02-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Leavitt" telescope in Fort Davis, Texas, the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Paczynski" telescope in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we detect a bright, rapidly raising transient source Object RA (J2000) DEC (J2000) Disc.

  17. Accidental degeneracy of double Dirac cones in a phononic crystal

    KAUST Repository

    Chen, Ze-Guo; Ni, Xu; Wu, Ying; He, Cheng; Sun, Xiao-Chen; Zheng, Li-Yang; Lu, Ming-Hui; Chen, Yan-Feng

    2014-01-01

    Artificial honeycomb lattices with Dirac cone dispersion provide a macroscopic platform to study the massless Dirac quasiparticles and their novel geometric phases. In this paper, a quadruple-degenerate state is achieved at the center of the Brillouin zone in a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice phononic crystal, which is a result of accidental degeneracy of two double-degenerate states. In the vicinity of the quadruple-degenerate state, the dispersion relation is linear. Such quadruple degeneracy is analyzed by rigorous representation theory of groups. Using method, a reduced Hamiltonian is obtained to describe the linear Dirac dispersion relations of this quadruple-degenerate state, which is well consistent with the simulation results. Near such accidental degeneracy, we observe some unique properties in wave propagating, such as defect-insensitive propagating character and the Talbot effect.

  18. Accidental degeneracy of double Dirac cones in a phononic crystal

    KAUST Repository

    Chen, Ze-Guo

    2014-04-09

    Artificial honeycomb lattices with Dirac cone dispersion provide a macroscopic platform to study the massless Dirac quasiparticles and their novel geometric phases. In this paper, a quadruple-degenerate state is achieved at the center of the Brillouin zone in a two-dimensional honeycomb lattice phononic crystal, which is a result of accidental degeneracy of two double-degenerate states. In the vicinity of the quadruple-degenerate state, the dispersion relation is linear. Such quadruple degeneracy is analyzed by rigorous representation theory of groups. Using method, a reduced Hamiltonian is obtained to describe the linear Dirac dispersion relations of this quadruple-degenerate state, which is well consistent with the simulation results. Near such accidental degeneracy, we observe some unique properties in wave propagating, such as defect-insensitive propagating character and the Talbot effect.

  19. Rhenium–platinum antitumor systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. V. Shtemenko

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available This review provides an overlook of design (in short, antitumor and other biological activity of quadruple-bonded cluster dirhenium(III compounds and their synergism with cisplatin. In particular, we describe the work of the rhenium-platinum antitumor system (introduction of rhenium and platinum compounds. Among known metal-based anticancer drugs and drug candidates dirhenium(III compounds differ profoundly due to their strong antiradical and antioxidant properties determined by quadruple bond unsaturation. Such advantages of metal complexes as more expressed redox chemical propertie should be exploited for creating more efficient anticancer drugs. Combination of drugs leads to synergistic effects and/or to lowe­ring toxicity of platinides and is very promising in cancer chemotherapy. The review covers the follo­wing items: design of quadruple bonded dirhenium(III clusters, their spectral and antiradical properties (in short; interaction of the dirhenium(III compounds with lipids and formation of liposomes; interaction of the dirhenium(III compounds with erythrocytes and their antihemolytic activity in the models of hemolytic anemia; anticancer activity of dirhenium clusters and work of the rhenium-platinum antitumor system; antianemic and antioxidant properties of the dirhenium(III compounds in the model of tumor growth; interaction of the dirhenium(III compounds with nucleobases and DNA. Some modern trends in the field of bioinorganic and medicinal chemi­stry are also considered regarding their connection to the rhenium-platinum system efficiency: use of combinational therapy and nanomaterials; involvement of some biologically active ligands and redox-activation strategy, etc.

  20. Monomers capable of forming four hydrogen bridges and supramolecular polymers formed by copolymerization of these monomers with regular monomers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    2004-01-01

    The invention relates to the synthesis of polymers containing self-complementary quadruple hydrogen groups by copolymerizing monomers containing a quadruple hydrogen bonding group with one or more monomers of choice. The resulting polymers show unique new characteristics due to the presence of

  1. Computational experience with a parallel algorithm for tetrangle inequality bound smoothing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rajan, K; Deo, N

    1999-09-01

    Determining molecular structure from interatomic distances is an important and challenging problem. Given a molecule with n atoms, lower and upper bounds on interatomic distances can usually be obtained only for a small subset of the 2(n(n-1)) atom pairs, using NMR. Given the bounds so obtained on the distances between some of the atom pairs, it is often useful to compute tighter bounds on all the 2(n(n-1)) pairwise distances. This process is referred to as bound smoothing. The initial lower and upper bounds for the pairwise distances not measured are usually assumed to be 0 and infinity. One method for bound smoothing is to use the limits imposed by the triangle inequality. The distance bounds so obtained can often be tightened further by applying the tetrangle inequality--the limits imposed on the six pairwise distances among a set of four atoms (instead of three for the triangle inequalities). The tetrangle inequality is expressed by the Cayley-Menger determinants. For every quadruple of atoms, each pass of the tetrangle inequality bound smoothing procedure finds upper and lower limits on each of the six distances in the quadruple. Applying the tetrangle inequalities to each of the (4n) quadruples requires O(n4) time. Here, we propose a parallel algorithm for bound smoothing employing the tetrangle inequality. Each pass of our algorithm requires O(n3 log n) time on a REW PRAM (Concurrent Read Exclusive Write Parallel Random Access Machine) with O(log(n)n) processors. An implementation of this parallel algorithm on the Intel Paragon XP/S and its performance are also discussed.

  2. Resonant dynamics of gravitationally bound pair of binaries: the case of 1:1 resonance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Breiter, Slawomir; Vokrouhlický, David

    2018-04-01

    The work presents a study of the 1:1 resonance case in a hierarchical quadruple stellar system of the 2+2 type. The resonance appears if orbital periods of both binaries are approximately equal. It is assumed that both periods are significantly shorter than the period of principal orbit of one binary with respect to the other. In these circumstances, the problem can be treated as three independent Kepler problems perturbed by mutual gravitational interactions. By means of canonical perturbation methods, the planar problem is reduced to a secular system with 1 degree of freedom involving a resonance angle (the difference of mean longitudes of the binaries) and its conjugate momentum (involving the ratio of orbital period in one binary to the period of principal orbit). The resonant model is supplemented with short periodic perturbations expressions, and verified by the comparison with numerical integration of the original equations of motion. Estimates of the binaries periods variations indicate that the effect is rather weak, but possibly detectible if it occurs in a moderately compact system. However, the analysis of resonance capture scenarios implies that the 1:1 resonance should be exceptional amongst the 2+2 quadruples.

  3. Quadruple H therapy for vasospasm

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Walid M

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Triple H therapy has been enthusiastically used to increase cerebral blood flow in cases of vasospasm. Nevertheless, the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood is lowered with this treatment. This side effect can theoretically be partially corrected using hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO which appears to be the missing ring in the above therapeutic regimen. We conducted a review of of the available evidence regarding the beneficial effects of HBO in preventing postoperative ischemic complications due to vasospasm after surgery on ruptured cerebral aneurysms and the rationale for including HBO into the standards of care of these difficult patients.

  4. Tensile strength of Zr-2.5 Nb pressure tubes: A statistical study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shah, Priti Kotak, E-mail: pritik@barc.gov.in [Senior Scientist, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, 400 085 (India); Dubey, J.S.; Datta, D.; Shriwastaw, R.S.; Rath, B.N.; Singh, R.N. [Senior Scientist, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, 400 085 (India); Anantharaman, S. [Head, Post Irradiation Examination Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai (India); Chakravartty, J.K. [Director, Materials Group, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai (India)

    2015-12-15

    Highlights: • Tensile properties in axial and transverse direction for a number of Indian Zr-2.5 Nb PHWR pressure tubes. • Distribution of tensile properties of double-melted and quadruple-melted pressure tubes. • Tensile properties at front-end and back-end of the quadruple melted pressure tubes at room temperature and at 300 °C. - Abstract: In order to get an idea of the statistical variation in the tensile properties of the double-melted as well as quadruple melted Zr-2.5 Nb pressure tubes (PTs) and also the variation in tensile properties between the two ends of the pressure tubes, tension tests were carried out on around 50 pressure tube off-cuts. Longitudinal and transverse tensile specimens were prepared from these off-cuts of pressure tubes of double-melted and quadruple melted types. For quadruple melted pressure tubes the specimens were tested from both front-end and back-end off-cuts. Miniature flat tensile specimens having 1.8 mm width and 1.5 mm thickness and 7.6 mm gauge length were prepared from the pressure tube off-cuts without any flattening treatment. Tension tests were carried out in a screw-driven machine at room temperature and 300 °C for both front-end and back-end off-cuts of each of 16 pressure tubes. In general the transverse specimens showed higher yield strength (YS) and ultimate tensile strength (UTS) compared to the longitudinal specimens. Transverse specimens showed less strain hardening compared to the longitudinal specimens. The axial specimens showed higher uniform (UE) and total elongation (TE) compared to the transverse specimens. Double-melted pressure tubes showed relatively higher strength and lower elongation and larger standard deviation compared to the quadruple melted pressure tubes. Mean values of tensile properties showed that back-end off-cuts were relatively stronger and less ductile compared to the front-end off-cuts.

  5. Highly Effective Gene Transfection In Vivo by Alkylated Polyethylenimine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jennifer A. Fortune

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available We mechanistically explored the effect of increased hydrophobicity of the polycation on the efficacy and specificity of gene delivery in mice. N-Alkylated linear PEIs with varying alkyl chain lengths and extent of substitution were synthesized and characterized by biophysical methods. Their in vivo transfection efficiency, specificity, and biodistribution were investigated. N-Ethylation improves the in vivo efficacy of gene expression in the mouse lung 26-fold relative to the parent polycation and more than quadruples the ratio of expression in the lung to that in all other organs. N-Propyl-PEI was the best performer in the liver and heart (581- and 3.5-fold enhancements, resp. while N-octyl-PEI improved expression in the kidneys over the parent polymer 221-fold. As these enhancements in gene expression occur without changing the plasmid biodistribution, alkylation does not alter the cellular uptake but rather enhances transfection subsequent to cellular uptake.

  6. ASASSN-18gq: Discovery of A Low-Luminosity Transient Towards Very Nearby ( 3.4 Mpc) Galaxy ESO 325- G?011

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nicholls, B.; Brimacombe, J.; Vallely, P.; Dong, Subo; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.

    2018-04-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, and the quadruple 14-cm "Cassius" and "Paczynski" telescopes in Cerro Tololo, Chile, we discovered a new transient source, most likely a supernova, in the low surface brightness galaxy ESO 325- G?011.

  7. Cellular muscle growth and molecular cloning and expression of growth-related gene of Malaysian Mahseer Tor tambroides larvae fed with live and formulated feeds in indoor nursery rearing system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Md. Asaduzzaman

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available The influences of live and formulated feeds on growth performances, muscle fibers morphometry and muscle growth-related gene expression of Malaysian mahseer, Tor tambroides larvae were evaluated in indoor nursery rearing system. Quadruplicate groups of T. tambroides larvae (0.07 ± 0.01 g, mean ± SE were stocked in sixteen aquaria (60 × 30 × 30 cm, randomly arranged in four dietary treatments viz. larvae fed artemia (LA, moina (LM, daphnia (LD and formulated feed (FF with stocking density of 34 larvae per aquarium. The larvae were fed to visually near satiation in two equal feedings per day, seven days per week for 75 days. The growth-related parameters (mean weight gain and specific growth rate were significantly highest in treatment FF, followed by treatment LA and the lowest in treatment LD or LM. Histological observation and muscle morphometric analysis revealed that mosaic hyperplasia was observed after 50 days of the feeding trial. Hypertrophic (diameter class 50 = 40 > d ≤ 50 μm and class 60 = d > 50 μm, but not hyperplastic (diameter class ≤10 μm, muscle fibers frequencies were significantly highest in larvae fed FF compared to those fed live feeds. The entire open reading frame cDNA sequences of two important growth-related genes, myogenin and MyoD, were successfully amplified and cloned from T. tambroides larvae. The nucleotide sequences alignment using CLUSTAL W in BioEdit program of both MyoD and myogenin genes showed the sign of existence of isoforms and highly conserved with other cyprinid fishes. Real-time PCR data demonstrated that myogenin and MyoD gene expressions were significantly upregulated in larvae fed FF. The results of the present experiment concluded that the nursery rearing of T. tambroides larvae with formulated feed showed augmented muscle growth and upregulated growth-related gene expression than feeding live feeds.

  8. Multi-gated field emitters for a micro-column

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mimura, Hidenori; Kioke, Akifumi; Aoki, Toru; Neo, Yoichiro; Yoshida, Tomoya; Nagao, Masayoshi

    2011-01-01

    We have developed a multi-gated field emitter (FE) such as a quadruple-gated FE with a three-stacked electrode lens and a quintuple-gated FE with a four-stacked electrode lens. Both the FEs can focus the electron beam. However, the quintuple-gated FE has a stronger electron convergence than the quadruple-gated FE, and a beam crossover is clearly observed for the quintuple-gated FE.

  9. The impact of Down syndrome screening on Taiwanese Down syndrome births: a nationwide retrospective study and a screening result from a single medical centre.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shin-Yu Lin

    Full Text Available A retrospective analysis of the Taiwanese National Birth Defect Registration and Notification System was conducted in order to determine the live birth- and stillbirth rates in infants with Down syndrome, trisomy 18, trisomy 13 and Turner syndrome between 2001 and 2010. The objective was to investigate the impact of Down syndrome screening on the Taiwanese Down syndrome live birth rate. In addition, the results of first-trimester Down syndrome screening between 2006 and 2011, and of second-trimester quadruple testing between 2008 and 2011, were obtained from the National Taiwan University Hospital. All Taiwanese infants born between 2001 and 2010 were included in the first part of the analysis, and women receiving first-trimester Down syndrome screening or second-trimester quadruple testing from the National Taiwan University Hospital were included in the second part. The live birth rate of infants with Down syndrome, per 100 000 live births, decreased from 22.28 in 2001 to 7.79 in 2010. The ratio of liveborn DS to total DS was 48.74% in 2001, and then decreased to 25.88% in 2006, when first-trimester screening was widely introduced in Taiwan. This ratio dropped to 20.64% in 2008, when the second-trimester quadruple test was implemented. The overall positive rate in first-trimester screening in the National Taiwan University Hospital was 3.1%, with a Down syndrome detection rate of 100%; the quadruple test had values of 9.0% and 75%, respectively. The use of first-trimester screening and the second-trimester quadruple test may be responsible for the marked decrease in the Taiwanese Down syndrome live birth rate observed between 2001 and 2010.

  10. Silicon nanowire networks for multi-stage thermoelectric modules

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Norris, Kate J.; Garrett, Matthew P.; Zhang, Junce; Coleman, Elane; Tompa, Gary S.; Kobayashi, Nobuhiko P.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Fabricated flexible single, double, and quadruple stacked Si thermoelectric modules. • Measured an enhanced power production of 27%, showing vertical stacking is scalable. • Vertically scalable thermoelectric module design of semiconducting nanowires. • Design can utilize either p or n-type semiconductors, both types are not required. • ΔT increases with thickness therefore power/area can increase as modules are stacked. - Abstract: We present the fabrication and characterization of single, double, and quadruple stacked flexible silicon nanowire network based thermoelectric modules. From double to quadruple stacked modules, power production increased 27%, demonstrating that stacking multiple nanowire thermoelectric devices in series is a scalable method to generate power by supplying larger temperature gradient. We present a vertically scalable multi-stage thermoelectric module design using semiconducting nanowires, eliminating the need for both n-type and p-type semiconductors for modules

  11. Coal could quadruple by 2000. [Canada

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1979-03-01

    The federal and most provincial governments are encouraging coal as an energy source. Coal production will increase 4-5 times by 2000 and world trade double with further increases to 2025. The Canadian steel industry is producing near capacity and forecasts a growth rate of 4% over the next ten years. Problems facing Canadian steel industry include the E1k River project, St. Lawrence toll increases, environmental coal requirements, and Chinese crude steel. Coal industry should have an excellent future if the Canadian governments can fill their leadership roles.

  12. The change of expression configuration affects identity-dependent expression aftereffect but not identity-independent expression aftereffect

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miao eSong

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The present study examined the influence of expression configuration on cross-identity expression aftereffect. The expression configuration refers to the spatial arrangement of facial features in a face for conveying an emotion, e.g., an open-mouth smile versus a closed-mouth smile. In the first of two experiments, the expression aftereffect is measured using across-identity/cross-expression configuration factorial design. The facial identities of test faces were the same or different from the adaptor, while orthogonally, the expression configurations of those facial identities were also the same or different. The result shows that the change of expression configuration impaired the expression aftereffect when the facial identities of adaptor and tests were the same; however, the impairment effect disappears when facial identities were different, indicating the identity-independent expression representation is more robust to the change of the expression configuration in comparison with the identity-dependent expression representation. In the second experiment, we used schematic line faces as adaptors and real faces as tests to minimize the similarity between the adaptor and tests, which is expected to exclude the contribution from the identity-dependent expression representation to expression aftereffect. The second experiment yields a similar result as the identity-independent expression aftereffect observed in Experiment 1. The findings indicate the different neural sensitivities to expression configuration for identity-dependent and identity-independent expression systems.

  13. Wavelength-selectable and steady single-mode erbium-doped fiber multiple ring laser

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeh, Chien-Hung; Yang, Zi-Qing; Huang, Tzu-Jung; Chow, Chi-Wai; Chen, Jing-Heng; Chen, Kun-Huang

    2017-11-01

    To achieve a stable and selectable C-band erbium-doped fiber (EDF) laser with single-longitudinal-mode output, a multiple ring architecture is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. In this work, we design a passively quadruple-ring structure in the cavity of an EDF laser to produce a Vernier effect with a mode filter for suppressing the multimode spikes significantly. In addition, the output performance and stability of the proposed EDF ring laser are discussed.

  14. Inhibition of Ovarian Cancer by microRNA-mediated Regulation of Telomerase

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-05-01

    State Comprehensive Cancer Center, version 2.0), which contains probes for 460 mature miRNAs spotted in quadruplicate (235 Homo sapiens , 222 Mus... el at iv e m RN A e xp re ss io n (fo ld c ha ng ge : d C t vs . b et a- ac tin ) Figure 1. Expression of hTERT mRNA in ovarian cancer cells...5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 Cycle Number D el ta R n Delta Rn vs Cycle

  15. Identification and Characterization of Diacylglycerol Acyltransferase from Oleaginous Fungus Mucor circinelloides.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Luning; Zhang, Huaiyuan; Song, Yuanda

    2018-01-24

    Acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGAT) is a pivotal regulator of triacylglycerol (TAG) synthesis. The oleaginous fungus Mucor circinelloides has four putative DGATs: McDGAT1A, McDGAT1B, McDGAT2A, and McDGAT2B, classified into the DGAT1 and DGAT2 subfamilies, respectively. To identify and characterize DGATs in M. circinelloides, these four genes were expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae H1246 (TAG-deficient quadruple mutant), individually. TAG biosynthesis was restored only by the expression of McDGAT2B, and TAG content was significantly higher in the mutants with McDGAT2B expression than in a S. cerevisiae mutant with endogenous DGA1 expression. McDGAT2B prefers saturated fatty acids to monounsaturated fatty acids and has an obvious preference for C18:3 (ω-6) according to the results of substrate preference experiments. Furthermore, only the mRNA expression pattern of McDGAT2B correlated with TAG biosynthesis during a fermentation process. Our experiments strongly indicate that McDGAT2B is crucial for TAG accumulation, suggesting that it may be an essential target for metabolic engineering aimed at increasing lipid content of M. circinelloides.

  16. Expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang-Xia Wang

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available The miR-15/107 family comprises a group of 10 paralogous microRNAs (miRNAs, sharing a 5′ AGCAGC sequence. These miRNAs have overlapping targets. In order to characterize the expression of miR-15/107 family miRNAs, we employed customized TaqMan Low-Density micro-fluid PCR-array to investigate the expression of miR-15/107 family members, and other selected miRNAs, in 11 human tissues obtained at autopsy including the cerebral cortex, frontal cortex, primary visual cortex, thalamus, heart, lung, liver, kidney, spleen, stomach and skeletal muscle. miR-103, miR-195 and miR-497 were expressed at similar levels across various tissues, whereas miR-107 is enriched in brain samples. We also examined the expression patterns of evolutionarily conserved miR-15/107 miRNAs in three distinct primary rat brain cell preparations (enriched for cortical neurons, astrocytes and microglia, respectively. In primary cultures of rat brain cells, several members of the miR-15/107 family are enriched in neurons compared to other cell types in the central nervous system (CNS. In addition to mature miRNAs, we also examined the expression of precursors (pri-miRNAs. Our data suggested a generally poor correlation between the expression of mature miRNAs and their precursors. In summary, we provide a detailed study of the tissue and cell type-specific expression profile of this highly expressed and phylogenetically conserved family of miRNA genes.

  17. LA POPULATION MONDIALE AU XXe SIECLE

    OpenAIRE

    Dumont , Gérard-François

    1993-01-01

    International audience; [How to imagine in 1900 that the twentieth century was a demographic expansion leading to a quadrupling of the population in the world? The learn the characteristics of this phenomenon must be studied in detail to inform its reasons. It is also necessary to highlight the major regional contrasts, then think about the future.]; Comment imaginer, en 1900, que le XXe siècle allait une expansion démogra-phique conduisant à un quadruplement de la population dans le monde ? ...

  18. Facial expressions recognition with an emotion expressive robotic head

    Science.gov (United States)

    Doroftei, I.; Adascalitei, F.; Lefeber, D.; Vanderborght, B.; Doroftei, I. A.

    2016-08-01

    The purpose of this study is to present the preliminary steps in facial expressions recognition with a new version of an expressive social robotic head. So, in a first phase, our main goal was to reach a minimum level of emotional expressiveness in order to obtain nonverbal communication between the robot and human by building six basic facial expressions. To evaluate the facial expressions, the robot was used in some preliminary user studies, among children and adults.

  19. Expressiveness modulo Bisimilarity of Regular Expressions with Parallel Composition (Extended Abstract

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jos C. M. Baeten

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available The languages accepted by finite automata are precisely the languages denoted by regular expressions. In contrast, finite automata may exhibit behaviours that cannot be described by regular expressions up to bisimilarity. In this paper, we consider extensions of the theory of regular expressions with various forms of parallel composition and study the effect on expressiveness. First we prove that adding pure interleaving to the theory of regular expressions strictly increases its expressiveness up to bisimilarity. Then, we prove that replacing the operation for pure interleaving by ACP-style parallel composition gives a further increase in expressiveness. Finally, we prove that the theory of regular expressions with ACP-style parallel composition and encapsulation is expressive enough to express all finite automata up to bisimilarity. Our results extend the expressiveness results obtained by Bergstra, Bethke and Ponse for process algebras with (the binary variant of Kleene's star operation.

  20. Arabidopsis COLD SHOCK DOMAIN PROTEIN2 is a RNA chaperone that is regulated by cold and developmental signals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sasaki, Kentaro; Kim, Myung-Hee; Imai, Ryozo

    2007-01-01

    Bacterial cold shock proteins (CSPs) are RNA chaperones that unwind RNA secondary structures. Arabidopsis COLD SHOCK DOMAIN PROTEIN2 (AtCSP2) contains a domain that is shared with bacterial CSPs. Here we showed that AtCSP2 binds to RNA and unwinds nucleic acid duplex. Heterologous expression of AtCSP2 complemented cold sensitivity of an Escherichia coli csp quadruple mutant, indicating that AtCSP2 function as a RNA chaperone in E. coli. AtCSP2 mRNA and protein levels increased during cold acclimation, but the protein accumulation was most prominent after 10 days of cold treatment. AtCSP2 promoter::GUS transgenic plants revealed that AtCSP2 is expressed only in root and shoot apical regions during vegetative growth but is expressed in reproductive organs such as pollens, ovules and embryos. These data indicated that AtCSP2 is involved in developmental processes as well as cold adaptation. Localization of AtCSP2::GFP in nucleolus and cytoplasm suggested different nuclear and cytosolic RNA targets

  1. Children's Representations of Facial Expression and Identity: Identity-Contingent Expression Aftereffects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vida, Mark D.; Mondloch, Catherine J.

    2009-01-01

    This investigation used adaptation aftereffects to examine developmental changes in the perception of facial expressions. Previous studies have shown that adults' perceptions of ambiguous facial expressions are biased following adaptation to intense expressions. These expression aftereffects are strong when the adapting and probe expressions share…

  2. Evaluation of technology transfer on collider quadrupole manufacture at LBL

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boeer, J.; Fechteler, H.; Moryson, H.; Sommer, F.; Grueneberg, H.; Kreutz, R.; Krischel, D.; Bensiek, W.; Ryan, B.

    1992-01-01

    As part of the contract on the collider quadruple magnets a technology transfer to Siemens Power Generation Group (KWU) was performed at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley in September 1991. One inner and outer 1 m long coil each should be manufactured under the surveillance of LBL staff to become familiar with the coil production facilities available at LBL. In addition, KWU had the possibility to observe the production process of 5 m quadruple coils. The work is successfully completed and provided additional information for the further hardware operations at the Siemens site

  3. "Express yourself": culture and the effect of self-expression on choice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Heejung S; Sherman, David K

    2007-01-01

    Whereas self-expression is valued in the United States, it is not privileged with such a cultural emphasis in East Asia. Four studies demonstrate the psychological implications of this cultural difference. Studies 1 and 2 found that European Americans value self-expression more than East Asians/East Asian Americans. Studies 3 and 4 examined the roles of expression in preference judgments. In Study 3, the expression of choice led European Americans but not East Asian Americans to be more invested in what they chose. Study 4 examined the connection between the value of expression and the effect of choice expression and showed that European Americans place greater emphasis on self-expression than East Asian Americans, and this difference explained the cultural difference in Study 3. This research highlights the importance of the cultural meanings of self-expression and the moderating role of cultural beliefs on the psychological effect of self-expression. 2007 APA, all rights reserved

  4. Characterization of differentially expressed genes using high-dimensional co-expression networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Coelho Goncalves de Abreu, Gabriel; Labouriau, Rodrigo S.

    2010-01-01

    We present a technique to characterize differentially expressed genes in terms of their position in a high-dimensional co-expression network. The set-up of Gaussian graphical models is used to construct representations of the co-expression network in such a way that redundancy and the propagation...... that allow to make effective inference in problems with high degree of complexity (e.g. several thousands of genes) and small number of observations (e.g. 10-100) as typically occurs in high throughput gene expression studies. Taking advantage of the internal structure of decomposable graphical models, we...... construct a compact representation of the co-expression network that allows to identify the regions with high concentration of differentially expressed genes. It is argued that differentially expressed genes located in highly interconnected regions of the co-expression network are less informative than...

  5. Facial Expressivity at 4 Months: A Context by Expression Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bennett, David S; Bendersky, Margaret; Lewis, Michael

    2002-01-01

    The specificity predicted by differential emotions theory (DET) for early facial expressions in response to 5 different eliciting situations was studied in a sample of 4-month-old infants (n = 150). Infants were videotaped during tickle, sour taste, jack-in-the-box, arm restraint, and masked-stranger situations and their expressions were coded second by second. Infants showed a variety of facial expressions in each situation; however, more infants exhibited positive (joy and surprise) than negative expressions (anger, disgust, fear, and sadness) across all situations except sour taste. Consistent with DET-predicted specificity, joy expressions were the most common in response to tickling, and were less common in response to other situations. Surprise expressions were the most common in response to the jack-in-the-box, as predicted, but also were the most common in response to the arm restraint and masked-stranger situations, indicating a lack of specificity. No evidence of predicted specificity was found for anger, disgust, fear, and sadness expressions. Evidence of individual differences in expressivity within situations, as well as stability in the pattern across situations, underscores the need to examine both child and contextual factors in studying emotional development. The results provide little support for the DET postulate of situational specificity and suggest that a synthesis of differential emotions and dynamic systems theories of emotional expression should be considered.

  6. Global expression differences and tissue specific expression differences in rice evolution result in two contrasting types of differentially expressed genes

    KAUST Repository

    Horiuchi, Youko

    2015-12-23

    Background Since the development of transcriptome analysis systems, many expression evolution studies characterized evolutionary forces acting on gene expression, without explicit discrimination between global expression differences and tissue specific expression differences. However, different types of gene expression alteration should have different effects on an organism, the evolutionary forces that act on them might be different, and different types of genes might show different types of differential expression between species. To confirm this, we studied differentially expressed (DE) genes among closely related groups that have extensive gene expression atlases, and clarified characteristics of different types of DE genes including the identification of regulating loci for differential expression using expression quantitative loci (eQTL) analysis data. Results We detected differentially expressed (DE) genes between rice subspecies in five homologous tissues that were verified using japonica and indica transcriptome atlases in public databases. Using the transcriptome atlases, we classified DE genes into two types, global DE genes and changed-tissues DE genes. Global type DE genes were not expressed in any tissues in the atlas of one subspecies, however changed-tissues type DE genes were expressed in both subspecies with different tissue specificity. For the five tissues in the two japonica-indica combinations, 4.6 ± 0.8 and 5.9 ± 1.5 % of highly expressed genes were global and changed-tissues DE genes, respectively. Changed-tissues DE genes varied in number between tissues, increasing linearly with the abundance of tissue specifically expressed genes in the tissue. Molecular evolution of global DE genes was rapid, unlike that of changed-tissues DE genes. Based on gene ontology, global and changed-tissues DE genes were different, having no common GO terms. Expression differences of most global DE genes were regulated by cis-eQTLs. Expression

  7. Caricaturing facial expressions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calder, A J; Rowland, D; Young, A W; Nimmo-Smith, I; Keane, J; Perrett, D I

    2000-08-14

    The physical differences between facial expressions (e.g. fear) and a reference norm (e.g. a neutral expression) were altered to produce photographic-quality caricatures. In Experiment 1, participants rated caricatures of fear, happiness and sadness for their intensity of these three emotions; a second group of participants rated how 'face-like' the caricatures appeared. With increasing levels of exaggeration the caricatures were rated as more emotionally intense, but less 'face-like'. Experiment 2 demonstrated a similar relationship between emotional intensity and level of caricature for six different facial expressions. Experiments 3 and 4 compared intensity ratings of facial expression caricatures prepared relative to a selection of reference norms - a neutral expression, an average expression, or a different facial expression (e.g. anger caricatured relative to fear). Each norm produced a linear relationship between caricature and rated intensity of emotion; this finding is inconsistent with two-dimensional models of the perceptual representation of facial expression. An exemplar-based multidimensional model is proposed as an alternative account.

  8. System for face recognition under expression variations of neutral-sampled individuals using recognized expression warping and a virtual expression-face database

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petpairote, Chayanut; Madarasmi, Suthep; Chamnongthai, Kosin

    2018-01-01

    The practical identification of individuals using facial recognition techniques requires the matching of faces with specific expressions to faces from a neutral face database. A method for facial recognition under varied expressions against neutral face samples of individuals via recognition of expression warping and the use of a virtual expression-face database is proposed. In this method, facial expressions are recognized and the input expression faces are classified into facial expression groups. To aid facial recognition, the virtual expression-face database is sorted into average facial-expression shapes and by coarse- and fine-featured facial textures. Wrinkle information is also employed in classification by using a process of masking to adjust input faces to match the expression-face database. We evaluate the performance of the proposed method using the CMU multi-PIE, Cohn-Kanade, and AR expression-face databases, and we find that it provides significantly improved results in terms of face recognition accuracy compared to conventional methods and is acceptable for facial recognition under expression variation.

  9. Coincidence orientations of grains in hexagonal materials

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grimmer, H.; Warrington, D.H.

    1986-06-01

    The connection between the rotation matrix in hexagonal lattice coordinates and an angle-axis quadruple is given. The multiplication law of quadruples is derived. It corresponds to multiplying two matrices and gives the effect of two successive rotations. The relation is given between two quadruples that describe the same relative orientation of two lattices due to their hexagonal symmetry; a unique standard description of the relative orientation is proposed. The restrictions satisfied by rotations generating coincidence site lattices (CSLs) are derived for any value of the axial ratio rho = c/a. It is shown that the law for cubic lattices, where the multiplicity SIGMA of the CSL was equal to the least common denominator of the elements of the rotation matrix, does not always hold for hexagonal lattices. A generalisation of this law to lattices of arbitrary symmetry is given and another, quicker method to determine SIGMA for hexagonal lattices is derived. Finally, convenient algorithms are described for determining bases of the CSL and the DSC lattice. (author)

  10. Path Expressions

    Science.gov (United States)

    1975-06-01

    Traditionally, synchronization of concurrent processes is coded in line by operations on semaphores or similar objects. Path expressions move the...discussion about a variety of synchronization primitives . An analysis of their relative power is found in [3]. Path expressions do not introduce yet...another synchronization primitive . A path expression relates to such primitives as a for- or while-statement of an ALGOL-like language relates to a JUMP

  11. What emotion does the "facial expression of disgust" express?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pochedly, Joseph T; Widen, Sherri C; Russell, James A

    2012-12-01

    The emotion attributed to the prototypical "facial expression of disgust" (a nose scrunch) depended on what facial expressions preceded it. In two studies, the majority of 120 children (5-14 years) and 135 adults (16-58 years) judged the nose scrunch as expressing disgust when the preceding set included an anger scowl, but as angry when the anger scowl was omitted. An even greater proportion of observers judged the nose scrunch as angry when the preceding set also included a facial expression of someone about to be sick. The emotion attributed to the nose scrunch therefore varies with experimental context. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

  12. Expression modeling for expression-invariant face recognition

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Haar, F.B. Ter; Veltkamp, R.C.

    2010-01-01

    Morphable face models have proven to be an effective tool for 3D face modeling and face recognition, but the extension to 3D face scans with expressions is still a challenge. The two main difficulties are (1) how to build a new morphable face model that deals with expressions, and (2) how to fit

  13. Gene Expression Commons: an open platform for absolute gene expression profiling.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jun Seita

    Full Text Available Gene expression profiling using microarrays has been limited to comparisons of gene expression between small numbers of samples within individual experiments. However, the unknown and variable sensitivities of each probeset have rendered the absolute expression of any given gene nearly impossible to estimate. We have overcome this limitation by using a very large number (>10,000 of varied microarray data as a common reference, so that statistical attributes of each probeset, such as the dynamic range and threshold between low and high expression, can be reliably discovered through meta-analysis. This strategy is implemented in a web-based platform named "Gene Expression Commons" (https://gexc.stanford.edu/ which contains data of 39 distinct highly purified mouse hematopoietic stem/progenitor/differentiated cell populations covering almost the entire hematopoietic system. Since the Gene Expression Commons is designed as an open platform, investigators can explore the expression level of any gene, search by expression patterns of interest, submit their own microarray data, and design their own working models representing biological relationship among samples.

  14. Global expression differences and tissue specific expression differences in rice evolution result in two contrasting types of differentially expressed genes

    KAUST Repository

    Horiuchi, Youko; Harushima, Yoshiaki; Fujisawa, Hironori; Mochizuki, Takako; Fujita, Masahiro; Ohyanagi, Hajime; Kurata, Nori

    2015-01-01

    Since the development of transcriptome analysis systems, many expression evolution studies characterized evolutionary forces acting on gene expression, without explicit discrimination between global expression differences and tissue

  15. After Effects expressions

    CERN Document Server

    Geduld, Marcus

    2013-01-01

    Put the power of Expressions to work in your animations with controls and efficiencies impossible to achieve with traditional keyframing techniques. No programming skills are required. Foundation concepts and skills orient the new designer and serve as a handy reference to the experienced one. Basics of creating expressions, variables, commands, and expression helpers precede the leap into javascript and math essentials for more advanced expressions that include randomness, physical simularions and 3D. Full color illustrations display the scripts and the resulti

  16. Express web application development

    CERN Document Server

    Yaapa, Hage

    2013-01-01

    Express Web Application Development is a practical introduction to learning about Express. Each chapter introduces you to a different area of Express, using screenshots and examples to get you up and running as quickly as possible.If you are looking to use Express to build your next web application, ""Express Web Application Development"" will help you get started and take you right through to Express' advanced features. You will need to have an intermediate knowledge of JavaScript to get the most out of this book.

  17. Simultaneous Breast Expression in Breastfeeding Women Is More Efficacious Than Sequential Breast Expression

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garbin, Catherine P.; Hartmann, Peter E.; Kent, Jacqueline C.

    2012-01-01

    Abstract Introduction Simultaneous (SIM) breast expression saves mothers time compared with sequential (SEQ) expression, but it remains unclear whether the two methods differ in milk output efficiency and efficacy. Subjects and Methods The Showmilk device (Medela AG, Baar, Switzerland) was used to measure milk output and milk ejection during breast expression (electric pump) in 31 Australian breastfeeding mothers of term infants (median age, 19 weeks [interquartile range, 10–33 weeks]). The order of expression type (SIM/SEQ) and breast (left/right) was randomized. Results SIM expression yielded more milk ejections (p≤0.001) and greater amounts of milk at 2, 5, and 10 minutes (p≤0.01) and removed a greater total amount of milk (p≤0.01) and percentage of available milk (p<0.05) than SEQ expression. After SIM expression the cream content of both the overall (8.3% [p≤0.05]) and postexpression (12.6% [p≤0.001]) milk were greater. During SEQ expression, the breast expressed first had a shorter time to 50% and 80% of the total amount of milk than the breast expressed second (p≤0.05), but, overall, a similar percentage of available milk was removed from both breasts. Conclusions SIM expression stimulated more milk ejections and was a more efficient and efficacious method of expression, yielding milk with a higher energy content. PMID:23039397

  18. LocExpress: a web server for efficiently estimating expression of novel transcripts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hou, Mei; Tian, Feng; Jiang, Shuai; Kong, Lei; Yang, Dechang; Gao, Ge

    2016-12-22

    The temporal and spatial-specific expression pattern of a transcript in multiple tissues and cell types can indicate key clues about its function. While several gene atlas available online as pre-computed databases for known gene models, it's still challenging to get expression profile for previously uncharacterized (i.e. novel) transcripts efficiently. Here we developed LocExpress, a web server for efficiently estimating expression of novel transcripts across multiple tissues and cell types in human (20 normal tissues/cells types and 14 cell lines) as well as in mouse (24 normal tissues/cell types and nine cell lines). As a wrapper to RNA-Seq quantification algorithm, LocExpress efficiently reduces the time cost by making abundance estimation calls increasingly within the minimum spanning bundle region of input transcripts. For a given novel gene model, such local context-oriented strategy allows LocExpress to estimate its FPKMs in hundreds of samples within minutes on a standard Linux box, making an online web server possible. To the best of our knowledge, LocExpress is the only web server to provide nearly real-time expression estimation for novel transcripts in common tissues and cell types. The server is publicly available at http://loc-express.cbi.pku.edu.cn .

  19. Structure and field emission of graphene layers on top of silicon nanowire arrays

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Bohr-Ran; Chan, Hui-Wen; Jou, Shyankay; Chen, Guan-Yu; Kuo, Hsiu-An; Song, Wan-Jhen

    2016-01-01

    Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • We prepared graphene on top of silicon nanowires by transfer-print technique. • Graphene changed from discrete flakes to a continuous by repeated transfer-print. • The triple-layer graphene had high electron field emission due to large edge ratio. - Abstract: Monolayer graphene was grown on copper foils and then transferred on planar silicon substrates and on top of silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays to form single- to quadruple-layer graphene films. The morphology, structure, and electron field emission (FE) of these graphene films were investigated. The graphene films on the planar silicon substrates were continuous. The single- to triple-layer graphene films on the SiNW arrays were discontinuous and while the quadruple-layer graphene film featured a mostly continuous area. The Raman spectra of the graphene films on the SiNW arrays showed G and G′ bands with a singular-Lorentzian shape together with a weak D band. The D band intensity decreased as the number of graphene layers increased. The FE efficiency of the graphene films on the planar silicon substrates and the SiNW arrays varied with the number of graphene layers. The turn-on field for the single- to quadruple-layer graphene films on planar silicon substrates were 4.3, 3.7, 3.5 and 3.4 V/μm, respectively. The turn-on field for the single- to quadruple-layer graphene films on SiNW arrays decreased to 3.9, 3.3, 3.0 and 3.3 V/μm, respectively. Correlation of the FE with structure and morphology of the graphene films is discussed.

  20. Structure and field emission of graphene layers on top of silicon nanowire arrays

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Huang, Bohr-Ran; Chan, Hui-Wen [Graduate Institute of Electro-Optical Engineering and Department of Electronic Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China); Jou, Shyankay, E-mail: sjou@mail.ntust.edu.tw [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China); Chen, Guan-Yu [Graduate Institute of Electro-Optical Engineering and Department of Electronic Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China); Kuo, Hsiu-An; Song, Wan-Jhen [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei 106, Taiwan (China)

    2016-01-30

    Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • We prepared graphene on top of silicon nanowires by transfer-print technique. • Graphene changed from discrete flakes to a continuous by repeated transfer-print. • The triple-layer graphene had high electron field emission due to large edge ratio. - Abstract: Monolayer graphene was grown on copper foils and then transferred on planar silicon substrates and on top of silicon nanowire (SiNW) arrays to form single- to quadruple-layer graphene films. The morphology, structure, and electron field emission (FE) of these graphene films were investigated. The graphene films on the planar silicon substrates were continuous. The single- to triple-layer graphene films on the SiNW arrays were discontinuous and while the quadruple-layer graphene film featured a mostly continuous area. The Raman spectra of the graphene films on the SiNW arrays showed G and G′ bands with a singular-Lorentzian shape together with a weak D band. The D band intensity decreased as the number of graphene layers increased. The FE efficiency of the graphene films on the planar silicon substrates and the SiNW arrays varied with the number of graphene layers. The turn-on field for the single- to quadruple-layer graphene films on planar silicon substrates were 4.3, 3.7, 3.5 and 3.4 V/μm, respectively. The turn-on field for the single- to quadruple-layer graphene films on SiNW arrays decreased to 3.9, 3.3, 3.0 and 3.3 V/μm, respectively. Correlation of the FE with structure and morphology of the graphene films is discussed.

  1. Regular expressions cookbook

    CERN Document Server

    Goyvaerts, Jan

    2009-01-01

    This cookbook provides more than 100 recipes to help you crunch data and manipulate text with regular expressions. Every programmer can find uses for regular expressions, but their power doesn't come worry-free. Even seasoned users often suffer from poor performance, false positives, false negatives, or perplexing bugs. Regular Expressions Cookbook offers step-by-step instructions for some of the most common tasks involving this tool, with recipes for C#, Java, JavaScript, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, and VB.NET. With this book, you will: Understand the basics of regular expressions through a

  2. Treatment of Helicobacter pylori Infection 2013.

    LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

    O'Connor, Anthony

    2013-09-01

    This review summarizes important studies regarding Helicobacter pylori therapy published from April 2012 up to March 2013. To begin with, the updated European Consensus Guidelines were published last year, highlighting the role of bismuth and nonbismuth quadruple regimen as first-line treatments. Cure rates for standard triple therapy remain acceptable in quite a few settings nowadays, and some reports on innovative triple therapies look promising. One study evaluating bismuth quadruple therapy as first-line therapy was reported. Regarding nonbismuth quadruple regimens, there is a trend of superiority emerging for the "concomitant" therapy over the "sequential" regimen. "Hybrid" therapy, a combination of sequential and concomitant therapy, has also shown advantage over sequential therapy. Levofloxacin-based therapies appear to be useful and versatile in second- and third-line therapies, with interesting results for newer generation quinolones, which may partially overcome antibiotic resistance. Some promising works have been reported for bismuth-based rescue therapy, using individualized therapies upon antimicrobial information, as well as for rifabutin fourth-line therapy. Probiotics appear to have an effect in terms of reducing side effects and improving compliance, but data on improvement of eradication rates remain controversial.

  3. Artificial Nacre from Supramolecular Assembly of Graphene Oxide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yang; Li, Ting; Ma, Piming; Zhang, Shengwen; Zhang, Hongji; Du, Mingliang; Xie, Yi; Chen, Mingqing; Dong, Weifu; Ming, Weihua

    2018-06-14

    Inspired by the "brick-and-mortar" structure and remarkable mechanical performance of nacre, many efforts have been devoted to fabricating nacre-mimicking materials. Herein, a class of graphene oxide (GO) based artificial nacre material with quadruple hydrogen-bonding interactions was fabricated by functionalization of polydopamine-capped graphene oxide (PDG) with 2-ureido-4[1 H]-pyrimidinone (UPy) self-complementary quadruple hydrogen-bonding units followed by supramolecular assembly process. The artificial nacre displays a strict "brick-and-mortar" structure, with PDG nanosheets as the brick and UPy units as the mortar. The resultant nanocomposite shows an excellent balance of strength and toughness. Because of the strong strengthening via quadruple hydrogen bonding, the tensile strength and toughness can reach 325.6 ± 17.8 MPa and 11.1 ± 1.3 MJ m -3 , respectively, thus exceeding natural nacre, and reaching 3.6 and 10 times that of a pure GO artificial nacre. Furthermore, after further H 2 O treatment, the resulting H 2 O-treated PDG-UPy actuator displays significant bending actuations when driven by heat. This work provides a pathway for the development of artificial nacre for their potential applications in energy conversion, temperature sensor, and thermo-driven actuator.

  4. Supplementary Material for: Global expression differences and tissue specific expression differences in rice evolution result in two contrasting types of differentially expressed genes

    KAUST Repository

    Horiuchi, Youko; Harushima, Yoshiaki; Fujisawa, Hironori; Mochizuki, Takako; Fujita, Masahiro; Ohyanagi, Hajime; Kurata, Nori

    2015-01-01

    Abstract Background Since the development of transcriptome analysis systems, many expression evolution studies characterized evolutionary forces acting on gene expression, without explicit discrimination between global expression differences and tissue specific expression differences. However, different types of gene expression alteration should have different effects on an organism, the evolutionary forces that act on them might be different, and different types of genes might show different types of differential expression between species. To confirm this, we studied differentially expressed (DE) genes among closely related groups that have extensive gene expression atlases, and clarified characteristics of different types of DE genes including the identification of regulating loci for differential expression using expression quantitative loci (eQTL) analysis data. Results We detected differentially expressed (DE) genes between rice subspecies in five homologous tissues that were verified using japonica and indica transcriptome atlases in public databases. Using the transcriptome atlases, we classified DE genes into two types, global DE genes and changed-tissues DE genes. Global type DE genes were not expressed in any tissues in the atlas of one subspecies, however changed-tissues type DE genes were expressed in both subspecies with different tissue specificity. For the five tissues in the two japonica-indica combinations, 4.6 ± 0.8 and 5.9 ± 1.5 % of highly expressed genes were global and changed-tissues DE genes, respectively. Changed-tissues DE genes varied in number between tissues, increasing linearly with the abundance of tissue specifically expressed genes in the tissue. Molecular evolution of global DE genes was rapid, unlike that of changed-tissues DE genes. Based on gene ontology, global and changed-tissues DE genes were different, having no common GO terms. Expression differences of most global DE genes were regulated by cis

  5. Expression-dependent susceptibility to face distortions in processing of facial expressions of emotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Kun; Soornack, Yoshi; Settle, Rebecca

    2018-03-05

    Our capability of recognizing facial expressions of emotion under different viewing conditions implies the existence of an invariant expression representation. As natural visual signals are often distorted and our perceptual strategy changes with external noise level, it is essential to understand how expression perception is susceptible to face distortion and whether the same facial cues are used to process high- and low-quality face images. We systematically manipulated face image resolution (experiment 1) and blur (experiment 2), and measured participants' expression categorization accuracy, perceived expression intensity and associated gaze patterns. Our analysis revealed a reasonable tolerance to face distortion in expression perception. Reducing image resolution up to 48 × 64 pixels or increasing image blur up to 15 cycles/image had little impact on expression assessment and associated gaze behaviour. Further distortion led to decreased expression categorization accuracy and intensity rating, increased reaction time and fixation duration, and stronger central fixation bias which was not driven by distortion-induced changes in local image saliency. Interestingly, the observed distortion effects were expression-dependent with less deterioration impact on happy and surprise expressions, suggesting this distortion-invariant facial expression perception might be achieved through the categorical model involving a non-linear configural combination of local facial features. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. Matching faces with emotional expressions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenfeng eChen

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available There is some evidence that faces with a happy expression are recognized better than faces with other expressions. However, little is known about whether this happy face advantage also applies to perceptual face matching, and whether similar differences exist among other expressions. Using a sequential matching paradigm, we systematically compared the effects of seven basic facial expressions on identity recognition. Identity matching was quickest when a pair of faces had an identical happy/sad/neutral expression, poorer when they had a fearful/surprise/angry expression, and poorest when they had a disgust expression. Faces with a happy/sad/fear/surprise expression were matched faster than those with an anger/disgust expression when the second face in a pair had a neutral expression. These results demonstrate that effects of facial expression on identity recognition are not limited to happy faces when a learned face is immediately tested. The results suggest different influences of expression in perceptual matching and long-term recognition memory.

  7. The MPI facial expression database--a validated database of emotional and conversational facial expressions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathrin Kaulard

    Full Text Available The ability to communicate is one of the core aspects of human life. For this, we use not only verbal but also nonverbal signals of remarkable complexity. Among the latter, facial expressions belong to the most important information channels. Despite the large variety of facial expressions we use in daily life, research on facial expressions has so far mostly focused on the emotional aspect. Consequently, most databases of facial expressions available to the research community also include only emotional expressions, neglecting the largely unexplored aspect of conversational expressions. To fill this gap, we present the MPI facial expression database, which contains a large variety of natural emotional and conversational expressions. The database contains 55 different facial expressions performed by 19 German participants. Expressions were elicited with the help of a method-acting protocol, which guarantees both well-defined and natural facial expressions. The method-acting protocol was based on every-day scenarios, which are used to define the necessary context information for each expression. All facial expressions are available in three repetitions, in two intensities, as well as from three different camera angles. A detailed frame annotation is provided, from which a dynamic and a static version of the database have been created. In addition to describing the database in detail, we also present the results of an experiment with two conditions that serve to validate the context scenarios as well as the naturalness and recognizability of the video sequences. Our results provide clear evidence that conversational expressions can be recognized surprisingly well from visual information alone. The MPI facial expression database will enable researchers from different research fields (including the perceptual and cognitive sciences, but also affective computing, as well as computer vision to investigate the processing of a wider range of natural

  8. Identification of Emotional Facial Expressions: Effects of Expression, Intensity, and Sex on Eye Gaze.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Laura Jean Wells

    Full Text Available The identification of emotional expressions is vital for social interaction, and can be affected by various factors, including the expressed emotion, the intensity of the expression, the sex of the face, and the gender of the observer. This study investigates how these factors affect the speed and accuracy of expression recognition, as well as dwell time on the two most significant areas of the face: the eyes and the mouth. Participants were asked to identify expressions from female and male faces displaying six expressions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise, each with three levels of intensity (low, moderate, and normal. Overall, responses were fastest and most accurate for happy expressions, but slowest and least accurate for fearful expressions. More intense expressions were also classified most accurately. Reaction time showed a different pattern, with slowest response times recorded for expressions of moderate intensity. Overall, responses were slowest, but also most accurate, for female faces. Relative to male observers, women showed greater accuracy and speed when recognizing female expressions. Dwell time analyses revealed that attention to the eyes was about three times greater than on the mouth, with fearful eyes in particular attracting longer dwell times. The mouth region was attended to the most for fearful, angry, and disgusted expressions and least for surprise. These results extend upon previous findings to show important effects of expression, emotion intensity, and sex on expression recognition and gaze behaviour, and may have implications for understanding the ways in which emotion recognition abilities break down.

  9. Identification of Emotional Facial Expressions: Effects of Expression, Intensity, and Sex on Eye Gaze.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wells, Laura Jean; Gillespie, Steven Mark; Rotshtein, Pia

    2016-01-01

    The identification of emotional expressions is vital for social interaction, and can be affected by various factors, including the expressed emotion, the intensity of the expression, the sex of the face, and the gender of the observer. This study investigates how these factors affect the speed and accuracy of expression recognition, as well as dwell time on the two most significant areas of the face: the eyes and the mouth. Participants were asked to identify expressions from female and male faces displaying six expressions (anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise), each with three levels of intensity (low, moderate, and normal). Overall, responses were fastest and most accurate for happy expressions, but slowest and least accurate for fearful expressions. More intense expressions were also classified most accurately. Reaction time showed a different pattern, with slowest response times recorded for expressions of moderate intensity. Overall, responses were slowest, but also most accurate, for female faces. Relative to male observers, women showed greater accuracy and speed when recognizing female expressions. Dwell time analyses revealed that attention to the eyes was about three times greater than on the mouth, with fearful eyes in particular attracting longer dwell times. The mouth region was attended to the most for fearful, angry, and disgusted expressions and least for surprise. These results extend upon previous findings to show important effects of expression, emotion intensity, and sex on expression recognition and gaze behaviour, and may have implications for understanding the ways in which emotion recognition abilities break down.

  10. EXPRESS Service to the International Space Station: EXPRESS Pallet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Primm, Lowell; Bergmann, Alan

    1998-01-01

    The International Space Station (ISS) will be the ultimate scientific accomplishment in the history of NASA, with its primary objective of providing unique scientific investigation opportunities. This objective is the basis for the creation of the EXPRESS Pallet System (ExPs). The EXPRESS Pallet will provide extremal/unpressurized accommodations for a wide variety of external users. The payload developers represent many science disciplines, including earth observation, communications, solar and deep space viewing, long-term exposure, and many others. The EXPRESS Pallet will provide a mechanism to maximum utilization of the limited ISS unpressurized payload volume, standard physical payload interfaces for users, a standard integration template for users and the capability to changeout payloads on-orbit. The EXPRESS Pallet provides access to Ram, Wake, Starboard, Port, Nadir, Zenith and Earth Limb for exposure and viewing. 'Me ExPs consists of the Pallet structure, payload Adapters, and a subsystem assembly which includes data controller, power distribution and conversion, and Extra Vehicular Robotics/Extra-Vehicular Activity systems.

  11. Neuroglobin over expressing mice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Raida, Zindy; Hundahl, Christian Ansgar; Nyengaard, Jens R

    2013-01-01

    showed over expression to be confined to primarily the cortex, hippocampus, cerebellum, and only in neurons. The level and expression pattern of endogenous Neuroglobin was unaffected by insertion of the over expressing Ngb transgene. Neuroglobin over expression resulted in a significant reduction...... previous reports, Neuroglobin over expression is not global but confined to a few well-defined brain regions, and only in neurons. This study confirms previous reports showing a correlation between reduced infarct volume and elevated Neuroglobin levels, but underlines the need to study the likely...

  12. Expressive means of irony expression in Marcel Proust’s aphorisms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shumakova Alla Petrovna

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The relevance of the study is determined by the lack of work on the analysis of linguistic expressive means of aphorisms by Marcel Proust. The material of the research are aphoristic sayings of ironic character found in the novels of Proust “Jean Santeuil”, “La Prisonnière”, “Albertine disparue”, “A l’ombre des jeunes filles en fleurs”, “Sodome et Gomorrhe”, “Le Côté de Guermantes”, “Le Temps retrouvé”. Since none of the linguistic resources of imagery is self-sufficient it is considered the most effective for the expression of irony combination means expressive syntax (figures and figurative means (tropes. Among the means of expressive syntax it is analyzed the use of aphorisms by Proust, like parallel structures, chiasm, antithesis, repetition, poliptota. The most frequent in aphorisms by Proust are metaphors and similes. An important aspect of the study of aphorisms of Marcel Proust is a detailed examination of the arsenal of linguistic means of language pun used to create an ironic effect. The material of the pun became a unit of lexical and syntactic level, forming a paradox, pun, parody and illogic. Through the use of expressive means of expression of irony and their various combinations aphorisms Proust acquired ambiguity, originality, intellectual and emotional capacity.

  13. Minimum inhibitory concentration of the plant extracts′ combinations against dental caries and plaque microorganisms: An in vitro study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B R Chandra Shekar

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Oral health status has witnessed marked advances in many industrialized countries. However, dental caries is consistently increasing in developing countries, and periodontal diseases are among most common afflictions to humankind. Approach best suited for developing countries is to focus on the prevention with innovative strategies. Hence, evolution of novel, innovative strategies to prevent dental caries and periodontal diseases is need of hour. Objective: To determine minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC of combinations of Acacia nilotica, Murraya koenigii L. Sprengel, Eucalyptus hybrid, and Psidium guajava against dental caries and plaque microorganisms and to qualitatively identify various phytochemical constituents in individual plant extracts and their quadruple combinations. Materials and Methods: MIC of the combinations of A. nilotica, M. koenigii L. Sprengel, Eucalyptus hybrid, and P. guajava on Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus acidophilus (dental caries bacteria, Streptococcus sanguis, Streptococcus salivarius (primary plaque colonizers, Fusobacterium nucleatum (secondary plaque colonizer, and Porphyromonas gingivalis (tertiary plaque colonizer was determined using broth dilution method. Series of dilutions of quadruple combinations ranging from 0.05% to 1.5% were prepared. 100 μL of each serial dilution of quadruple combinations was added to each tube containing bacterial culture. The optical density was noted after incubation in each tube to estimate the MIC for each bacterium. Results: MIC of the polyherbal combinations on S. mutans, S. sanguis, S. salivarius, L. acidophilus, F. nucleatum, and P. gingivalis was found to be 0.25%, 0.05%, 0.05%, 0.1%, 0.25%, and 0.25%, respectively. Conclusion: The quadruple combinations of these four plant extracts could be considered in the evolution of an indigenous polyherbal mouth rinse as the formulation inhibited all the bacteria tested in the present study at low

  14. Effects of transients in LIGO suspensions on searches for gravitational waves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, M; Abbott, T D; Aston, S M; González, G; Macleod, D M; McIver, J; Abbott, B P; Abbott, R; Adams, C; Adhikari, R X; Anderson, S B; Ananyeva, A; Appert, S; Arai, K; Ballmer, S W; Barker, D; Barr, B; Barsotti, L; Bartlett, J; Bartos, I; Batch, J C; Bell, A S; Betzwieser, J; Billingsley, G; Birch, J; Biscans, S; Biwer, C; Blair, C D; Bork, R; Brooks, A F; Ciani, G; Clara, F; Countryman, S T; Cowart, M J; Coyne, D C; Cumming, A; Cunningham, L; Danzmann, K; Da Silva Costa, C F; Daw, E J; DeBra, D; DeRosa, R T; DeSalvo, R; Dooley, K L; Doravari, S; Driggers, J C; Dwyer, S E; Effler, A; Etzel, T; Evans, M; Evans, T M; Factourovich, M; Fair, H; Fernández Galiana, A; Fisher, R P; Fritschel, P; Frolov, V V; Fulda, P; Fyffe, M; Giaime, J A; Giardina, K D; Goetz, E; Goetz, R; Gras, S; Gray, C; Grote, H; Gushwa, K E; Gustafson, E K; Gustafson, R; Hall, E D; Hammond, G; Hanks, J; Hanson, J; Hardwick, T; Harry, G M; Heintze, M C; Heptonstall, A W; Hough, J; Izumi, K; Jones, R; Kandhasamy, S; Karki, S; Kasprzack, M; Kaufer, S; Kawabe, K; Kijbunchoo, N; King, E J; King, P J; Kissel, J S; Korth, W Z; Kuehn, G; Landry, M; Lantz, B; Lockerbie, N A; Lormand, M; Lundgren, A P; MacInnis, M; Márka, S; Márka, Z; Markosyan, A S; Maros, E; Martin, I W; Martynov, D V; Mason, K; Massinger, T J; Matichard, F; Mavalvala, N; McCarthy, R; McClelland, D E; McCormick, S; McIntyre, G; Mendell, G; Merilh, E L; Meyers, P M; Miller, J; Mittleman, R; Moreno, G; Mueller, G; Mullavey, A; Munch, J; Nuttall, L K; Oberling, J; Oliver, M; Oppermann, P; Oram, Richard J; O'Reilly, B; Ottaway, D J; Overmier, H; Palamos, J R; Paris, H R; Parker, W; Pele, A; Penn, S; Phelps, M; Pierro, V; Pinto, I; Principe, M; Prokhorov, L G; Puncken, O; Quetschke, V; Quintero, E A; Raab, F J; Radkins, H; Raffai, P; Reid, S; Reitze, D H; Robertson, N A; Rollins, J G; Roma, V J; Romie, J H; Rowan, S; Ryan, K; Sadecki, T; Sanchez, E J; Sandberg, V; Savage, R L; Schofield, R M S; Sellers, D; Shaddock, D A; Shaffer, T J; Shapiro, B; Shawhan, P; Shoemaker, D H; Sigg, D; Slagmolen, B J J; Smith, B; Smith, J R; Sorazu, B; Staley, A; Strain, K A; Tanner, D B; Taylor, R; Thomas, M; Thomas, P; Thorne, K A; Thrane, E; Torrie, C I; Traylor, G; Tuyenbayev, D; Vajente, G; Valdes, G; van Veggel, A A; Vecchio, A; Veitch, P J; Venkateswara, K; Vo, T; Vorvick, C; Ward, R L; Warner, J; Weaver, B; Weiss, R; Weßels, P; Willke, B; Wipf, C C; Worden, J; Wu, G; Yamamoto, H; Yancey, C C; Yu, Hang; Yu, Haocun; Zhang, L; Zucker, M E; Zweizig, J

    2017-12-01

    This paper presents an analysis of the transient behavior of the Advanced LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory) suspensions used to seismically isolate the optics. We have characterized the transients in the longitudinal motion of the quadruple suspensions during Advanced LIGO's first observing run. Propagation of transients between stages is consistent with modeled transfer functions, such that transient motion originating at the top of the suspension chain is significantly reduced in amplitude at the test mass. We find that there are transients seen by the longitudinal motion monitors of quadruple suspensions, but they are not significantly correlated with transient motion above the noise floor in the gravitational wave strain data, and therefore do not present a dominant source of background noise in the searches for transient gravitational wave signals. Using the suspension transfer functions, we compared the transients in a week of gravitational wave strain data with transients from a quadruple suspension. Of the strain transients between 10 and 60 Hz, 84% are loud enough that they would have appeared above the sensor noise in the top stage quadruple suspension monitors if they had originated at that stage at the same frequencies. We find no significant temporal correlation with the suspension transients in that stage, so we can rule out suspension motion originating at the top stage as the cause of those transients. However, only 3.2% of the gravitational wave strain transients are loud enough that they would have been seen by the second stage suspension sensors, and none of them are above the sensor noise levels of the penultimate stage. Therefore, we cannot eliminate the possibility of transient noise in the detectors originating in the intermediate stages of the suspension below the sensing noise.

  15. Quadruple-Junction Thin-Film Silicon-Based Solar Cells

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Si, F.T.

    2017-01-01

    The direct utilization of sunlight is a critical energy source in a sustainable future. One of the options is to convert the solar energy into electricity using thin-film silicon-based solar cells (TFSSCs). Solar cells in a triple-junction configuration have exhibited the highest energy conversion

  16. A Compact Printed Quadruple Band-Notched UWB Antenna

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaoyin Li

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available A novel compact coplanar waveguide- (CPW- fed ultrawideband (UWB printed planar volcano-smoke antenna (PVSA with four band-notches for various wireless applications is proposed and demonstrated. The low-profile antenna consists of a C-shaped parasitic strip to generate a notched band at 8.01~8.55 GHz for the ITU band, two C-shaped slots, and an inverted U-shaped slot etched in the radiator patch to create three notched bands at 5.15~5.35 GHz, 5.75~5.85 GHz, and 7.25~7.75 GHz for filtering the WLAN and X-band satellite signals. Simulated and measured results both confirm that the proposed antenna has a broad bandwidth of 3.1~12 GHz with VSWR < 2 and good omnidirectional radiation patterns with four notched-bands.

  17. The expressive stance: intentionality, expression, and machine art

    OpenAIRE

    Linson, Adam

    2013-01-01

    This paper proposes a new interpretive stance for interpreting artistic works and performances that is relevant to artificial intelligence research but also has broader implications. Termed the expressive stance, this stance makes intelligible a critical distinction between present-day machine art and human art, but allows for the possibility that future machine art could find a place alongside our own. The expressive stance is elaborated as a response to Daniel Dennett's notion of the intent...

  18. The MPI Facial Expression Database — A Validated Database of Emotional and Conversational Facial Expressions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaulard, Kathrin; Cunningham, Douglas W.; Bülthoff, Heinrich H.; Wallraven, Christian

    2012-01-01

    The ability to communicate is one of the core aspects of human life. For this, we use not only verbal but also nonverbal signals of remarkable complexity. Among the latter, facial expressions belong to the most important information channels. Despite the large variety of facial expressions we use in daily life, research on facial expressions has so far mostly focused on the emotional aspect. Consequently, most databases of facial expressions available to the research community also include only emotional expressions, neglecting the largely unexplored aspect of conversational expressions. To fill this gap, we present the MPI facial expression database, which contains a large variety of natural emotional and conversational expressions. The database contains 55 different facial expressions performed by 19 German participants. Expressions were elicited with the help of a method-acting protocol, which guarantees both well-defined and natural facial expressions. The method-acting protocol was based on every-day scenarios, which are used to define the necessary context information for each expression. All facial expressions are available in three repetitions, in two intensities, as well as from three different camera angles. A detailed frame annotation is provided, from which a dynamic and a static version of the database have been created. In addition to describing the database in detail, we also present the results of an experiment with two conditions that serve to validate the context scenarios as well as the naturalness and recognizability of the video sequences. Our results provide clear evidence that conversational expressions can be recognized surprisingly well from visual information alone. The MPI facial expression database will enable researchers from different research fields (including the perceptual and cognitive sciences, but also affective computing, as well as computer vision) to investigate the processing of a wider range of natural facial expressions

  19. The correction of linear lattice gradient errors using an AC dipole

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wang,G.; Bai, M.; Litvinenko, V.N.; Satogata, T.

    2009-05-04

    Precise measurement of optics from coherent betatron oscillations driven by ac dipoles have been demonstrated at RHIC and the Tevatron. For RHIC, the observed rms beta-beat is about 10%. Reduction of beta-beating is an essential component of performance optimization at high energy colliders. A scheme of optics correction was developed and tested in the RHIC 2008 run, using ac dipole optics for measurement and a few adjustable trim quadruples for correction. In this scheme, we first calculate the phase response matrix from the. measured phase advance, and then apply singular value decomposition (SVD) algorithm to the phase response matrix to find correction quadruple strengths. We present both simulation and some preliminary experimental results of this correction.

  20. Restructuring of microparticles in nuclear ceramic materials. Part III. Form distribution

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lameiras, F.S.

    1991-01-01

    According to the present model, the modification of the microparticle form, tending to an equiaxial one, is a way to decrease the interface energy of a microparticle set. If the microparticles are dispersed, these ones tend to the spherical form. If they form aggregates (grains), the interface energy is stored in the grain boundaries, triple lines and quadruple points. A mean topological structure combining two kinds of nearly equiaxed polyhedra is proposed for aggregates of microparticles in order to minimize the surface of the grain boundaries, the length of the triple lines and the number of the quadruple points. As the restructuring evolutes, the average grain form tends to take the one of this polyhedra structure. (author)

  1. Expression of Na,K-ATPase and H,K-ATPase Isoforms with the Baculovirus Expression System

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Koenderink, J.B.; Swarts, H.G.

    2016-01-01

    P-type ATPases can be expressed in several cell systems. The baculovirus expressions system uses an insect virus to enter and express proteins in Sf9 insect cells. This expression system is a lytic system in which the cells will die a few days after viral infection. Subsequently, the expressed

  2. Effects of Expressive Writing on Psychological and Physical Health: The Moderating Role of Emotional Expressivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haltom, Kate E.; Mulvenna, Catherine M.; Lieberman, Matthew D.; Stanton, Annette L.

    2013-01-01

    The current study assessed main effects and moderators (including emotional expressiveness, emotional processing and ambivalence over emotional expression) of the effects of expressive writing in a sample of healthy adults. Young adult participants (N = 116) were randomly assigned to write for 20 minutes on four occasions about deepest thoughts and feelings regarding their most stressful/traumatic event in the past five years (expressive writing) or about a control topic (control). Dependent variables were indicators of anxiety, depression, and physical symptoms. No significant effects of writing condition were evident on anxiety, depressive symptoms, or physical symptoms. Emotional expressiveness emerged as a significant moderator of anxiety outcomes, however. Within the expressive writing group, participants high in expressiveness evidenced a significant reduction in anxiety at three-month follow-up, and participants low in expressiveness showed a significant increase in anxiety. Expressiveness did not predict change in anxiety in the control group. These findings on anxiety are consistent with the matching hypothesis, which suggests that matching a person’s naturally elected coping approach with an assigned intervention is beneficial. These findings also suggest that expressive writing about a stressful event may be contraindicated for individuals who do not typically express emotions. PMID:23742666

  3. Characterization and Oral Delivery of Proinsulin-Transferrin Fusion Protein Expressed Using ExpressTec

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yu-Sheng Chen

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Proinsulin-transferrin fusion protein (ProINS-Tf has been designed and successfully expressed from the mammalian HEK293 cells (HEK-ProINS-Tf. It was found that HEK-ProINS-Tf could be converted into an activated form in the liver. Furthermore, HEK-ProINS-Tf was demonstrated as an extra-long acting insulin analogue with liver-specific insulin action in streptozotocin (STZ-induced type 1 diabetic mice. However, due to the low production yield from transfected HEK293 cells, there are other interesting features, including the oral bioavailability, which have not been fully explored and characterized. To improve the protein production yield, an alternative protein expression system, ExpressTec using transgenic rice (Oryza sativa L., was used. The intact and active rice-derived ProINS-Tf (ExpressTec-ProINS-Tf was successfully expressed from the transgenic rice expression system. Our results suggested that, although the insulin-like bioactivity of ExpressTec-ProINS-Tf was slightly lower in vitro, its potency of in vivo blood glucose control was considerably stronger than that of HEK-ProINS-Tf. The oral delivery studies in type 1 diabetic mice demonstrated a prolonged control of blood glucose to near-normal levels after oral administration of ExpressTec-ProINS-Tf. Results in this report suggest that ExpressTec-ProINS-Tf is a promising insulin analog with advantages including low cost, prolonged and liver targeting effects, and most importantly, oral bioactivity.

  4. Characterization of plasma jet ejected from a parallel-plate rail gun for simulating edge localized mode

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chung, K.S.; Chung, Kyoung-Jae; Jung, B.K.; Hwang, Y.S.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • A small plasma gun is constructed to study edge localized mode. • A plasma jet ejected from the gun is characterized with a quadruple Langmuir probe. • The device and diagnostics are suitable for research about the control of plasma jet. -- Abstract: A small plasma gun with parallel-plate configuration is fabricated to generate a bunch of plasma which is similar to ELM (edge localized mode) plasma, by taking advantages of its simplicity and cost-effectiveness. Prior to explore how to control the ELM-like plasma so as to relieve heat load on the divertor target, characteristics of a plasma jet ejected from the plasma gun are investigated using a quadruple Langmuir probe which is appropriate for measuring rapidly varying plasma parameters such as electron density, temperature, and ion velocity at the same time. The plasma density and ion velocity measured at 112 mm away from the exit are 3 × 10 19 m −3 and 11 km/s, respectively, which seem to be suitable for investigating next step research on the control of ELM-like plasma using various methods such as electromagnetic waves and high-voltage pulses. Also, the quadruple Langmuir probe is proven to be adequate for use in such experiments

  5. An accurate potential energy surface for the F + H2 → HF + H reaction by the coupled-cluster method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Jun; Sun, Zhigang; Zhang, Dong H.

    2015-01-01

    A three dimensional potential energy surface for the F + H 2 → HF + H reaction has been computed by the spin unrestricted coupled cluster method with singles, doubles, triples, and perturbative quadruples [UCCSDT(2) Q ] using the augmented correlation-consistent polarised valence quadruple zeta basis set for the fluorine atom and the correlation-consistent polarised valence quadruple zeta basis set for the hydrogen atom. All the calculations are based on the restricted open-shell Hartree-Fock orbitals, together with the frozen core approximations, and the UCCSD(T)/complete basis set (CBS) correction term was included. The global potential energy surface was calculated by fitting the sampled ab initio points without any scaling factor for the correlation energy part using a neutral network function method. Extensive dynamics calculations have been carried out on the potential energy surface. The reaction rate constants, integral cross sections, product rotational states distribution, and forward and backward scattering as a function of collision energy of the F + HD → HF + D, F + HD → DF + H, and F + H 2 reaction, were calculated by the time-independent quantum dynamics scattering theory using the new surface. The satisfactory agreement with the reported experimental observations previously demonstrates the accuracy of the new potential energy surface

  6. An accurate potential energy surface for the F + H{sub 2} → HF + H reaction by the coupled-cluster method

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chen, Jun; Sun, Zhigang, E-mail: zsun@dicp.ac.cn, E-mail: zhangdh@dicp.ac.cn; Zhang, Dong H., E-mail: zsun@dicp.ac.cn, E-mail: zhangdh@dicp.ac.cn [State Key Laboratory of Molecular Reaction Dynamics and Center for Theoretical Computational Chemistry, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian 116023 (China)

    2015-01-14

    A three dimensional potential energy surface for the F + H{sub 2} → HF + H reaction has been computed by the spin unrestricted coupled cluster method with singles, doubles, triples, and perturbative quadruples [UCCSDT(2){sub Q}] using the augmented correlation-consistent polarised valence quadruple zeta basis set for the fluorine atom and the correlation-consistent polarised valence quadruple zeta basis set for the hydrogen atom. All the calculations are based on the restricted open-shell Hartree-Fock orbitals, together with the frozen core approximations, and the UCCSD(T)/complete basis set (CBS) correction term was included. The global potential energy surface was calculated by fitting the sampled ab initio points without any scaling factor for the correlation energy part using a neutral network function method. Extensive dynamics calculations have been carried out on the potential energy surface. The reaction rate constants, integral cross sections, product rotational states distribution, and forward and backward scattering as a function of collision energy of the F + HD → HF + D, F + HD → DF + H, and F + H{sub 2} reaction, were calculated by the time-independent quantum dynamics scattering theory using the new surface. The satisfactory agreement with the reported experimental observations previously demonstrates the accuracy of the new potential energy surface.

  7. Determining Physical Mechanisms of Gene Expression Regulation from Single Cell Gene Expression Data

    OpenAIRE

    Ezer, Daphne; Moignard, Victoria; G?ttgens, Berthold; Adryan, Boris

    2016-01-01

    Many genes are expressed in bursts, which can contribute to cell-to-cell heterogeneity. It is now possible to measure this heterogeneity with high throughput single cell gene expression assays (single cell qPCR and RNA-seq). These experimental approaches generate gene expression distributions which can be used to estimate the kinetic parameters of gene expression bursting, namely the rate that genes turn on, the rate that genes turn off, and the rate of transcription. We construct a complete ...

  8. Cyclooxygenase-2 expression in the normal human eye and its expression pattern in selected eye tumours

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wang, Jinmei; Wu, Yazhen; Heegaard, Steffen

    2011-01-01

    Purpose: Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is an enzyme involved in neoplastic processes. The purpose of the present study is to investigate COX-2 expression in the normal human eye and the expression pattern in selected eye tumours involving COX-2 expressing cells. Methods: Immunohistochemical staining...... using antibodies against COX-2 was performed on paraffin sections of normal human eyes and selected eye tumours arising from cells expressing COX-2. Results: Cyclooxygenase-2 expression was found in various structures of the normal eye. Abundant expression was seen in the cornea, iris, ciliary body...... and retina. The COX-2 expression was less in tumours deriving from the ciliary epithelium and also in retinoblastoma. Conclusion: Cyclooxygenase-2 is constitutively expressed in normal human eyes. The expression of COX-2 is much lower in selected eye tumours involving COX-2 expressing cells....

  9. The predictive nature of transcript expression levels on protein expression in adult human brain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bauernfeind, Amy L; Babbitt, Courtney C

    2017-04-24

    Next generation sequencing methods are the gold standard for evaluating expression of the transcriptome. When determining the biological implications of such studies, the assumption is often made that transcript expression levels correspond to protein levels in a meaningful way. However, the strength of the overall correlation between transcript and protein expression is inconsistent, particularly in brain samples. Following high-throughput transcriptomic (RNA-Seq) and proteomic (liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry) analyses of adult human brain samples, we compared the correlation in the expression of transcripts and proteins that support various biological processes, molecular functions, and that are located in different areas of the cell. Although most categories of transcripts have extremely weak predictive value for the expression of their associated proteins (R 2 values of < 10%), transcripts coding for protein kinases and membrane-associated proteins, including those that are part of receptors or ion transporters, are among those that are most predictive of downstream protein expression levels. The predictive value of transcript expression for corresponding proteins is variable in human brain samples, reflecting the complex regulation of protein expression. However, we found that transcriptomic analyses are appropriate for assessing the expression levels of certain classes of proteins, including those that modify proteins, such as kinases and phosphatases, regulate metabolic and synaptic activity, or are associated with a cellular membrane. These findings can be used to guide the interpretation of gene expression results from primate brain samples.

  10. Expression of Recombinant Human Coagulation Factor VII by the Lizard Leishmania Expression System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sina Mirzaahmadi

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available The variety of recombinant protein expression systems have been developed as a resource of FVII gene expression. In the current study, the authors used a novel protein expression system based on the Iranian Lizard Leishmania, a trypanosomatid protozoan as a host for expression of FVII. Plasmid containing cDNA encoding full-length human FVII was introduced into Lizard Leishmania and positive transfectants were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis. Furthermore, biological activity of purified protein was detected by PT assay. The recombinant strain harboring a construct was analyzed for expression of FVII at the mRNA and protein level. Purified rFVII was obtained and in order to confirm the purified compound was in fact rFVII. Western blot analysis was carried out. Clotting time in PT assay was reduced about 30 seconds with the purified rFVII. In Conclusion, this study has demonstrated, for the first time, that Leishmania cells can be used as an expression system for producing recombinant FVII.

  11. Gene expression

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hildebrand, C.E.; Crawford, B.D.; Walters, R.A.; Enger, M.D.

    1983-01-01

    We prepared probes for isolating functional pieces of the metallothionein locus. The probes enabled a variety of experiments, eventually revealing two mechanisms for metallothionein gene expression, the order of the DNA coding units at the locus, and the location of the gene site in its chromosome. Once the switch regulating metallothionein synthesis was located, it could be joined by recombinant DNA methods to other, unrelated genes, then reintroduced into cells by gene-transfer techniques. The expression of these recombinant genes could then be induced by exposing the cells to Zn 2+ or Cd 2+ . We would thus take advantage of the clearly defined switching properties of the metallothionein gene to manipulate the expression of other, perhaps normally constitutive, genes. Already, despite an incomplete understanding of how the regulatory switch of the metallothionein locus operates, such experiments have been performed successfully

  12. Regular Expression Pocket Reference

    CERN Document Server

    Stubblebine, Tony

    2007-01-01

    This handy little book offers programmers a complete overview of the syntax and semantics of regular expressions that are at the heart of every text-processing application. Ideal as a quick reference, Regular Expression Pocket Reference covers the regular expression APIs for Perl 5.8, Ruby (including some upcoming 1.9 features), Java, PHP, .NET and C#, Python, vi, JavaScript, and the PCRE regular expression libraries. This concise and easy-to-use reference puts a very powerful tool for manipulating text and data right at your fingertips. Composed of a mixture of symbols and text, regular exp

  13. Three gene expression vector sets for concurrently expressing multiple genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ishii, Jun; Kondo, Takashi; Makino, Harumi; Ogura, Akira; Matsuda, Fumio; Kondo, Akihiko

    2014-05-01

    Yeast has the potential to be used in bulk-scale fermentative production of fuels and chemicals due to its tolerance for low pH and robustness for autolysis. However, expression of multiple external genes in one host yeast strain is considerably labor-intensive due to the lack of polycistronic transcription. To promote the metabolic engineering of yeast, we generated systematic and convenient genetic engineering tools to express multiple genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We constructed a series of multi-copy and integration vector sets for concurrently expressing two or three genes in S. cerevisiae by embedding three classical promoters. The comparative expression capabilities of the constructed vectors were monitored with green fluorescent protein, and the concurrent expression of genes was monitored with three different fluorescent proteins. Our multiple gene expression tool will be helpful to the advanced construction of genetically engineered yeast strains in a variety of research fields other than metabolic engineering. © 2014 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Antimicrobial efficacy of the combinations of Acacia nilotica, Murraya koenigii (Linn. Sprengel, Eucalyptus, and Psidium guajava on primary plaque colonizers: An in vitro study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Byalakere Rudraiah Chandra Shekar

    2016-01-01

    Conclusion: All the triple and quadruple combinations of the plant extracts offered antimicrobial benefits either superior or comparable to 0.2% chlorhexidine against S. mutans, S. sanguis, and S. salivarius.

  15. A Scaled Beam-Combining Experiment for Heavy Ion Inertial Fusion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Celata, C.M.; Chupp, W.W.; Faltens, A.; Fawley, W.M.; Ghiorso, W.; Hahn, K.; Henestroza, E.; MacLaren, S.; Peters, C.; Seidl, P.

    1997-01-01

    Transverse beam combining is a cost-saving option employed in many designs for induction linac heavy ion fusion drivers. The resultant transverse emittance increase, due predominantly to enharmonic space charge forces, must be kept minimal so that the beam remains focusable at the target. A prototype combining experiment has been built and preliminary results are presented. Four sources each produce up to 4.8 mA Cs+ beams at 160 keV. Focusing upstream of the merge consists of four quadruples and a final combined-function element (quadruple ampersand dipole). All lattice elements of the prototype are electrostatic. Due to the small distance between beams near the merge (-3-4 mm), the electrodes here are a cage of small rods, each at different voltage

  16. Morphing between expressions dissociates continuous from categorical representations of facial expression in the human brain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harris, Richard J.; Young, Andrew W.; Andrews, Timothy J.

    2012-01-01

    Whether the brain represents facial expressions as perceptual continua or as emotion categories remains controversial. Here, we measured the neural response to morphed images to directly address how facial expressions of emotion are represented in the brain. We found that face-selective regions in the posterior superior temporal sulcus and the amygdala responded selectively to changes in facial expression, independent of changes in identity. We then asked whether the responses in these regions reflected categorical or continuous neural representations of facial expression. Participants viewed images from continua generated by morphing between faces posing different expressions such that the expression could be the same, could involve a physical change but convey the same emotion, or could differ by the same physical amount but be perceived as two different emotions. We found that the posterior superior temporal sulcus was equally sensitive to all changes in facial expression, consistent with a continuous representation. In contrast, the amygdala was only sensitive to changes in expression that altered the perceived emotion, demonstrating a more categorical representation. These results offer a resolution to the controversy about how facial expression is processed in the brain by showing that both continuous and categorical representations underlie our ability to extract this important social cue. PMID:23213218

  17. Nestin expression in neuroepithelial tumors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schiffer, Davide; Manazza, Andrea; Tamagno, Ilaria

    2006-05-29

    Nestin is a marker of early stages of neurocytogenesis. It has been studied in 50 neuroepithelial tumors, mostly gliomas of different malignancy grades, by immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, immunoblotting, and confocal microscopy and compared with GFAP and Vimentin. As an early marker of differentiation, Nestin is almost not expressed in diffuse astrocytomas, variably expressed in anaplastic astrocytomas and strongly and irregularly expressed in glioblastomas. Negative in oligodendrogliomas, it stains ependymomas and shows a gradient of expression in pilocytic astrocytomas. In glioblastomas, Nestin distribution does not completely correspond to that of GFAP and Vimentin with which its expression varies in tumor cells in a complementary way, as confirmed by confocal microscopy. Tumor cells can thus either derive from or differentiate toward the neurocytogenetic stages. Hypothetically, they could be put in relation with radial glia where during embriogenesis the three antigens are successively expressed. Completely negative cells of invasive or recurrent glioblastomas may represent malignant selected clones after accumulation of mutations or early stem cells not expressing antigens.

  18. FARO server: Meta-analysis of gene expression by matching gene expression signatures to a compendium of public gene expression data

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Manijak, Mieszko P.; Nielsen, Henrik Bjørn

    2011-01-01

    circumvented by instead matching gene expression signatures to signatures of other experiments. FINDINGS: To facilitate this we present the Functional Association Response by Overlap (FARO) server, that match input signatures to a compendium of 242 gene expression signatures, extracted from more than 1700...... Arabidopsis microarray experiments. CONCLUSIONS: Hereby we present a publicly available tool for robust characterization of Arabidopsis gene expression experiments which can point to similar experimental factors in other experiments. The server is available at http://www.cbs.dtu.dk/services/faro/....

  19. Freedom of Expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Update on Law-Related Education, 1988

    1988-01-01

    Presents an activity which uses hypothetical situations to explore the proper boundaries of freedom of expression and the role of the U.S. Supreme Court in interpreting its limits. Appropriate for grades 4-12, the lesson includes such topics as the "clear and present danger" clause, student expression, obscenity, and defamation. (GEA)

  20. P2-35: The KU Facial Expression Database: A Validated Database of Emotional and Conversational Expressions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Haenah Lee

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Facial expressions are one of the most important means of nonverbal communication transporting both emotional and conversational content. For investigating this large space of expressions we recently developed a large database containing dynamic emotional and conversational expressions in Germany (MPI facial expression database. As facial expressions crucially depend on the cultural context, however, a similar resource is needed for studies outside of Germany. Here, we introduce and validate a new, extensive Korean facial expression database containing dynamic emotional and conversational information. Ten individuals performed 62 expressions following a method-acting protocol, in which each person was asked to imagine themselves in one of 62 corresponding everyday scenarios and to react accordingly. To validate this database, we conducted two experiments: 20 participants were asked to name the appropriate expression for each of the 62 everyday scenarios shown as text. Ten additional participants were asked to name each of the 62 expression videos from 10 actors in addition to rating its naturalness. All naming answers were then rated as valid or invalid. Scenario validation yielded 89% valid answers showing that the scenarios are effective in eliciting appropriate expressions. Video sequences were judged as natural with an average of 66% valid answers. This is an excellent result considering that videos were seen without any conversational context and that 62 expressions were to be recognized. These results validate our Korean database and, as they also parallel the German validation results, will enable detailed cross-cultural comparisons of the complex space of emotional and conversational expressions.

  1. Randomized controlled trial of expressive writing for psychological and physical health: the moderating role of emotional expressivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niles, Andrea N; Haltom, Kate E Byrne; Mulvenna, Catherine M; Lieberman, Matthew D; Stanton, Annette L

    2014-01-01

    The current study assessed main effects and moderators (including emotional expressiveness, emotional processing, and ambivalence over emotional expression) of the effects of expressive writing in a sample of healthy adults. Young adult participants (N=116) were randomly assigned to write for 20 minutes on four occasions about deepest thoughts and feelings regarding their most stressful/traumatic event in the past five years (expressive writing) or about a control topic (control). Dependent variables were indicators of anxiety, depression, and physical symptoms. No significant effects of writing condition were evident on anxiety, depressive symptoms, or physical symptoms. Emotional expressiveness emerged as a significant moderator of anxiety outcomes, however. Within the expressive writing group, participants high in expressiveness evidenced a significant reduction in anxiety at three-month follow-up, and participants low in expressiveness showed a significant increase in anxiety. Expressiveness did not predict change in anxiety in the control group. These findings on anxiety are consistent with the matching hypothesis, which suggests that matching a person's naturally elected coping approach with an assigned intervention is beneficial. These findings also suggest that expressive writing about a stressful event may be contraindicated for individuals who do not typically express emotions.

  2. The hepatic Raldh1 expression is elevated in Zucker fatty rats and its over-expression introduced the retinal-induced Srebp-1c expression in INS-1 cells.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yang Li

    Full Text Available The roles of vitamin A (VA in the development of metabolic diseases remain unanswered. We have reported that retinoids synergized with insulin to induce the expression of sterol-regulatory element-binding protein 1c gene (Srebp-1c expression in primary rat hepatocytes. Additionally, the hepatic Srebp-1c expression is elevated in Zucker fatty (ZF rats, and reduced in those fed a VA deficient diet. VA is metabolized to retinoic acid (RA for regulating gene expression. We hypothesized that the expression of RA production enzymes contributes to the regulation of the hepatic Srebp-1c expression. Therefore, we analyzed their expression levels in Zucker lean (ZL and ZF rats. The mRNA levels of retinaldehyde dehydrogenase family 1 gene (Raldh1 were found to be higher in the isolated and cultured primary hepatocytes from ZF rats than that from ZL rats. The RALDH1 protein level was elevated in the liver of ZF rats. Retinol and retinal dose- and time-dependently induced the expression of RA responsive Cyp26a1 gene in hepatocytes and hepatoma cells. INS-1 cells were identified as an ideal tool to study the effects of RA production on the regulation of gene expression because only RA, but not retinal, induced Srebp-1c mRNA expression in them. Recombinant adenovirus containing rat Raldh1 cDNA was made and used to infect INS-1 cells. The over-expression of RALDH1 introduced the retinal-mediated induction of Srebp-1c expression in INS-1 cells. We conclude that the expression levels of the enzymes for RA production may contribute to the regulation of RA responsive genes, and determine the responses of the cells to retinoid treatments. The elevated hepatic expression of Raldh1 in ZF rats may cause the excessive RA production from retinol, and in turn, result in higher Srebp-1c expression. This excessive RA production may be one of the factors contributing to the elevated lipogenesis in the liver of ZF rats.

  3. Misrecognition of facial expressions in delinquents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matsuura Naomi

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Previous reports have suggested impairment in facial expression recognition in delinquents, but controversy remains with respect to how such recognition is impaired. To address this issue, we investigated facial expression recognition in delinquents in detail. Methods We tested 24 male adolescent/young adult delinquents incarcerated in correctional facilities. We compared their performances with those of 24 age- and gender-matched control participants. Using standard photographs of facial expressions illustrating six basic emotions, participants matched each emotional facial expression with an appropriate verbal label. Results Delinquents were less accurate in the recognition of facial expressions that conveyed disgust than were control participants. The delinquents misrecognized the facial expressions of disgust as anger more frequently than did controls. Conclusion These results suggest that one of the underpinnings of delinquency might be impaired recognition of emotional facial expressions, with a specific bias toward interpreting disgusted expressions as hostile angry expressions.

  4. Sclerosis and the Nd:YAG, Q-switched laser with multiple frequency for treatment of telangiectases, reticular veins, and residual pigmentation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cisneros, J L; Del Rio, R; Palou, J

    1998-10-01

    The combination of low concentrations of sclerosing solution and the Nd:YAG, Q-switched laser with multiple (quadruple) frequency provides good results in the treatment of telangiectases and reticular varicose veins of the lower extremities, as well as pigmentation that may appear during sclerotherapy. This paper is based on a series of patients with telangiectases and reticular veins who were treated with sclerotherapy and the Nd:YAG, Q-switched laser with quadruple frequency. Patients with telangiectases and reticular veins received two or three treatment sessions with polydocanol and the Nd:YAG, Q-switched laser with quadruple frequency. Then, they were assessed a clinical score corresponding to the level of improvement achieved. Residual hematic pigmentation lesions were also eliminated with the laser. Excellent improvement was evident in 90% of the patients with minimal residual lesions. The combined technique of sclerosing solution and the Nd:YAG laser with multiple frequency is a valid alternative for the elimination of telangiectases and reticular veins of the lower limbs. This technique has several advantages, such as the use of low concentrations of sclerosing solution, high patient acceptance levels due to minimal disturbances, and the fact that local anesthesia is unnecessary. Good results are obtained without complications and minimal residual pigmentation. These mild pigmentation can be treated with the Nd:YAG laser.

  5. Simultaneous bilateral total knee and ankle arthroplasty as a single surgical procedure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pagenstert, Geert; Hintermann, Beat

    2011-10-13

    Simultaneous osteoarthritis (OA) of the ankle joint complicates primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA). In such cases, rehabilitation of TKA is limited by debilitating ankle pain, but varus or valgus ankle arthritis may even compromise placement of knee prosthetic components. We present a patient with simultaneous bilateral valgus and patellofemoral OA of the knees and bilateral varus OA of the ankle joints that equally contributed to overall disability. This 63 years old, motivated and otherwise healthy patient was treated by simultaneous bilateral total knee and ankle arthroplasty (quadruple total joint arthroplasty, TJA) during the same anesthesia. Two years outcome showed excellent alignment and function of all four replaced joints. Postoperative time for rehabilitation, back to work (6th week) and hospital stay (12 days) of this special patient was markedly reduced compared to the usual course of separate TJA. Simultaneous quadruple TJA in equally disabling OA of bilateral deformed knees and ankles resulted in a better functional outcome and faster recovery compared to the average reported results after TKA and TAA in literature. However, careful preoperative planning, extensive patient education, and two complete surgical teams were considered essential for successful performance. To the best of our knowledge this is the first case report in literature about quadruple major total joint arthroplasty implanted during the same anesthesia in the same patient.

  6. Simultaneous bilateral total knee and ankle arthroplasty as a single surgical procedure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hintermann Beat

    2011-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Simultaneous osteoarthritis (OA of the ankle joint complicates primary total knee arthroplasty (TKA. In such cases, rehabilitation of TKA is limited by debilitating ankle pain, but varus or valgus ankle arthritis may even compromise placement of knee prosthetic components. Case presentation We present a patient with simultaneous bilateral valgus and patellofemoral OA of the knees and bilateral varus OA of the ankle joints that equally contributed to overall disability. This 63 years old, motivated and otherwise healthy patient was treated by simultaneous bilateral total knee and ankle arthroplasty (quadruple total joint arthroplasty, TJA during the same anesthesia. Two years outcome showed excellent alignment and function of all four replaced joints. Postoperative time for rehabilitation, back to work (6th week and hospital stay (12 days of this special patient was markedly reduced compared to the usual course of separate TJA. Conclusions Simultaneous quadruple TJA in equally disabling OA of bilateral deformed knees and ankles resulted in a better functional outcome and faster recovery compared to the average reported results after TKA and TAA in literature. However, careful preoperative planning, extensive patient education, and two complete surgical teams were considered essential for successful performance. To the best of our knowledge this is the first case report in literature about quadruple major total joint arthroplasty implanted during the same anesthesia in the same patient.

  7. Rescue Therapy for Helicobacter pylori Infection 2012

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javier P. Gisbert

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Helicobacter pylori infection is the main cause of gastritis, gastroduodenal ulcer disease, and gastric cancer. After 30 years of experience in H. pylori treatment, however, the ideal regimen to treat this infection has still to be found. Nowadays, apart from having to know well first-line eradication regimens, we must also be prepared to face treatment failures. In designing a treatment strategy, we should not only focus on the results of primary therapy alone but also on the final—overall—eradication rate. The choice of a “rescue” treatment depends on which treatment is used initially. If a first-line clarithromycin-based regimen was used, a second-line metronidazole-based treatment (quadruple therapy may be used afterwards, and then a levofloxacin-based combination would be a third-line “rescue” option. Alternatively, it has recently been suggested that levofloxacin-based “rescue” therapy constitutes an encouraging 2nd-line strategy, representing an alternative to quadruple therapy in patients with previous PPI-clarithromycin-amoxicillin failure, with the advantage of efficacy, simplicity and safety. In this case, quadruple regimen may be reserved as a 3rd-line “rescue” option. Even after two consecutive failures, several studies have demonstrated that H. pylori eradication can finally be achieved in almost all patients if several “rescue” therapies are consecutively given.

  8. Park7 expression influences myotube size and myosin expression in muscle.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hui Yu

    Full Text Available Callipyge sheep exhibit postnatal muscle hypertrophy due to the up-regulation of DLK1 and/or RTL1. The up-regulation of PARK7 was identified in hypertrophied muscles by microarray analysis and further validated by quantitative PCR. The expression of PARK7 in hypertrophied muscle of callipyge lambs was confirmed to be up-regulated at the protein level. PARK7 was previously identified to positively regulate PI3K/AKT pathway by suppressing the phosphatase activity of PTEN in mouse fibroblasts. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of PARK7 in muscle growth and protein accretion in response to IGF1. Primary myoblasts isolated from Park7 (+/+ and Park7 (-/- mice were used to examine the effect of differential expression of Park7. The Park7 (+/+ myotubes had significantly larger diameters and more total sarcomeric myosin expression than Park7 (-/- myotubes. IGF1 treatment increased the mRNA abundance of Myh4, Myh7 and Myh8 between 20-40% in Park7 (+/+ myotubes relative to Park7 (-/-. The level of AKT phosphorylation was increased in Park7 (+/+ myotubes at all levels of IGF1 supplementation. After removal of IGF1, the Park7 (+/+ myotubes maintained higher AKT phosphorylation through 3 hours. PARK7 positively regulates the PI3K/AKT pathway by inhibition of PTEN phosphatase activity in skeletal muscle. The increased PARK7 expression can increase protein synthesis and result in myotube hypertrophy. These results support the hypothesis that elevated expression of PARK7 in callipyge muscle would increase levels of AKT activity to cause hypertrophy in response to the normal IGF1 signaling in rapidly growing lambs. Increasing expression of PARK7 could be a novel mechanism to increase protein accretion and muscle growth in livestock or help improve muscle mass with disease or aging.

  9. Serial Expression Analysis: a web tool for the analysis of serial gene expression data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nueda, Maria José; Carbonell, José; Medina, Ignacio; Dopazo, Joaquín; Conesa, Ana

    2010-01-01

    Serial transcriptomics experiments investigate the dynamics of gene expression changes associated with a quantitative variable such as time or dosage. The statistical analysis of these data implies the study of global and gene-specific expression trends, the identification of significant serial changes, the comparison of expression profiles and the assessment of transcriptional changes in terms of cellular processes. We have created the SEA (Serial Expression Analysis) suite to provide a complete web-based resource for the analysis of serial transcriptomics data. SEA offers five different algorithms based on univariate, multivariate and functional profiling strategies framed within a user-friendly interface and a project-oriented architecture to facilitate the analysis of serial gene expression data sets from different perspectives. SEA is available at sea.bioinfo.cipf.es. PMID:20525784

  10. The Relations of Mothers' Negative Expressivity to Children's Experience and Expression of Negative Emotion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valiente, Carlos; Eisenberg, Nancy; Shepard, Stephanie A.; Fabes, Richard A.; Cumberland, Amanda J.; Losoya, Sandra H.; Spinrad, Tracy L.

    2004-01-01

    Guided by the heuristic model proposed by Eisenberg et al. [Psychol. Inq. 9 (1998) 241], we examined the relations of mothers' reported and observed negative expressivity to children's (N = 159; 74 girls; M age = 7.67 years) experience and expression of emotion. Children's experience and/or expression of emotion in response to a distressing film…

  11. ERG protein expression over time

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Berg, Kasper Drimer; Brasso, Klaus; Thomsen, Frederik Birkebæk

    2015-01-01

    AIMS: We evaluated the consistency in ERG protein expression from diagnostic specimens through rebiopsies to radical prostatectomies in patients with clinically localised prostate cancer to investigate the validity of ERG status in biopsies. METHODS: ERG expression was assessed by immunohistochem......AIMS: We evaluated the consistency in ERG protein expression from diagnostic specimens through rebiopsies to radical prostatectomies in patients with clinically localised prostate cancer to investigate the validity of ERG status in biopsies. METHODS: ERG expression was assessed...

  12. Platelet cyclooxygenase expression in normal dogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomason, J; Lunsford, K; Mullins, K; Stokes, J; Pinchuk, L; Wills, R; McLaughlin, R; Langston, C; Pruett, S; Mackin, A

    2011-01-01

    Human platelets express both cyclooxygenase-1 (COX-1) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Variation in COX-2 expression could be a mechanism for variable response to aspirin. The hypotheses were that circulating canine platelets express COX-1 and COX-2, and that aspirin alters COX expression. The objective was to identify changes in platelet COX expression and in platelet function caused by aspirin administration to dogs. Eight female, intact hounds. A single population, repeated measures design was used to evaluate platelet COX-1 and COX-2 expression by flow cytometry before and after aspirin (10 mg/kg Q12h for 10 days). Platelet function was analyzed via PFA-100(®) (collagen/epinephrine), and urine 11-dehydro-thromboxane B(2) (11-dTXB(2)) was measured and normalized to urinary creatinine. Differences in COX expression, PFA-100(®) closure times, and urine 11-dTXB(2 ): creatinine ratio were analyzed before and after aspirin administration. Both COX-1 and COX-2 were expressed in canine platelets. COX-1 mean fluorescent intensity (MFI) increased in all dogs, by 250% (range 63-476%), while COX-2 expression did not change significantly (P = 0.124) after aspirin exposure, with large interindividual variation. PFA-100(®) closure times were prolonged and urine 11-dTXB(2) concentration decreased in all dogs after aspirin administration. Canine platelets express both COX isoforms. After aspirin exposure, COX-1 expression increased despite impairment of platelet function, while COX-2 expression varied markedly among dogs. Variability in platelet COX-2 expression should be explored as a potential mechanism for, or marker of, variable aspirin responsiveness. Copyright © 2011 by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

  13. Generational Differences of Emotional Expression

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    李学勇

    2014-01-01

    As a kind of subjective psychological activity, emotion can only be known and perceived by a certain expressive form. Varies as the different main bodies, difference of emotional expression can be reflected not only among individuals but between generations. The old conceals their emotions inside, the young express their emotions boldly, and the middle-aged are rational and deep in their expressions. Facing and understanding such differences is the premise and foundation of the con-struction of a harmonious relationship between different generations.

  14. Materiality for Musical Expressions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lindell, Rikard; Tahiroğlu, Koray; Riis, Morten S.

    2016-01-01

    Nordic universities. Electronic music instrument makers participated in providing the course. In eleven days the students designed and built interfaces for musical expressions , composed a piece, and performed at the Norberg electronic music festival. The students explored the relationship between......We organised an elven day intense course in materiality for musical expressions to explore underlying principles of New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME) in higher education. We grounded the course in different aspects of ma-teriality and gathered interdisciplinary student teams from three...... technology and possible musical expression with a strong connection to culture and place. The emphasis on performance provided closure and motivated teams to move forward in their design and artistic processes. On the basis of the course we discuss an interdisciplinary NIME course syllabus, and we infer...

  15. FTO is expressed in neurones throughout the brain and its expression is unaltered by fasting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McTaggart, James S; Lee, Sheena; Iberl, Michaela; Church, Chris; Cox, Roger D; Ashcroft, Frances M

    2011-01-01

    Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the first intron of the ubiquitously expressed FTO gene are associated with obesity. Although the physiological functions of FTO remain unclear, food intake is often altered when Fto expression levels are manipulated. Furthermore, deletion of FTO from neurones alone has a similar effect on food intake to deletion of FTO in all tissues. These results indicate that FTO expression in the brain is particularly important. Considerable focus has been placed on the dynamic regulation of Fto mRNA expression in the hypothalamus after short-term (16-48 hour) fasting, but results have been controversial. There are no studies that quantify FTO protein levels across the brain, and assess its alteration following short-term fasting. Using immunohistochemistry, we found that FTO protein is widely expressed in mouse brain, and present in the majority of neurones. Using quantitative Western blotting and RT-qPCR we show that FTO protein and mRNA levels in the hypothalamus, cerebellum and rostral brain are relatively uniform, and levels in the brain are higher than in skeletal muscles of the lower limbs. Fasting for 18 hours does not alter the expression pattern, or levels, of FTO protein and mRNA. We further show that the majority of POMC neurones, which are critically involved in food intake regulation, also express FTO, but that the percentage of FTO-positive POMC neurones is not altered by fasting. In summary, we find no evidence that Fto/FTO expression is regulated by short-term (18-hour) fasting. Thus, it is unlikely that the hunger and increased post-fasting food intake caused by such food deprivation is driven by alterations in Fto/FTO expression. The widespread expression of FTO in neurones also suggests that physiological studies of this protein should not be limited to the hypothalamus.

  16. FTO is expressed in neurones throughout the brain and its expression is unaltered by fasting.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James S McTaggart

    Full Text Available Single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the first intron of the ubiquitously expressed FTO gene are associated with obesity. Although the physiological functions of FTO remain unclear, food intake is often altered when Fto expression levels are manipulated. Furthermore, deletion of FTO from neurones alone has a similar effect on food intake to deletion of FTO in all tissues. These results indicate that FTO expression in the brain is particularly important. Considerable focus has been placed on the dynamic regulation of Fto mRNA expression in the hypothalamus after short-term (16-48 hour fasting, but results have been controversial. There are no studies that quantify FTO protein levels across the brain, and assess its alteration following short-term fasting. Using immunohistochemistry, we found that FTO protein is widely expressed in mouse brain, and present in the majority of neurones. Using quantitative Western blotting and RT-qPCR we show that FTO protein and mRNA levels in the hypothalamus, cerebellum and rostral brain are relatively uniform, and levels in the brain are higher than in skeletal muscles of the lower limbs. Fasting for 18 hours does not alter the expression pattern, or levels, of FTO protein and mRNA. We further show that the majority of POMC neurones, which are critically involved in food intake regulation, also express FTO, but that the percentage of FTO-positive POMC neurones is not altered by fasting. In summary, we find no evidence that Fto/FTO expression is regulated by short-term (18-hour fasting. Thus, it is unlikely that the hunger and increased post-fasting food intake caused by such food deprivation is driven by alterations in Fto/FTO expression. The widespread expression of FTO in neurones also suggests that physiological studies of this protein should not be limited to the hypothalamus.

  17. Effectively identifying regulatory hotspots while capturing expression heterogeneity in gene expression studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) mapping is a tool that can systematically identify genetic variation affecting gene expression. eQTL mapping studies have shown that certain genomic locations, referred to as regulatory hotspots, may affect the expression levels of many genes. Recently, studies have shown that various confounding factors may induce spurious regulatory hotspots. Here, we introduce a novel statistical method that effectively eliminates spurious hotspots while retaining genuine hotspots. Applied to simulated and real datasets, we validate that our method achieves greater sensitivity while retaining low false discovery rates compared to previous methods. PMID:24708878

  18. NCAM (CD56) expression in keratin-producing odontogenic cysts: aberrant expression in KCOT.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vera-Sirera, Beatriz; Forner-Navarro, Leopoldo; Vera-Sempere, Francisco

    2015-02-12

    To investigate immunohistochemically the expression of neural cell adhesion molecule (NCAM), which has been identified as a signaling receptor with frequent reactivity in ameloblastomas (AB), in a series of keratin-producing odontogenic cysts (KPOCs). Immunohistochemical expression of NCAM, using a monoclonal antibody, was determined in a series of 58 KPOCs comprising 12 orthokeratinized odontogenic cysts (OOCs) and 46 keratocystic odontogenic tumors (KCOTs), corresponding to 40 non-syndromic KCOT (NS-KCOTs) and 6 syndromic KCOT (S-KCOTs), associated with nevic basocellular syndrome (NBCS). NCAM expression was negative in all OOCs, but 36.45% of KCOTs exhibited focal and heterogeneous expression at the basal cell level, as well as in basal budding areas and the basal cells of daughter cysts. The latter two locations were especially applicable to S-KCOTs, with focal NCAM reactivity occurring in 66.66% of cases. Aberrant NCAM expression, in KCOTs but especially in S-KCOTs, together with its immunomorphological location, suggests that this adhesion molecule and signaling receptor plays a role in the pathogenesis of KCOTs, with a probable impact on lesional recurrence.

  19. Expressiveness in musical performance: Pedagogic aspect

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jović Natalija R.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The subject of our research relates to pedagogic aspects of expressive vocal-instrumental musical performance. We intended to examine: (1 how undergraduate students see/conceptualize and evaluate expressiveness in musical performance; (2 whether and how they were trained in the skill of expressive musical performance during their musical training; (3 whether and in which way they rehearse the expressive component of musical performance and interpretation and (4 whether there are any differences regarding gender, age, instrument, department, year of study and years of instrument playing in relation to the group of dependant variables related to expressiveness, tuition and practice. The sample for the research included 82 students of instrumental and theory departments at the Faculty of Music in Belgrade. Psychological and pedagogical aspects of musical expressiveness during vocal-instrumental performance were analyzed. The results show that students highly evaluate expressiveness but its place is secondary compared to mastering technical and tonal requirements. Statistically significant differences were shown regarding gender, age and departments. It can be concluded that there is a potential for the development and enhancement of expressiveness of students if we abandon the traditional view that expressiveness is linked exclusively to talent. The findings indicate that pedagogical work should be directed towards finding purposeful strategies for training individual expressiveness.

  20. Expression of MIF and CD74 in leukemic cell lines: correlation to DR expression destiny.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georgouli, Mirella; Papadimitriou, Lina; Glymenaki, Maria; Patsaki, Valia; Athanassakis, Irene

    2016-06-01

    Invariant chain (Ii) or CD74 is a non-polymorphic glycoprotein, which apart from its role as a chaperone dedicated to MHCII molecules, is known to be a high-affinity receptor for macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF). The present study aimed to define the roles of CD74 and MIF in the immune surveillance escape process. Towards this direction, the cell lines HL-60, Raji, K562 and primary pre-B leukemic cells were examined for expression and secretion of MIF. Flow cytometry analysis detected high levels of MIF and intracellular/membrane CD74 expression in all leukemic cells tested, while MIF secretion was shown to be inversely proportional to intracellular HLA-DR (DR) expression. In the MHCII-negative cells, IFN-γ increased MIF expression and induced its secretion in HL-60 and K562 cells, respectively. In K562 cells, CD74 (Iip33Iip35) was shown to co-precipitate with HLA-DOβ (DOβ), inhibiting thus MIF or DR binding. Induced expression of DOα in K562 (DOα-DOβ+) cells in different transfection combinations decreased MIF expression and secretion, while increasing surface DR expression. Thus, MIF could indeed be part of the antigen presentation process.

  1. Fourth-order perturbative extension of the single-double excitation coupled-cluster method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Derevianko, Andrei; Emmons, Erik D.

    2002-01-01

    Fourth-order many-body corrections to matrix elements for atoms with one valence electron are derived. The obtained diagrams are classified using coupled-cluster-inspired separation into contributions from n-particle excitations from the lowest-order wave function. The complete set of fourth-order diagrams involves only connected single, double, and triple excitations and disconnected quadruple excitations. Approximately half of the fourth-order diagrams are not accounted for by the popular coupled-cluster method truncated at single and double excitations (CCSD). Explicit formulas are tabulated for the entire set of fourth-order diagrams missed by the CCSD method and its linearized version, i.e., contributions from connected triple and disconnected quadruple excitations. A partial summation scheme of the derived fourth-order contributions to all orders of perturbation theory is proposed

  2. Exercise-induced liver chemokine CXCL-1 expression is linked to muscle-derived interleukin-6 expression

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Line; Pilegaard, Henriette; Hansen, Jakob

    2011-01-01

    interleukin-6 (IL-6) and muscle IL-6 mRNA. In contrast, exercise-induced regulation of liver CXCL-1 mRNA expression was completely blunted in IL-6 knockout mice. Based on these findings, we examined the possible existence of a muscle-to-liver axis by overexpressing IL-6 in muscles. This resulted in increases...... in serum CXCL-1 (5-fold) and liver CXCL-1 mRNA expression (24-fold) compared with control. Because IL-6 expression and release are known to be augmented during exercise in glycogen-depleted animals, CXCL-1 and IL-6 expression were examined after exercise in overnight-fasted mice.We found that fasting...... significantly augmented serum CXCL-1, and CXCL-1 expression in liver and muscle. Taken together, these data indicate that liver is the main source of serum CXCL-1 during exercise in mice, and that the CXCL-1 expression in the liver is regulated by muscle-derived IL-6....

  3. Oracle Application Express 4 Recipes

    CERN Document Server

    Zehoo, Edmund

    2011-01-01

    Oracle Application Express 4 Recipes provides an example-based approach to learning Application Express - the ground-breaking, rapid application development platform included with every Oracle Database license. The recipes format is ideal for the quick-study who just wants a good example or two to kick start their thinking and get pointed in the right direction. The recipes cover the gamut of Application Express development. Author and Application Express expert Edmund Zehoo shows how to create data entry screens, visualize data in the form of reports and charts, implement validation and back-

  4. Expression, Delivery and Function of Insecticidal Proteins Expressed by Recombinant Baculoviruses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kroemer, Jeremy A.; Bonning, Bryony C.; Harrison, Robert L.

    2015-01-01

    Since the development of methods for inserting and expressing genes in baculoviruses, a line of research has focused on developing recombinant baculoviruses that express insecticidal peptides and proteins. These recombinant viruses have been engineered with the goal of improving their pesticidal potential by shortening the time required for infection to kill or incapacitate insect pests and reducing the quantity of crop damage as a consequence. A wide variety of neurotoxic peptides, proteins that regulate insect physiology, degradative enzymes, and other potentially insecticidal proteins have been evaluated for their capacity to reduce the survival time of baculovirus-infected lepidopteran host larvae. Researchers have investigated the factors involved in the efficient expression and delivery of baculovirus-encoded insecticidal peptides and proteins, with much effort dedicated to identifying ideal promoters for driving transcription and signal peptides that mediate secretion of the expressed target protein. Other factors, particularly translational efficiency of transcripts derived from recombinant insecticidal genes and post-translational folding and processing of insecticidal proteins, remain relatively unexplored. The discovery of RNA interference as a gene-specific regulation mechanism offers a new approach for improvement of baculovirus biopesticidal efficacy through genetic modification. PMID:25609310

  5. Metabolomic and Transcriptomic Comparison of Solid-State and Submerged Fermentation of Penicillium expansum KACC 40815.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyang Yeon; Heo, Do Yeon; Park, Hye Min; Singh, Digar; Lee, Choong Hwan

    2016-01-01

    Penicillium spp. are known to harbor a wide array of secondary metabolites with cryptic bioactivities. However, the metabolomics of these species is not well-understood in terms of different fermentation models and conditions. The present study involved metabolomics profiling and transcriptomic analysis of Penicillium expansum 40815 under solid-state fermentation (SSF) and submerged fermentation (SmF). Metabolite profiling was carried out using ultra-performance liquid chromatography quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry with multivariate analysis, followed by transcriptomic analyses of differentially expressed genes. In principal component analysis, the metabolite profiling data was studied under different experimental sets, including SSF and SmF. The significantly different metabolites such as polyketide metabolites (agonodepside B, rotiorin, verrucosidin, and ochrephilone) and corresponding gene transcripts (polyketide synthase, aromatic prenyltransferase, and terpenoid synthase) were primarily detected under SmF conditions. In contrast, the meroterpenoid compounds (andrastin A and C) and their genes transcripts were exclusively detected under SSF conditions. We demonstrated that the metabolite production and its corresponding gene expression levels in P. expansum 40815 were significantly influenced by the varying growth parameters and the immediate environment. This study further provides a foundation to produce specific metabolites by regulating fermentation conditions.

  6. Homeobox gene expression in Brachiopoda

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Altenburger, Andreas; Martinez, Pedro; Wanninger, Andreas

    2011-01-01

    (ectoderm) specification with co-opted functions in notochord formation in chordates and left/right determination in ambulacrarians and vertebrates. The caudal ortholog, TtrCdx, is first expressed in the ectoderm of the gastrulating embryo in the posterior region of the blastopore. Its expression stays......The molecular control that underlies brachiopod ontogeny is largely unknown. In order to contribute to this issue we analyzed the expression pattern of two homeobox containing genes, Not and Cdx, during development of the rhynchonelliform (i.e., articulate) brachiopod Terebratalia transversa...... completion of larval development, which is marked by a three-lobed body with larval setae. Expression starts at gastrulation in two areas lateral to the blastopore and subsequently extends over the animal pole of the gastrula. With elongation of the gastrula, expression at the animal pole narrows to a small...

  7. A polynomial time biclustering algorithm for finding approximate expression patterns in gene expression time series

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Madeira Sara C

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The ability to monitor the change in expression patterns over time, and to observe the emergence of coherent temporal responses using gene expression time series, obtained from microarray experiments, is critical to advance our understanding of complex biological processes. In this context, biclustering algorithms have been recognized as an important tool for the discovery of local expression patterns, which are crucial to unravel potential regulatory mechanisms. Although most formulations of the biclustering problem are NP-hard, when working with time series expression data the interesting biclusters can be restricted to those with contiguous columns. This restriction leads to a tractable problem and enables the design of efficient biclustering algorithms able to identify all maximal contiguous column coherent biclusters. Methods In this work, we propose e-CCC-Biclustering, a biclustering algorithm that finds and reports all maximal contiguous column coherent biclusters with approximate expression patterns in time polynomial in the size of the time series gene expression matrix. This polynomial time complexity is achieved by manipulating a discretized version of the original matrix using efficient string processing techniques. We also propose extensions to deal with missing values, discover anticorrelated and scaled expression patterns, and different ways to compute the errors allowed in the expression patterns. We propose a scoring criterion combining the statistical significance of expression patterns with a similarity measure between overlapping biclusters. Results We present results in real data showing the effectiveness of e-CCC-Biclustering and its relevance in the discovery of regulatory modules describing the transcriptomic expression patterns occurring in Saccharomyces cerevisiae in response to heat stress. In particular, the results show the advantage of considering approximate patterns when compared to state of

  8. Potent Sensitisation of Cancer Cells to Anticancer Drugs by a Quadruple Mutant of the Human Deoxycytidine Kinase.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Safiatou T Coulibaly

    Full Text Available Identifying enzymes that, once introduced in cancer cells, lead to an increased efficiency of treatment constitutes an important goal for biomedical applications. Using an original procedure whereby mutant genes are generated based on the use of conditional lentivector genome mobilisation, we recently described, for the first time, the identification of a human deoxycytidine kinase (dCK mutant (G12 that sensitises a panel of cancer cell lines to treatment with the dCK analogue gemcitabine. Here, starting from the G12 variant itself, we generated a new library and identified a mutant (M36 that triggers even greater sensitisation to gemcitabine than G12. With respect to G12, M36 presents an additional mutation located in the region that constitutes the interface of the dCK dimer. The simple presence of this mutation halves both the IC50 and the proportion of residual cells resistant to the treatment. Furthermore, the use of vectors with self-inactivating LTRs leads to an increased sensitivity to treatment, a result compatible with a relief of the transcriptional interference exerted by the U3 promoter on the internal promoter that drives the expression of M36. Importantly, a remarkable effect is also observed in treatments with the anticancer compound cytarabine (AraC, for which a 10,000 fold decrease in IC50 occurred. By triggering the sensitisation of various cancer cell types with poor prognosis to two commonly used anticancer compounds M36 is a promising candidate for suicide gene approaches.

  9. Analysis of Facial Expression by Taste Stimulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tobitani, Kensuke; Kato, Kunihito; Yamamoto, Kazuhiko

    In this study, we focused on the basic taste stimulation for the analysis of real facial expressions. We considered that the expressions caused by taste stimulation were unaffected by individuality or emotion, that is, such expressions were involuntary. We analyzed the movement of facial muscles by taste stimulation and compared real expressions with artificial expressions. From the result, we identified an obvious difference between real and artificial expressions. Thus, our method would be a new approach for facial expression recognition.

  10. KIC 7177553: A QUADRUPLE SYSTEM OF TWO CLOSE BINARIES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lehmann, H. [Thüringer Landessternwarte Tautenburg, Sternwarte 5, D-07778 Tautenburg (Germany); Borkovits, T. [Baja Astronomical Observatory of Szeged University, H-6500 Baja, Szegedi út, Kt. 766 (Hungary); Rappaport, S. A. [Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Physics, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 (United States); Ngo, H. [California Institute of Technology, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, 1200 E. California Boulevard, MC 150-21, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Mawet, D. [California Institute of Technology, Astronomy Dept. MC 249-17, 1200 E. California Boulevard, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Csizmadia, Sz. [German Aerospace Center (DLR), Institut für Planeten-forschung, Rutherfordstraße 2, D-12489 Berlin (Germany); Forgács-Dajka, E., E-mail: lehm@tls-tautenburg.de, E-mail: borko@electra.bajaobs.hu, E-mail: sar@mit.edu, E-mail: hngo@caltech.edu, E-mail: dmawet@astro.caltech.edu, E-mail: szilard.csizmadia@dlr.de, E-mail: e.forgacs-dajka@astro.elte.hu [Astronomical Department, Eötvös University, H-1118 Budapest, Pázmány Péter stny. 1/A (Hungary)

    2016-03-01

    KIC 7177553 was observed by the Kepler satellite to be an eclipsing eccentric binary star system with an 18-day orbital period. Recently, an eclipse timing study of the Kepler binaries has revealed eclipse timing variations (ETVs) in this object with an amplitude of ∼100 s and an outer period of 529 days. The implied mass of the third body is that of a super-Jupiter, but below the mass of a brown dwarf. We therefore embarked on a radial velocity (RV) study of this binary to determine its system configuration and to check the hypothesis that it hosts a giant planet. From the RV measurements, it became immediately obvious that the same Kepler target contains another eccentric binary, this one with a 16.5-day orbital period. Direct imaging using adaptive optics reveals that the two binaries are separated by 0.″4 (∼167 AU) and have nearly the same magnitude (to within 2%). The close angular proximity of the two binaries and very similar γ velocities strongly suggest that KIC 7177553 is one of the rare SB4 systems consisting of two eccentric binaries where at least one system is eclipsing. Both systems consist of slowly rotating, nonevolved, solar-like stars of comparable masses. From the orbital separation and the small difference in γ velocity, we infer that the period of the outer orbit most likely lies in the range of 1000–3000 yr. New images taken over the next few years, as well as the high-precision astrometry of the Gaia satellite mission, will allow us to set much narrower constraints on the system geometry. Finally, we note that the observed ETVs in the Kepler data cannot be produced by the second binary. Further spectroscopic observations on a longer timescale will be required to prove the existence of the massive planet.

  11. Osteopontin expression in salivary gland carcinomas

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bjørndal, Kristine; Larsen, Stine R; Godballe, Christian

    2011-01-01

    J Oral Pathol Med (2010) Background:  In several cancer types, osteopontin (OPN) expression has been correlated with tumor progression and prognosis. Two earlier studies have examined OPN expression in salivary gland carcinomas with contradictory results. Methods:  One hundred and seventy......:  Osteopontin was expressed in all salivary gland carcinomas. Adenoid cystic carcinomas had the highest mean sum score (7.3) and a significantly higher proportion of carcinomas with high OPN sum score than both mucoepidermoid carcinoma and acinic cell carcinoma. Correlation of OPN expression with known...... prognostic factors in salivary gland carcinomas was insignificant. Conclusions:  Salivary gland carcinomas express OPN. The expression does not correlate with known prognostic factors....

  12. Regular expression containment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Henglein, Fritz; Nielsen, Lasse

    2011-01-01

    We present a new sound and complete axiomatization of regular expression containment. It consists of the conventional axiomatiza- tion of concatenation, alternation, empty set and (the singleton set containing) the empty string as an idempotent semiring, the fixed- point rule E* = 1 + E × E......* for Kleene-star, and a general coin- duction rule as the only additional rule. Our axiomatization gives rise to a natural computational inter- pretation of regular expressions as simple types that represent parse trees, and of containment proofs as coercions. This gives the axiom- atization a Curry......-Howard-style constructive interpretation: Con- tainment proofs do not only certify a language-theoretic contain- ment, but, under our computational interpretation, constructively transform a membership proof of a string in one regular expres- sion into a membership proof of the same string in another regular expression. We...

  13. Polycistronic gene expression in Aspergillus niger.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuetze, Tabea; Meyer, Vera

    2017-09-25

    Genome mining approaches predict dozens of biosynthetic gene clusters in each of the filamentous fungal genomes sequenced so far. However, the majority of these gene clusters still remain cryptic because they are not expressed in their natural host. Simultaneous expression of all genes belonging to a biosynthetic pathway in a heterologous host is one approach to activate biosynthetic gene clusters and to screen the metabolites produced for bioactivities. Polycistronic expression of all pathway genes under control of a single and tunable promoter would be the method of choice, as this does not only simplify cloning procedures, but also offers control on timing and strength of expression. However, polycistronic gene expression is a feature not commonly found in eukaryotic host systems, such as Aspergillus niger. In this study, we tested the suitability of the viral P2A peptide for co-expression of three genes in A. niger. Two genes descend from Fusarium oxysporum and are essential to produce the secondary metabolite enniatin (esyn1, ekivR). The third gene (luc) encodes the reporter luciferase which was included to study position effects. Expression of the polycistronic gene cassette was put under control of the Tet-On system to ensure tunable gene expression in A. niger. In total, three polycistronic expression cassettes which differed in the position of luc were constructed and targeted to the pyrG locus in A. niger. This allowed direct comparison of the luciferase activity based on the position of the luciferase gene. Doxycycline-mediated induction of the Tet-On expression cassettes resulted in the production of one long polycistronic mRNA as proven by Northern analyses, and ensured comparable production of enniatin in all three strains. Notably, gene position within the polycistronic expression cassette matters, as, luciferase activity was lowest at position one and had a comparable activity at positions two and three. The P2A peptide can be used to express at

  14. dictyExpress: a Dictyostelium discoideum gene expression database with an explorative data analysis web-based interface

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rot, Gregor; Parikh, Anup; Curk, Tomaz; Kuspa, Adam; Shaulsky, Gad; Zupan, Blaz

    2009-01-01

    Background Bioinformatics often leverages on recent advancements in computer science to support biologists in their scientific discovery process. Such efforts include the development of easy-to-use web interfaces to biomedical databases. Recent advancements in interactive web technologies require us to rethink the standard submit-and-wait paradigm, and craft bioinformatics web applications that share analytical and interactive power with their desktop relatives, while retaining simplicity and availability. Results We have developed dictyExpress, a web application that features a graphical, highly interactive explorative interface to our database that consists of more than 1000 Dictyostelium discoideum gene expression experiments. In dictyExpress, the user can select experiments and genes, perform gene clustering, view gene expression profiles across time, view gene co-expression networks, perform analyses of Gene Ontology term enrichment, and simultaneously display expression profiles for a selected gene in various experiments. Most importantly, these tasks are achieved through web applications whose components are seamlessly interlinked and immediately respond to events triggered by the user, thus providing a powerful explorative data analysis environment. Conclusion dictyExpress is a precursor for a new generation of web-based bioinformatics applications with simple but powerful interactive interfaces that resemble that of the modern desktop. While dictyExpress serves mainly the Dictyostelium research community, it is relatively easy to adapt it to other datasets. We propose that the design ideas behind dictyExpress will influence the development of similar applications for other model organisms. PMID:19706156

  15. Differential Gene Expression and Aging

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Laurent Seroude

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available It has been established that an intricate program of gene expression controls progression through the different stages in development. The equally complex biological phenomenon known as aging is genetically determined and environmentally modulated. This review focuses on the genetic component of aging, with a special emphasis on differential gene expression. At least two genetic pathways regulating organism longevity act by modifying gene expression. Many genes are also subjected to age-dependent transcriptional regulation. Some age-related gene expression changes are prevented by caloric restriction, the most robust intervention that slows down the aging process. Manipulating the expression of some age-regulated genes can extend an organism's life span. Remarkably, the activity of many transcription regulatory elements is linked to physiological age as opposed to chronological age, indicating that orderly and tightly controlled regulatory pathways are active during aging.

  16. Differential expression of granulopoiesis related genes in neutrophil subsets distinguished by membrane expression of CD177

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hu, Nan; Mora-Jensen, Helena; Theilgaard-Mønch, Kim

    2014-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: Differential gene expression in CD177+ and CD177- neutrophils was investigated, in order to detect possible differences in neutrophil function which could be related to the pathogenesis of ANCA-associated Vasculitides (AAV). METHODS: Neutrophils were isolated from healthy controls (HC......) with high, negative or bimodal CD177 expression, and sorted into CD177+ and CD177- subpopulations. Total RNA was screened for expression of 24,000 probes with Illumina Ref-8 Beadchips. Genes showing differential expression between CD177+ and CD177- subsets in microarray analysis were re-assessed using...... quantitative-PCR. CD177 expression on neutrophil precursors in bone marrow was analyzed using quantitative PCR and flowcytometry. RESULTS: The proportion of CD177+ cells increased during neutrophil maturation in bone marrow. Fold change analysis of gene expression profile of sorted CD177+ and CD177...

  17. Fulltext PDF

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    pioneer in Nuclear Metallurgy and made ductile plutonium-gallium alloys long ... Belgian physicist Joseph Plateau that soap films meet along triple lines and quadruple points was solved in a brilliant fashion by the mathematician Jean Taylor.

  18. Solid-phase based synthesis of ureidopyrimidinone-peptide conjugates for supramolecular biomaterials

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Feijter, de I.; Goor, O.J.G.M.; Hendrikse, S.I.S.; Comellas Aragones, M.; Sontjens, S.H.M.; Zaccaria, S.; Fransen, P.P.K.H.; Peeters, J.W.; Milroy, L.G.; Dankers, P.Y.W.

    2015-01-01

    Supramolecular polymers have shown to be powerful scaffolds for tissue engineering applications. Supramolecular biomaterials functionalized with ureidopyrimidinone (UPy) moieties, which dimerize via quadruple hydrogen-bond formation, are eminently suitable for this purpose. The conjugation of the

  19. Recognising and Interpreting Named Temporal Expressions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brucato, Matteo; Derczynski, Leon; Llorens, Hectjor

    2013-01-01

    This paper introduces a new class of temporal expression – named temporal expressions – and methods for recognising and interpreting its members. The commonest temporal expressions typically contain date and time words, like April or hours. Research into recognising and interpreting these typical...... expressions is mature in many languages. However, there is a class of expressions that are less typical, very varied, and difficult to automatically interpret. These indicate dates and times, but are harder to detect because they often do not contain time words and are not used frequently enough to appear...

  20. Expressing Model Constraints Visually with VMQL

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Störrle, Harald

    2011-01-01

    ) for specifying constraints on UML models. We examine VMQL's usability by controlled experiments and its expressiveness by a representative sample. We conclude that VMQL is less expressive than OCL, although expressive enough for most of the constraints in the sample. In terms of usability, however, VMQL......OCL is the de facto standard language for expressing constraints and queries on UML models. However, OCL expressions are very difficult to create, understand, and maintain, even with the sophisticated tool support now available. In this paper, we propose to use the Visual Model Query Language (VMQL...

  1. HCV Core Residues Critical for Infectivity Are Also Involved in Core-NS5A Complex Formation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gawlik, Katarzyna; Baugh, James; Chatterji, Udayan; Lim, Precious J.; Bobardt, Michael D.; Gallay, Philippe A.

    2014-01-01

    Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of liver disease. The molecular machinery of HCV assembly and particle release remains obscure. A better understanding of the assembly events might reveal new potential antiviral strategies. It was suggested that the nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A), an attractive recent drug target, participates in the production of infectious particles as a result of its interaction with the HCV core protein. However, prior to the present study, the NS5A-binding site in the viral core remained unknown. We found that the D1 domain of core contains the NS5A-binding site with the strongest interacting capacity in the basic P38-K74 cluster. We also demonstrated that the N-terminal basic residues of core at positions 50, 51, 59 and 62 were required for NS5A binding. Analysis of all substitution combinations of R50A, K51A, R59A, and R62A, in the context of the HCVcc system, showed that single, double, triple, and quadruple mutants were fully competent for viral RNA replication, but deficient in secretion of viral particles. Furthermore, we found that the extracellular and intracellular infectivity of all the mutants was abolished, suggesting a defect in the formation of infectious particles. Importantly, we showed that the interaction between the single and quadruple core mutants and NS5A was impaired in cells expressing full-length HCV genome. Interestingly, mutations of the four basic residues of core did not alter the association of core or NS5A with lipid droplets. This study showed for the first time that basic residues in the D1 domain of core that are critical for the formation of infectious extracellular and intracellular particles also play a role in core-NS5A interactions. PMID:24533158

  2. Neuropilin-2 expression in breast cancer: correlation with lymph node metastasis, poor prognosis, and regulation of CXCR4 expression

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yasuoka, Hironao; Kodama, Rieko; Tsujimoto, Masahiko; Yoshidome, Katsuhide; Akamatsu, Hiroki; Nakahara, Masaaki; Inagaki, Michiya; Sanke, Tokio; Nakamura, Yasushi

    2009-01-01

    Neuropilin-2 (Nrp2) is a receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C), which is a well-known lymphangiogenic factor and plays an important role in lymph node metastasis of various human cancers, including breast cancer. Recently, Nrp2 was shown to play a role in cancer by promoting tumor cell metastasis. CXC chemokine receptor 4 (CXCR4) also promotes tumor metastasis. In the previous studies, we demonstrated that VEGF-C and cytoplasmic CXCR4 expressions were correlated with poorer patient prognosis (BMC Cancer 2008,8:340; Breast Cancer Res Treat 2005, 91:125–132). The relationship between Nrp2 expression and lymph node metastasis, VEGF-C expression, CXCR4 expression, and other established clinicopathological variables (these data were cited in our previous papers), including prognosis, was analyzed in human breast cancer. Effects of neutralizing anti-Nrp2 antibody on CXCR4 expression and chemotaxis were assessed in MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells. Nrp2 expression was observed in 53.1% (60 of 113) of the invasive breast carcinomas. Nrp2 expression was significantly correlated with lymph node metastasis, VEGF-C expression, and cytoplasmic CXCR4 expression. Survival curves determined by the Kaplan-Meier method showed that Nrp2 expression was associated with reduced overall survival. In multivariate analysis, Nrp2 expression emerged as a significant independent predictor for overall survival. Neutralizing anti-Nrp2 antibody blocks cytoplasmic CXCR4 expression and CXCR4-induced migration in MDA-MB-231 cells. Nrp2 expression was correlated with lymph node metastasis, VEGF-C expression, and cytoplasmic CXCR4 expression. Nrp2 expression may serve as a significant prognostic factor for long-term survival in breast cancer. Our data also showed a role for Nrp2 in regulating cytoplasmic CXCR4 expression in vitro

  3. Recognizing Facial Expressions Automatically from Video

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shan, Caifeng; Braspenning, Ralph

    Facial expressions, resulting from movements of the facial muscles, are the face changes in response to a person's internal emotional states, intentions, or social communications. There is a considerable history associated with the study on facial expressions. Darwin [22] was the first to describe in details the specific facial expressions associated with emotions in animals and humans, who argued that all mammals show emotions reliably in their faces. Since that, facial expression analysis has been a area of great research interest for behavioral scientists [27]. Psychological studies [48, 3] suggest that facial expressions, as the main mode for nonverbal communication, play a vital role in human face-to-face communication. For illustration, we show some examples of facial expressions in Fig. 1.

  4. Scaling of gene expression data allowing the comparison of different gene expression platforms

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Ruissen, Fred; Schaaf, Gerben J.; Kool, Marcel; Baas, Frank; Ruijter, Jan M.

    2008-01-01

    Serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) and microarrays have found a widespread application, but much ambiguity exists regarding the amalgamation of the data resulting from these technologies. Cross-platform utilization of gene expression data from the SAGE and microarray technology could reduce

  5. miR-24 and miR-205 expression is dependent on HPV onco-protein expression in keratinocytes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McKenna, Declan J., E-mail: dj.mckenna@ulster.ac.uk [Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, University of Ulster, Coleraine, Co. Derry BT52 1SA (United Kingdom); Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Science, Queen' s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL (United Kingdom); Patel, Daksha, E-mail: d.patel@qub.ac.uk [Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Science, Queen' s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL (United Kingdom); McCance, Dennis J., E-mail: d.mccance@qub.ac.uk [Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Dentistry and Biomedical Science, Queen' s University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL (United Kingdom)

    2014-01-05

    A screen of microRNA (miRNA) expression following differentiation in human foreskin keratinocytes (HFKs) identified changes in several miRNAs, including miR-24 and miR-205. We investigated how expression of Human Papilloma Virus Type-16 (HPV16) onco-proteins E6 and E7 affected expression of miR-24 and miR-205 during proliferation and differentiation of HFKs. We show that the induction of both miR-24 and miR-205 observed during differentiation of HFKs is lost in HFKs expressing E6 and E7. We demonstrate that the effect on miR-205 is due to E7 activity, as miR-205 expression is dependent on pRb expression. Finally, we provide evidence that miR-24 effects in the cell may be due to targeting of cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor p27. In summary, these results indicate that expression of both miR-24 and miR-205 are impacted by E6 and/or E7 expression, which may be one mechanism by which HPV onco-proteins can disrupt the balance between proliferation and differentiation in keratinocytes. - Highlights: • miR-24 and miR-205 are induced during keratinocyte differentiation. • This induction is lost in keratinocytes expressing HPV onco-proteins E6 and E7. • miR-205 is dependent upon pRb expression. • miR-24 targets p27 in cycling keratinocytes.

  6. miR-24 and miR-205 expression is dependent on HPV onco-protein expression in keratinocytes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McKenna, Declan J.; Patel, Daksha; McCance, Dennis J.

    2014-01-01

    A screen of microRNA (miRNA) expression following differentiation in human foreskin keratinocytes (HFKs) identified changes in several miRNAs, including miR-24 and miR-205. We investigated how expression of Human Papilloma Virus Type-16 (HPV16) onco-proteins E6 and E7 affected expression of miR-24 and miR-205 during proliferation and differentiation of HFKs. We show that the induction of both miR-24 and miR-205 observed during differentiation of HFKs is lost in HFKs expressing E6 and E7. We demonstrate that the effect on miR-205 is due to E7 activity, as miR-205 expression is dependent on pRb expression. Finally, we provide evidence that miR-24 effects in the cell may be due to targeting of cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor p27. In summary, these results indicate that expression of both miR-24 and miR-205 are impacted by E6 and/or E7 expression, which may be one mechanism by which HPV onco-proteins can disrupt the balance between proliferation and differentiation in keratinocytes. - Highlights: • miR-24 and miR-205 are induced during keratinocyte differentiation. • This induction is lost in keratinocytes expressing HPV onco-proteins E6 and E7. • miR-205 is dependent upon pRb expression. • miR-24 targets p27 in cycling keratinocytes

  7. Craniopharyngioma: Survivin expression and ultrastructure

    Science.gov (United States)

    ZHU, JIANG; YOU, CHAO

    2015-01-01

    The aim of the present study was to investigate the significance of survivin protein expression levels in craniopharyngioma. Tumor samples and clinical data were obtained from 50 patients with craniopharyngioma who were admitted to the West China Hospital of Sichuan University (Chengdu, China). The morphology of the craniopharyngioma samples was observed using optical and electron microscopes, and survivin expression was investigated in the samples by immunohistochemical analysis. The immunohistochemical results revealed survivin expression in all of the craniopharyngioma samples, but not in the healthy brain tissue samples. It was identified that survivin was expressed at a higher level in cases of the adamantinomatous type compared with those of the squamous-papillary type, in male patients compared with female patients, in children compared with adults and in recurrent cases compared with non-recurrent cases. Furthermore, no significant difference was detected in survivin expression levels among the tumors of different subtypes and different disease stages. The results of the present study indicate that survivin is significant in the development of craniopharyngioma, and that survivin protein expression levels are a meaningful indicator for assessing craniopharyngioma recurrence. PMID:25435936

  8. A Robot with Complex Facial Expressions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Takeno

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available The authors believe that the consciousness of humans basically originates from languages and their association-like flow of consciousness, and that feelings are generated accompanying respective languages. We incorporated artificial consciousness into a robot; achieved an association flow of language like flow of consciousness; and developed a robot called Kansei that expresses its feelings according to the associations occurring in the robot. To be able to fully communicate with humans, robots must be able to display complex expressions, such as a sense of being thrilled. We therefore added to the Kansei robot a device to express complex feelings through its facial expressions. The Kansei robot is actually an artificial skull made of aluminum, with servomotors built into it. The face is made of relatively soft polyethylene, which is formed to appear like a human face. Facial expressions are generated using 19 servomotors built into the skull, which pull metal wires attached to the facial “skin” to create expressions. The robot at present is capable of making six basic expressions as well as complex expressions, such as happiness and fear combined.

  9. Sad Facial Expressions Increase Choice Blindness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yajie Wang

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Previous studies have discovered a fascinating phenomenon known as choice blindness—individuals fail to detect mismatches between the face they choose and the face replaced by the experimenter. Although previous studies have reported a couple of factors that can modulate the magnitude of choice blindness, the potential effect of facial expression on choice blindness has not yet been explored. Using faces with sad and neutral expressions (Experiment 1 and faces with happy and neutral expressions (Experiment 2 in the classic choice blindness paradigm, the present study investigated the effects of facial expressions on choice blindness. The results showed that the detection rate was significantly lower on sad faces than neutral faces, whereas no significant difference was observed between happy faces and neutral faces. The exploratory analysis of verbal reports found that participants who reported less facial features for sad (as compared to neutral expressions also tended to show a lower detection rate of sad (as compared to neutral faces. These findings indicated that sad facial expressions increased choice blindness, which might have resulted from inhibition of further processing of the detailed facial features by the less attractive sad expressions (as compared to neutral expressions.

  10. Sad Facial Expressions Increase Choice Blindness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yajie; Zhao, Song; Zhang, Zhijie; Feng, Wenfeng

    2017-01-01

    Previous studies have discovered a fascinating phenomenon known as choice blindness-individuals fail to detect mismatches between the face they choose and the face replaced by the experimenter. Although previous studies have reported a couple of factors that can modulate the magnitude of choice blindness, the potential effect of facial expression on choice blindness has not yet been explored. Using faces with sad and neutral expressions (Experiment 1) and faces with happy and neutral expressions (Experiment 2) in the classic choice blindness paradigm, the present study investigated the effects of facial expressions on choice blindness. The results showed that the detection rate was significantly lower on sad faces than neutral faces, whereas no significant difference was observed between happy faces and neutral faces. The exploratory analysis of verbal reports found that participants who reported less facial features for sad (as compared to neutral) expressions also tended to show a lower detection rate of sad (as compared to neutral) faces. These findings indicated that sad facial expressions increased choice blindness, which might have resulted from inhibition of further processing of the detailed facial features by the less attractive sad expressions (as compared to neutral expressions).

  11. Measuring facial expression of emotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolf, Karsten

    2015-12-01

    Research into emotions has increased in recent decades, especially on the subject of recognition of emotions. However, studies of the facial expressions of emotion were compromised by technical problems with visible video analysis and electromyography in experimental settings. These have only recently been overcome. There have been new developments in the field of automated computerized facial recognition; allowing real-time identification of facial expression in social environments. This review addresses three approaches to measuring facial expression of emotion and describes their specific contributions to understanding emotion in the healthy population and in persons with mental illness. Despite recent progress, studies on human emotions have been hindered by the lack of consensus on an emotion theory suited to examining the dynamic aspects of emotion and its expression. Studying expression of emotion in patients with mental health conditions for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes will profit from theoretical and methodological progress.

  12. Freedom of Expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guilherme Canela

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available The freedoms of expression and of the press are basic pillars of the western democracies. The contemporary theoretical framework which gives support to these rights was generated in the wake of the liberal revolutions which took place in Western Europe and in North America starting from the second half of the 1600s. Our purpose in this text is to present the current scene regarding this topic, focusing whenever pertinent on the Brazilian case, and seeking to question the unconditional defense of the freedoms of expression and of the press made by the thinkers who founded these principles vis-á-vis contemporary issues of the communicational universe. Going beyond theoretical-conceptual refl ections, we present and analyze the results of a content analysis showing how 53 Brazilian newspapers and 4 magazines with nationwide circulation report (or not topics relating to freedom of expression and of the press.

  13. The Expanded Programme on Immunisation in South Africa: A story ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    adequately trained health workers raise the question of whether health ... entation at the expense of primary care; an imbalance between health ... working synergistically to address the quadruple burden of disease.[5] ... the first days of life.[9].

  14. Gene expression inference with deep learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Yifei; Li, Yi; Narayan, Rajiv; Subramanian, Aravind; Xie, Xiaohui

    2016-06-15

    Large-scale gene expression profiling has been widely used to characterize cellular states in response to various disease conditions, genetic perturbations, etc. Although the cost of whole-genome expression profiles has been dropping steadily, generating a compendium of expression profiling over thousands of samples is still very expensive. Recognizing that gene expressions are often highly correlated, researchers from the NIH LINCS program have developed a cost-effective strategy of profiling only ∼1000 carefully selected landmark genes and relying on computational methods to infer the expression of remaining target genes. However, the computational approach adopted by the LINCS program is currently based on linear regression (LR), limiting its accuracy since it does not capture complex nonlinear relationship between expressions of genes. We present a deep learning method (abbreviated as D-GEX) to infer the expression of target genes from the expression of landmark genes. We used the microarray-based Gene Expression Omnibus dataset, consisting of 111K expression profiles, to train our model and compare its performance to those from other methods. In terms of mean absolute error averaged across all genes, deep learning significantly outperforms LR with 15.33% relative improvement. A gene-wise comparative analysis shows that deep learning achieves lower error than LR in 99.97% of the target genes. We also tested the performance of our learned model on an independent RNA-Seq-based GTEx dataset, which consists of 2921 expression profiles. Deep learning still outperforms LR with 6.57% relative improvement, and achieves lower error in 81.31% of the target genes. D-GEX is available at https://github.com/uci-cbcl/D-GEX CONTACT: xhx@ics.uci.edu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  15. Over-expression of Eph and ephrin genes in advanced ovarian cancer: ephrin gene expression correlates with shortened survival

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lincoln Douglas

    2006-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Increased expression of Eph receptor tyrosine kinases and their ephrin ligands has been implicated in tumor progression in a number of malignancies. This report describes aberrant expression of these genes in ovarian cancer, the commonest cause of death amongst gynaecological malignancies. Methods Eph and ephrin expression was determined using quantitative real time RT-PCR. Correlation of gene expression was measured using Spearman's rho statistic. Survival was analysed using log-rank analysis and (was visualised by Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Results Greater than 10 fold over-expression of EphA1 and a more modest over-expression of EphA2 were observed in partially overlapping subsets of tumors. Over-expression of EphA1 strongly correlated (r = 0.801; p Conclusion These data imply that increased levels of ephrins A1 and A5 in the presence of high expression of Ephs A1 and A2 lead to a more aggressive tumor phenotype. The known functions of Eph/ephrin signalling in cell de-adhesion and movement may explain the observed correlation of ephrin expression with poor prognosis.

  16. Expression of RNA virus proteins by RNA polymerase II dependent expression plasmids is hindered at multiple steps

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Überla Klaus

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Proteins of human and animal viruses are frequently expressed from RNA polymerase II dependent expression cassettes to study protein function and to develop gene-based vaccines. Initial attempts to express the G protein of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV and the F protein of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV by eukaryotic promoters revealed restrictions at several steps of gene expression. Results Insertion of an intron flanked by exonic sequences 5'-terminal to the open reading frames (ORF of VSV-G and RSV-F led to detectable cytoplasmic mRNA levels of both genes. While the exonic sequences were sufficient to stabilise the VSV-G mRNA, cytoplasmic mRNA levels of RSV-F were dependent on the presence of a functional intron. Cytoplasmic VSV-G mRNA levels led to readily detectable levels of VSV-G protein, whereas RSV-F protein expression remained undetectable. However, RSV-F expression was observed after mutating two of four consensus sites for polyadenylation present in the RSV-F ORF. Expression levels could be further enhanced by codon optimisation. Conclusion Insufficient cytoplasmic mRNA levels and premature polyadenylation prevent expression of RSV-F by RNA polymerase II dependent expression plasmids. Since RSV replicates in the cytoplasm, the presence of premature polyadenylation sites and elements leading to nuclear instability should not interfere with RSV-F expression during virus replication. The molecular mechanisms responsible for the destabilisation of the RSV-F and VSV-G mRNAs and the different requirements for their rescue by insertion of an intron remain to be defined.

  17. Challenges in contemporary academic neurosurgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Black, Peter M

    2006-03-01

    Traditionally, the ideal academic neurosurgeon has been a "quadruple threat," with excellence in clinical work, teaching, research, and administration. This tradition was best exemplified in Harvey Cushing, who developed the field of neurosurgery 90 years ago. This paradigm will probably have to change as academic neurosurgeons face major challenges. In patient care, these include increasing regulatory control, increasing malpractice costs, consolidation of expensive care in academic centers, and decreasing reimbursement; in resident teaching, work hour limitations and a changing resident culture; in research, the increasing dominance of basic scientists in governmental funding decisions and decreased involvement of neurosurgeons in scientific review committees; and in administration, problems of relationships in the workplace, patient safety, and employment compliance in an increasingly bureaucratic system. To meet these challenges, the new academic neurosurgeon will probably not be a quadruple threat personally but will be part of a quadruple threat in a department and institution. Neurosurgeons in such a setting will have to work with hospital, medical school, and national and international groups to address malpractice, reimbursement, subspecialization, and training problems; find supplemental sources of income through grants, development funds, and hospital support; lead in the development of multidisciplinary centers for neuroscience, brain tumor, spine, and other initiatives; and focus on training leaders for hospital, regional, and national groups to reconfigure neurosurgery. Collaboration, flexibility, and leadership will be characteristic of the academic neurosurgeon in this new era.

  18. Nonverbal and verbal emotional expression and health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berry, D S; Pennebaker, J W

    1993-01-01

    The spontaneous nonverbal expression of emotion is related to immediate reductions in autonomic nervous system activity. Similar changes in specific autonomic channels occur when individuals are encouraged to verbally express their emotions. Indeed, these physiological changes are most likely to occur among individuals who are either verbally or nonverbally highly expressive. These data suggest that when individuals must actively inhibit emotional expression, they are at increased risk for a variety of health problems. Several experiments are summarized which indicate that verbally expressing traumatic experiences by writing or talking improves physical health, enhances immune function, and is associated with fewer medical visits. Although less research is available regarding nonverbal expression, it is also likely that the nonverbal expression of emotion bears some relation to health status. We propose that the effectiveness of many common expressive therapies (e.g., art, music, cathartic) would be enhanced if clients are encouraged to both express their feelings nonverbally and to put their experiences into words.

  19. Precise Analysis of String Expressions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Christensen, Aske Simon; Møller, Anders; Schwartzbach, Michael Ignatieff

    2003-01-01

    We perform static analysis of Java programs to answer a simple question: which values may occur as results of string expressions? The answers are summarized for each expression by a regular language that is guaranteed to contain all possible values. We present several applications of this analysis...... are automatically produced. We present extensive benchmarks demonstrating that the analysis is efficient and produces results of useful precision......., including statically checking the syntax of dynamically generated expressions, such as SQL queries. Our analysis constructs flow graphs from class files and generates a context-free grammar with a nonterminal for each string expression. The language of this grammar is then widened into a regular language...

  20. ORIGINAL ARTICLES

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    poverty, emerging chronic diseases and injuries) has now become a quadruple ... While efforts to improve the cause-of-death statistics are needed, the current ..... the health transition.19 In. South Africa levels of fertility and mortality have been.

  1. Family emotional expressiveness and family structure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Čotar-Konrad Sonja

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The present paper scrutinizes the relationship between family emotional expressiveness (i.e., the tendency to express dominant and/or submissive positive and negative emotions and components of family structure as proposed in Olson’s Circumplex model (i.e., cohesion and flexibility, family communication, and satisfaction in families with adolescents. The study was conducted on a sample of 514 Slovenian adolescents, who filled out two questionnaires: the Slovenian version of Family Emotional Expressiveness - FEQ and FACES IV. The results revealed that all four basic dimensions of family functioning were significantly associated with higher/more frequent expressions of positive submissive emotions, as well as with lower/less frequent expressions of negative dominant emotions. Moreover, expressions of negative submissive emotions explained a small, but significant amount of variance in three out of four family functioning variables (satisfaction, flexibility, and communication. The importance of particular aspects of emotional expressiveness for family cohesion, flexibility, communication, and satisfaction is discussed, and the relevance of present findings for family counselling is outlined.

  2. Widespread ectopic expression of olfactory receptor genes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yanai Itai

    2006-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Olfactory receptors (ORs are the largest gene family in the human genome. Although they are expected to be expressed specifically in olfactory tissues, some ectopic expression has been reported, with special emphasis on sperm and testis. The present study systematically explores the expression patterns of OR genes in a large number of tissues and assesses the potential functional implication of such ectopic expression. Results We analyzed the expression of hundreds of human and mouse OR transcripts, via EST and microarray data, in several dozens of human and mouse tissues. Different tissues had specific, relatively small OR gene subsets which had particularly high expression levels. In testis, average expression was not particularly high, and very few highly expressed genes were found, none corresponding to ORs previously implicated in sperm chemotaxis. Higher expression levels were more common for genes with a non-OR genomic neighbor. Importantly, no correlation in expression levels was detected for human-mouse orthologous pairs. Also, no significant difference in expression levels was seen between intact and pseudogenized ORs, except for the pseudogenes of subfamily 7E which has undergone a human-specific expansion. Conclusion The OR superfamily as a whole, show widespread, locus-dependent and heterogeneous expression, in agreement with a neutral or near neutral evolutionary model for transcription control. These results cannot reject the possibility that small OR subsets might play functional roles in different tissues, however considerable care should be exerted when offering a functional interpretation for ectopic OR expression based only on transcription information.

  3. Stochastic gene expression in Arabidopsis thaliana.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araújo, Ilka Schultheiß; Pietsch, Jessica Magdalena; Keizer, Emma Mathilde; Greese, Bettina; Balkunde, Rachappa; Fleck, Christian; Hülskamp, Martin

    2017-12-14

    Although plant development is highly reproducible, some stochasticity exists. This developmental stochasticity may be caused by noisy gene expression. Here we analyze the fluctuation of protein expression in Arabidopsis thaliana. Using the photoconvertible KikGR marker, we show that the protein expressions of individual cells fluctuate over time. A dual reporter system was used to study extrinsic and intrinsic noise of marker gene expression. We report that extrinsic noise is higher than intrinsic noise and that extrinsic noise in stomata is clearly lower in comparison to several other tissues/cell types. Finally, we show that cells are coupled with respect to stochastic protein expression in young leaves, hypocotyls and roots but not in mature leaves. Our data indicate that stochasticity of gene expression can vary between tissues/cell types and that it can be coupled in a non-cell-autonomous manner.

  4. Docosahexaenoic acid inhibits IL-6 expression via PPARγ-mediated expression of catalase in cerulein-stimulated pancreatic acinar cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Eun Ah; Lim, Joo Weon; Kim, Hyeyoung

    2017-07-01

    Cerulein pancreatitis mirrors human acute pancreatitis. In pancreatic acinar cells exposed to cerulein, reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediate inflammatory signaling by Janus kinase (JAK) 2/signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) 3, and cytokine induction. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) acts as an agonist of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPARγ), which mediates the expression of some antioxidant enzymes. We hypothesized that DHA may induce PPARγ-target catalase expression and reduce ROS levels, leading to the inhibition of JAK2/STAT3 activation and IL-6 expression in cerulein-stimulated acinar cells. Pancreatic acinar AR42J cells were treated with DHA in the presence or absence of the PPARγ antagonist GW9662, or treated with the PPARγ agonist troglitazone, and then stimulated with cerulein. Expression of IL-6 and catalase, ROS levels, JAK2/STAT3 activation, and nuclear translocation of PPARγ were assessed. DHA suppressed the increase in ROS, JAK2/STAT3 activation, and IL-6 expression induced nuclear translocation of PPARγ and catalase expression in cerulein-stimulated AR42J cells. Troglitazone inhibited the cerulein-induced increase in ROS and IL-6 expression, but induced catalase expression similar to DHA in AR42J cells. GW9662 abolished the inhibitory effect of DHA on cerulein-induced increase in ROS and IL-6 expression in AR42J cells. DHA-induced expression of catalase was suppressed by GW9662 in cerulein-stimulated AR42J cells. Thus, DHA induces PPARγ activation and catalase expression, which inhibits ROS-mediated activation of JAK2/STAT3 and IL-6 expression in cerulein-stimulated pancreatic acinar cells. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  5. Recognition, Expression, and Understanding Facial Expressions of Emotion in Adolescents with Nonverbal and General Learning Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloom, Elana; Heath, Nancy

    2010-01-01

    Children with nonverbal learning disabilities (NVLD) have been found to be worse at recognizing facial expressions than children with verbal learning disabilities (LD) and without LD. However, little research has been done with adolescents. In addition, expressing and understanding facial expressions is yet to be studied among adolescents with LD…

  6. Recombination-ready Sindbis replicon expression vectors for transgene expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olson Ken E

    2007-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Sindbis viruses have been widely used as tools to study gene function in cells. Despite the utility of these systems, the construction and production of alphavirus replicons is time consuming and inefficient due to potential additional restriction sites within the insert region and lack of directionality for insert ligation. In this report, we present a system useful for producing recombinant Sindbis replicons that uses lambda phage recombination technology to rapidly and specifically construct replicon expression plasmids that contain insert regions in the desired orientation. Results Recombination of the gene of interest with the replicon plasmid resulted in nearly 100% recombinants, each of which contained a correctly orientated insert. Replicons were easily produced in cell culture and packaged into pseudo-infectious viral particles. Insect and mammalian cells infected with pseudo-infectious viral particles expressed various transgenes at high levels. Finally, inserts from persistently replicating replicon RNA were easily isolated and recombined back into entry plasmids for sequencing and subsequent analysis. Conclusion Replication-ready replicon expression plasmids make the use of alphavirus replicons fast and easy as compared to traditional replicon production methods. This system represents a significant step forward in the utility and ease of use of alphavirus replicons in the study of gene function.

  7. Digital gene expression analysis of gene expression differences within Brassica diploids and allopolyploids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Jinjin; Wang, Yue; Zhu, Bao; Fang, Tingting; Fang, Yujie; Wang, Youping

    2015-01-27

    Brassica includes many successfully cultivated crop species of polyploid origin, either by ancestral genome triplication or by hybridization between two diploid progenitors, displaying complex repetitive sequences and transposons. The U's triangle, which consists of three diploids and three amphidiploids, is optimal for the analysis of complicated genomes after polyploidization. Next-generation sequencing enables the transcriptome profiling of polyploids on a global scale. We examined the gene expression patterns of three diploids (Brassica rapa, B. nigra, and B. oleracea) and three amphidiploids (B. napus, B. juncea, and B. carinata) via digital gene expression analysis. In total, the libraries generated between 5.7 and 6.1 million raw reads, and the clean tags of each library were mapped to 18547-21995 genes of B. rapa genome. The unambiguous tag-mapped genes in the libraries were compared. Moreover, the majority of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were explored among diploids as well as between diploids and amphidiploids. Gene ontological analysis was performed to functionally categorize these DEGs into different classes. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis was performed to assign these DEGs into approximately 120 pathways, among which the metabolic pathway, biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, and peroxisomal pathway were enriched. The non-additive genes in Brassica amphidiploids were analyzed, and the results indicated that orthologous genes in polyploids are frequently expressed in a non-additive pattern. Methyltransferase genes showed differential expression pattern in Brassica species. Our results provided an understanding of the transcriptome complexity of natural Brassica species. The gene expression changes in diploids and allopolyploids may help elucidate the morphological and physiological differences among Brassica species.

  8. Multiple helix ecosystems for sustainable competitiveness

    CERN Document Server

    Ferreira, João; Farinha, Luís; Fernandes, Nuno

    2016-01-01

    This book discusses the main issues, challenges, opportunities, and trends involving the interactions between academia, industry, government and society. Specifically, it aims to explore how these interactions enhance the ways in which companies deliver products and services in order to achieve sustainable competitiveness in the marketplace. Sustainable competitiveness has been widely discussed by academics and practitioners, considering the importance of protecting the environment while sustaining the economic goals of organizations. The Quintuple Helix innovation model is a framework for facilitating knowledge, innovation and sustainable competitive advantage. It embeds the Triple and the Quadruple Helix models by adding a fifth helix, the “natural environment.” The Triple Helix model focuses on the university-industry-government triad, while the Quadruple adds civil society (the media- and culture-driven public) as a fourth helix. The Quintuple Helix model facilitates research, public policy, and pract...

  9. AGS tune jump power supply design and test

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mi, J.; Glenn, J.W.; Huang, H.; Marneris, I.; Rosas, P.; Sandberg, J.; Tan, Y.; Zhang, W.

    2011-01-01

    A horizontal tune jump system has been installed to overcome the horizontal intrinsic spin resonances, which requires jumping the horizontal tune 0.04 units 82 times, 41 up and 41 down. Two quadruple magnets have been installed in AGS ring to perform this. The pulsed magnet current ranges from about 140A near injection to about 1400A later. The current pulse rise and fall time are around 100uS and flat tops time is around 4mS. These quadruples have separated supplies. This tune jump pulse power supply employees all semiconductor parts as well as the main switches. During dummy load and magnet testing, the test results showed that the power supply could meet the specification. This article will describe some details of power supply simulation, design and testing. Some test waveforms and pictures are presented in this paper.

  10. A simple method for validation and verification of pipettes mounted on automated liquid handlers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stangegaard, Michael; Hansen, Anders Johannes; Frøslev, Tobias Guldberg

     We have implemented a simple method for validation and verification of the performance of pipettes mounted on automated liquid handlers as necessary for laboratories accredited under ISO 17025. An 8-step serial dilution of Orange G was prepared in quadruplicates in a flat bottom 96-well microtit...... available. In conclusion, we have set up a simple solution for the continuous validation of automated liquid handlers used for accredited work. The method is cheap, simple and easy to use for aqueous solutions but requires a spectrophotometer that can read microtiter plates....... We have implemented a simple method for validation and verification of the performance of pipettes mounted on automated liquid handlers as necessary for laboratories accredited under ISO 17025. An 8-step serial dilution of Orange G was prepared in quadruplicates in a flat bottom 96-well microtiter...

  11. MLH1 expression predicts the response to preoperative therapy and is associated with PD-L1 expression in esophageal cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Momose, Kota; Yamasaki, Makoto; Tanaka, Koji; Miyazaki, Yasuhiro; Makino, Tomoki; Takahashi, Tsuyoshi; Kurokawa, Yukinori; Nakajima, Kiyokazu; Takiguchi, Shuji; Mori, Masaki; Doki, Yuichiro

    2017-07-01

    Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-1/PD-L1) inhibition therapy demonstrates potential as a future treatment for esophageal cancer. Mismatch repair status and tumor PD-L1 expression are the candidate predictive biomarkers for response to this therapy. In colorectal cancer, mismatch repair-deficient tumors are associated with improved survival, although they are not sensitive to 5-fluorouracil-based chemotherapy. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the association between MutL homolog 1 (MLH1) expression and prognosis, response to therapy and PD-L1 expression in esophageal cancer. Immunohistochemistry was used to evaluate MLH1 and PD-L1 expression in 251 resected specimens. Of the specimens, 30.3% exhibited low MLH1 expression and 15.5% exhibited high PD-L1 expression. The 5-year overall survival rates for the high MLH1 expression group and the low MLH1 expression group were 51.3 and 55.6%, respectively (P=0.5260). The responder ratio was 45.7% in the high MLH1 expression group and 15.4% in the low MLH1 expression group (PMLH1 expression group (P=0.0064) and 25.0% in the low MLH1 expression group. MLH1 expression may be a predictive factor for the response to preoperative therapy in esophageal cancer, and esophageal cancer with low MLH1 expression may have a mechanism that assists in promoting tumor PD-L1 expression.

  12. Reconstructing dynamic mental models of facial expressions in prosopagnosia reveals distinct representations for identity and expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richoz, Anne-Raphaëlle; Jack, Rachael E; Garrod, Oliver G B; Schyns, Philippe G; Caldara, Roberto

    2015-04-01

    The human face transmits a wealth of signals that readily provide crucial information for social interactions, such as facial identity and emotional expression. Yet, a fundamental question remains unresolved: does the face information for identity and emotional expression categorization tap into common or distinct representational systems? To address this question we tested PS, a pure case of acquired prosopagnosia with bilateral occipitotemporal lesions anatomically sparing the regions that are assumed to contribute to facial expression (de)coding (i.e., the amygdala, the insula and the posterior superior temporal sulcus--pSTS). We previously demonstrated that PS does not use information from the eye region to identify faces, but relies on the suboptimal mouth region. PS's abnormal information use for identity, coupled with her neural dissociation, provides a unique opportunity to probe the existence of a dichotomy in the face representational system. To reconstruct the mental models of the six basic facial expressions of emotion in PS and age-matched healthy observers, we used a novel reverse correlation technique tracking information use on dynamic faces. PS was comparable to controls, using all facial features to (de)code facial expressions with the exception of fear. PS's normal (de)coding of dynamic facial expressions suggests that the face system relies either on distinct representational systems for identity and expression, or dissociable cortical pathways to access them. Interestingly, PS showed a selective impairment for categorizing many static facial expressions, which could be accounted for by her lesion in the right inferior occipital gyrus. PS's advantage for dynamic facial expressions might instead relate to a functionally distinct and sufficient cortical pathway directly connecting the early visual cortex to the spared pSTS. Altogether, our data provide critical insights on the healthy and impaired face systems, question evidence of deficits

  13. Anger expression among Danish cyclists and drivers: A comparison based on mode specific anger expression inventories

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Møller, Mette; Haustein, Sonja

    2017-01-01

    , gender, self-reported aggressive behaviours and traffic fines: Women scored for instance lower in physical expression, while older people scored higher in constructive expression. The effect of age and gender on anger expression among drivers and cyclists remained significant when controlling......Based on the short form of the driving anger expression inventory (DAX-short, 15-item), the present study developed an adapted version of the DAX for cyclists (CAX, 14 items). The data basis was an online survey of 2000 inhabitants of Denmark. A principle component analysis on the translated DAX...... for exposure and other factors in linear regression analyses. These analyses also showed a relationship between a positive attitude towards driving and higher levels of anger expression among drivers, while this was not the case for cyclists....

  14. Vitamin D Receptor Expression in Dogs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gow, A.G.; Milne, E.; Drummond, D.; Smith, S.; Handel, I.; Mellanby, R.J.

    2018-01-01

    Background There is growing evidence linking low blood vitamin D concentration to numerous diseases in people and in dogs. Vitamin D influences cellular function by signaling through the vitamin D receptor (VDR). Little is known about which non‐skeletal tissues express the VDR or how inflammation influences its expression in the dog. Objectives To define which non‐skeletal canine tissues express the VDR and to investigate expression in inflamed small intestine. Animals Thirteen non‐skeletal tissues were collected prospectively from 6 control dogs. Thirty‐five dogs diagnosed with a chronic enteropathy (CE) and 24 control dogs were prospectively enrolled and duodenal biopsies were evaluated for VDR expression. Methods Prospective; blinded assessment of canine intestinal VDR. Dogs with CE were included once other identifiable causes of intestinal disease were excluded. Age matched controls were included with no intestinal clinical signs. VDR expression was assessed immunohistochemically in all samples, using a Rat IgG VDR monoclonal antibody. Quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was also used for duodenal biopsies. Results VDR expression as assessed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) was highest in the kidney, duodenum, skin, ileum and spleen, and weak in the colon, heart, lymph node, liver, lung, and ovary. Gastric and testicular tissue did not express the VDR. There was no statistical difference in duodenal VDR expression between the 24 healthy dogs and 34 dogs with CE when quantified by either qPCR (P = 0.87) or IHC (P = 0.099). Conclusions and Clinical Importance The lack of down regulation of VDR expression in inflamed intestine contrasts with previous studies in humans. Our findings support future studies to investigate whether vitamin D and its analogues can be used to modulate intestinal inflammation in the dog. PMID:29469965

  15. VH gene expression and regulation in the mutant Alicia rabbit. Rescue of VHa2 allotype expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, H T; Alexander, C B; Young-Cooper, G O; Mage, R G

    1993-04-01

    Rabbits of the Alicia strain, derived from rabbits expressing the VHa2 allotype, have a mutation in the H chain locus that has a cis effect upon the expression of VHa2 and VHa- genes. A small deletion at the most J-proximal (3') end of the VH locus leads to low expression of all the genes on the entire chromosome in heterozygous ali mutants and altered relative expression of VH genes in homozygotes. To study VH gene expression and regulation, we used the polymerase chain reaction to amplify the VH genes expressed in spleens of young and adult wild-type and mutant Alicia rabbits. The cDNA from reverse transcription of splenic mRNA was amplified and polymerase chain reaction libraries were constructed and screened with oligonucleotides from framework regions 1 and 3, as well as JH. Thirty-three VH-positive clones were sequenced and analyzed. We found that in mutant Alicia rabbits, products of the first functional VH gene (VH4a2), (or VH4a2-like genes) were expressed in 2- to 8-wk-olds. Expression of both the VHx and VHy types of VHa- genes was also elevated but the relative proportions of VHx and VHy, especially VHx, decreased whereas the relative levels of expression of VH4a2 or VH4a2-like genes increased with age. Our results suggest that the appearance of sequences resembling that of the VH1a2, which is deleted in the mutant ali rabbits, could be caused by alterations of the sequences of the rearranged VH4a2 genes by gene conversions and/or rearrangement of upstream VH1a2-like genes later in development.

  16. A Prospective, Randomized Study Comparing 7-day and 14-day ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2018-02-07

    Feb 7, 2018 ... and 14-day quadruple therapies as first-line treatments for Helicobacter pylori infection in ..... Furthermore, in a large-scale, multicenter, Japanese study ... Taylor DE, Ge Z, Purych D, Lo T, Hiratsuka K. Cloning and sequence ...

  17. Emotion expression, decision-making and well-being.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Erte

    2008-01-01

    This chapter discusses the role of emotion expression in decision-making. To understand connections between emotion and decision it is helpful first to differentiate between emotion experience and emotion expression. Understanding how emotion expression influences decision-making is important as a practical matter. However, in contrast to emotion experience, economic research has paid little attention to the significance of emotion expression in decision-making. I review recent studies on emotion expression, paying specific attention to possible connections between emotion expression, punishment, fair economic exchange, and well-being. In contrast to emotions, which are typically difficult to control, I suggest that opportunities for emotion expression can feasibly be manipulated through appropriately designed policies. I further suggest that this approach may have the ability to positively affect well-being and economic outcomes. VALUE OF THE CHAPTER: The chapter provides new perspectives on how policy-makers can benefit by understanding the effect of emotion expression in decision-making. The chapter also suggests future research to improve our understanding of emotion expression.

  18. Generating Expressive Speech for Storytelling Applications

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bailly, G.; Theune, Mariet; Meijs, Koen; Campbell, N.; Hamza, W.; Heylen, Dirk K.J.; Ordelman, Roeland J.F.; Hoge, H.; Jianhua, T.

    Work on expressive speech synthesis has long focused on the expression of basic emotions. In recent years, however, interest in other expressive styles has been increasing. The research presented in this paper aims at the generation of a storytelling speaking style, which is suitable for

  19. Darwin and Emotion Expression

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hess, Ursula; Thibault, Pascal

    2009-01-01

    In his book "The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals," Charles Darwin (1872/1965) defended the argument that emotion expressions are evolved and adaptive (at least at some point in the past) and serve an important communicative function. The ideas he developed in his book had an important impact on the field and spawned rich domains of…

  20. Comparative gene expression between two yeast species

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guan Yuanfang

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Comparative genomics brings insight into sequence evolution, but even more may be learned by coupling sequence analyses with experimental tests of gene function and regulation. However, the reliability of such comparisons is often limited by biased sampling of expression conditions and incomplete knowledge of gene functions across species. To address these challenges, we previously systematically generated expression profiles in Saccharomyces bayanus to maximize functional coverage as compared to an existing Saccharomyces cerevisiae data repository. Results In this paper, we take advantage of these two data repositories to compare patterns of ortholog expression in a wide variety of conditions. First, we developed a scalable metric for expression divergence that enabled us to detect a significant correlation between sequence and expression conservation on the global level, which previous smaller-scale expression studies failed to detect. Despite this global conservation trend, between-species gene expression neighborhoods were less well-conserved than within-species comparisons across different environmental perturbations, and approximately 4% of orthologs exhibited a significant change in co-expression partners. Furthermore, our analysis of matched perturbations collected in both species (such as diauxic shift and cell cycle synchrony demonstrated that approximately a quarter of orthologs exhibit condition-specific expression pattern differences. Conclusions Taken together, these analyses provide a global view of gene expression patterns between two species, both in terms of the conditions and timing of a gene's expression as well as co-expression partners. Our results provide testable hypotheses that will direct future experiments to determine how these changes may be specified in the genome.

  1. Regular Expression Matching and Operational Semantics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Asiri Rathnayake

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Many programming languages and tools, ranging from grep to the Java String library, contain regular expression matchers. Rather than first translating a regular expression into a deterministic finite automaton, such implementations typically match the regular expression on the fly. Thus they can be seen as virtual machines interpreting the regular expression much as if it were a program with some non-deterministic constructs such as the Kleene star. We formalize this implementation technique for regular expression matching using operational semantics. Specifically, we derive a series of abstract machines, moving from the abstract definition of matching to increasingly realistic machines. First a continuation is added to the operational semantics to describe what remains to be matched after the current expression. Next, we represent the expression as a data structure using pointers, which enables redundant searches to be eliminated via testing for pointer equality. From there, we arrive both at Thompson's lockstep construction and a machine that performs some operations in parallel, suitable for implementation on a large number of cores, such as a GPU. We formalize the parallel machine using process algebra and report some preliminary experiments with an implementation on a graphics processor using CUDA.

  2. DNA expressions - A formal notation for DNA

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vliet, Rudy van

    2015-01-01

    We describe a formal notation for DNA molecules that may contain nicks and gaps. The resulting DNA expressions denote formal DNA molecules. Different DNA expressions may denote the same molecule. Such DNA expressions are called equivalent. We examine which DNA expressions are minimal, which

  3. Extracting gene expression patterns and identifying co-expressed genes from microarray data reveals biologically responsive processes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Paules Richard S

    2007-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A common observation in the analysis of gene expression data is that many genes display similarity in their expression patterns and therefore appear to be co-regulated. However, the variation associated with microarray data and the complexity of the experimental designs make the acquisition of co-expressed genes a challenge. We developed a novel method for Extracting microarray gene expression Patterns and Identifying co-expressed Genes, designated as EPIG. The approach utilizes the underlying structure of gene expression data to extract patterns and identify co-expressed genes that are responsive to experimental conditions. Results Through evaluation of the correlations among profiles, the magnitude of variation in gene expression profiles, and profile signal-to-noise ratio's, EPIG extracts a set of patterns representing co-expressed genes. The method is shown to work well with a simulated data set and microarray data obtained from time-series studies of dauer recovery and L1 starvation in C. elegans and after ultraviolet (UV or ionizing radiation (IR-induced DNA damage in diploid human fibroblasts. With the simulated data set, EPIG extracted the appropriate number of patterns which were more stable and homogeneous than the set of patterns that were determined using the CLICK or CAST clustering algorithms. However, CLICK performed better than EPIG and CAST with respect to the average correlation between clusters/patterns of the simulated data. With real biological data, EPIG extracted more dauer-specific patterns than CLICK. Furthermore, analysis of the IR/UV data revealed 18 unique patterns and 2661 genes out of approximately 17,000 that were identified as significantly expressed and categorized to the patterns by EPIG. The time-dependent patterns displayed similar and dissimilar responses between IR and UV treatments. Gene Ontology analysis applied to each pattern-related subset of co-expressed genes revealed underlying

  4. Neighboring Genes Show Correlated Evolution in Gene Expression

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghanbarian, Avazeh T.; Hurst, Laurence D.

    2015-01-01

    When considering the evolution of a gene’s expression profile, we commonly assume that this is unaffected by its genomic neighborhood. This is, however, in contrast to what we know about the lack of autonomy between neighboring genes in gene expression profiles in extant taxa. Indeed, in all eukaryotic genomes genes of similar expression-profile tend to cluster, reflecting chromatin level dynamics. Does it follow that if a gene increases expression in a particular lineage then the genomic neighbors will also increase in their expression or is gene expression evolution autonomous? To address this here we consider evolution of human gene expression since the human-chimp common ancestor, allowing for both variation in estimation of current expression level and error in Bayesian estimation of the ancestral state. We find that in all tissues and both sexes, the change in gene expression of a focal gene on average predicts the change in gene expression of neighbors. The effect is highly pronounced in the immediate vicinity (genes increasing their expression in humans tend to avoid nuclear lamina domains and be enriched for the gene activator 5-hydroxymethylcytosine, we conclude that, most probably owing to chromatin level control of gene expression, a change in gene expression of one gene likely affects the expression evolution of neighbors, what we term expression piggybacking, an analog of hitchhiking. PMID:25743543

  5. Impaired detection of happy facial expressions in autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sato, Wataru; Sawada, Reiko; Uono, Shota; Yoshimura, Sayaka; Kochiyama, Takanori; Kubota, Yasutaka; Sakihama, Morimitsu; Toichi, Motomi

    2017-10-17

    The detection of emotional facial expressions plays an indispensable role in social interaction. Psychological studies have shown that typically developing (TD) individuals more rapidly detect emotional expressions than neutral expressions. However, it remains unclear whether individuals with autistic phenotypes, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and high levels of autistic traits (ATs), are impaired in this ability. We examined this by comparing TD and ASD individuals in Experiment 1 and individuals with low and high ATs in Experiment 2 using the visual search paradigm. Participants detected normal facial expressions of anger and happiness and their anti-expressions within crowds of neutral expressions. In Experiment 1, reaction times were shorter for normal angry expressions than for anti-expressions in both TD and ASD groups. This was also the case for normal happy expressions vs. anti-expressions in the TD group but not in the ASD group. Similarly, in Experiment 2, the detection of normal vs. anti-expressions was faster for angry expressions in both groups and for happy expressions in the low, but not high, ATs group. These results suggest that the detection of happy facial expressions is impaired in individuals with ASD and high ATs, which may contribute to their difficulty in creating and maintaining affiliative social relationships.

  6. Athero Express : ATHERO-sclerotic plaque EXPRESSion in relation to vascular events and patient characteristics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verhoeven, B.A.N.

    2006-01-01

    Athero-Express is a tissue bank study, designed to investigate the expression of atherosclerotic derived biological variables in relation to the long-term outcome of patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy. Its design includes both cross-sectional and follow-up studies, the results from which

  7. eXpression2Kinases (X2K) Web: linking expression signatures to upstream cell signaling networks.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clarke, Daniel J B; Kuleshov, Maxim V; Schilder, Brian M; Torre, Denis; Duffy, Mary E; Keenan, Alexandra B; Lachmann, Alexander; Feldmann, Axel S; Gundersen, Gregory W; Silverstein, Moshe C; Wang, Zichen; Ma'ayan, Avi

    2018-05-25

    While gene expression data at the mRNA level can be globally and accurately measured, profiling the activity of cell signaling pathways is currently much more difficult. eXpression2Kinases (X2K) computationally predicts involvement of upstream cell signaling pathways, given a signature of differentially expressed genes. X2K first computes enrichment for transcription factors likely to regulate the expression of the differentially expressed genes. The next step of X2K connects these enriched transcription factors through known protein-protein interactions (PPIs) to construct a subnetwork. The final step performs kinase enrichment analysis on the members of the subnetwork. X2K Web is a new implementation of the original eXpression2Kinases algorithm with important enhancements. X2K Web includes many new transcription factor and kinase libraries, and PPI networks. For demonstration, thousands of gene expression signatures induced by kinase inhibitors, applied to six breast cancer cell lines, are provided for fetching directly into X2K Web. The results are displayed as interactive downloadable vector graphic network images and bar graphs. Benchmarking various settings via random permutations enabled the identification of an optimal set of parameters to be used as the default settings in X2K Web. X2K Web is freely available from http://X2K.cloud.

  8. Identifying Regulatory Patterns at the 3'end Regions of Over-expressed and Under-expressed Genes

    KAUST Repository

    Othoum, Ghofran K

    2013-05-01

    Promoters, neighboring regulatory regions and those extending further upstream of the 5’end of genes, are considered one of the main components affecting the expression status of genes in a specific phenotype. More recently research by Chen et al. (2006, 2012) and Mapendano et al. (2010) demonstrated that the 3’end regulatory regions of genes also influence gene expression. However, the association between the regulatory regions surrounding 3’end of genes and their over- or under-expression status in a particular phenotype has not been systematically studied. The aim of this study is to ascertain if regulatory regions surrounding the 3’end of genes contain sufficient regulatory information to correlate genes with their expression status in a particular phenotype. Over- and under-expressed ovarian cancer (OC) genes were used as a model. Exploratory analysis of the 3’end regions were performed by transforming the annotated regions using principal component analysis (PCA), followed by clustering the transformed data thereby achieving a clear separation of genes with different expression status. Additionally, several classification algorithms such as Naïve Bayes, Random Forest and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were tested with different parameter settings to analyze the discriminatory capacity of the 3’end regions of genes related to their gene expression status. The best performance was achieved using the SVM classification model with 10-fold cross-validation that yielded an accuracy of 98.4%, sensitivity of 99.5% and specificity of 92.5%. For gene expression status for newly available instances, based on information derived from the 3’end regions, an SVM predictive model was developed with 10-fold cross-validation that yielded an accuracy of 67.0%, sensitivity of 73.2% and specificity of 61.0%. Moreover, building an SVM with polynomial kernel model to PCA transformed data yielded an accuracy of 83.1%, sensitivity of 92.5% and specificity of 74.8% using

  9. Identifying Regulatory Patterns at the 3'end Regions of Over-expressed and Under-expressed Genes

    KAUST Repository

    Othoum, Ghofran K

    2013-01-01

    Promoters, neighboring regulatory regions and those extending further upstream of the 5’end of genes, are considered one of the main components affecting the expression status of genes in a specific phenotype. More recently research by Chen et al. (2006, 2012) and Mapendano et al. (2010) demonstrated that the 3’end regulatory regions of genes also influence gene expression. However, the association between the regulatory regions surrounding 3’end of genes and their over- or under-expression status in a particular phenotype has not been systematically studied. The aim of this study is to ascertain if regulatory regions surrounding the 3’end of genes contain sufficient regulatory information to correlate genes with their expression status in a particular phenotype. Over- and under-expressed ovarian cancer (OC) genes were used as a model. Exploratory analysis of the 3’end regions were performed by transforming the annotated regions using principal component analysis (PCA), followed by clustering the transformed data thereby achieving a clear separation of genes with different expression status. Additionally, several classification algorithms such as Naïve Bayes, Random Forest and Support Vector Machine (SVM) were tested with different parameter settings to analyze the discriminatory capacity of the 3’end regions of genes related to their gene expression status. The best performance was achieved using the SVM classification model with 10-fold cross-validation that yielded an accuracy of 98.4%, sensitivity of 99.5% and specificity of 92.5%. For gene expression status for newly available instances, based on information derived from the 3’end regions, an SVM predictive model was developed with 10-fold cross-validation that yielded an accuracy of 67.0%, sensitivity of 73.2% and specificity of 61.0%. Moreover, building an SVM with polynomial kernel model to PCA transformed data yielded an accuracy of 83.1%, sensitivity of 92.5% and specificity of 74.8% using

  10. Implementation of the agmatine-controlled expression system for inducible gene expression in Lactococcus lactis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linares, Daniel M; Alvarez-Sieiro, Patricia; del Rio, Beatriz; Ladero, Victor; Redruello, Begoña; Martin, Ma Cruz; Fernandez, Maria; Alvarez, Miguel A

    2015-12-30

    Lactococcus lactis has been safely consumed in fermented foods for millennia. This Gram-positive bacterium has now become of industrial importance as an expression host for the overproduction of lipopolysaccharide-free recombinant proteins used as food ingredients, therapeutic proteins and biotechnological enzymes. This paper reports an agmatine-controlled expression (ACE) system for L. lactis, comprising the lactococcal agmatine-sensor/transcriptional activator AguR and its target promoter P(aguB). The usefulness and efficiency of this system was checked via the reporter gene gfp and by producing PEP (Myxococcus xanthus prolyl-endopeptidase), an enzyme of biomedical interest able to degrade the immunotoxic peptides produced during the gastrointestinal breakdown of gluten. The ACE system developed in this work was suitable for the efficient expression of the functional recombinant proteins GFP and PEP. The expression system was tightly regulated by the agmatine concentration and allowed high protein production without leakiness.

  11. Joint probabilities reproducing three EPR experiments on two qubits

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Roy, S. M.; Atkinson, D.; Auberson, G.; Mahoux, G.; Singh, V.

    2007-01-01

    An eight-parameter family of the most general non-negative quadruple probabilities is constructed for EPR-Bohm-Aharonov experiments when only three pairs of analyser settings are used. It is a simultaneous representation of three different Bohr-incompatible experimental configurations involving

  12. Seven-day PPI-triple therapy with levofloxacin is very effective for Helicobacter pylori eradication.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schrauwen, R.W.; Janssen, M.J.R.; Boer, W.A. de

    2009-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Helicobacter pylori infection causes lifelong gastritis and is associated with the development of peptic ulcer disease, MALT lymphoma and gastric cancer. Many patients benefit from H. pylori eradication therapy. PPI-triple therapy is recommended as initial therapy. Quadruple therapy,

  13. Framing Creativity. User-driven Innovation in Changing Contexts

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Helms, Niels Henrik; Heilesen, Simon

    2011-01-01

    briefly discussing the concepts of creativity and innovation, the article outlines three levels of analysis. On a meta-level, a new model of quadruple helix innovation is introduced, providing a framework for interrelations between enterprise, government, knowledge institutions, and users (learners...

  14. Personality expression in Chinese language use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qiu, Lin; Lu, Jiahui; Ramsay, Jonathan; Yang, Shanshan; Qu, Weina; Zhu, Tingshao

    2017-12-01

    To date, little research has investigated personality expressions in languages other than English. Given that the Chinese language has the largest number of native speakers in the world, it is vitally important to examine the associations between personality and Chinese language use. In this research, we analysed Chinese microblogs and identified word categories and factorial structures associated with personality traits. We also compared our results with previous findings in English and showed that linguistic expression of personality has both universal- and language-specific aspects. Expression of personality via content words is more likely to be consistent across languages than expression via function words. This makes an important step towards uncovering universal patterns of personality expression in language. © 2016 International Union of Psychological Science.

  15. Examining emotional expressions in discourse: methodological considerations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hufnagel, Elizabeth; Kelly, Gregory J.

    2017-10-01

    This methodological paper presents an approach for examining emotional expressions through discourse analysis and ethnographic methods. Drawing on trends in the current literature in science education, we briefly explain the importance of emotions in science education and examine the current research methodologies used in interactional emotion studies. We put forth and substantiate a methodological approach that attends to the interactional, contextual, intertextual, and consequential aspects of emotional expressions. By examining emotional expressions in the discourse in which they are constructed, emotional expressions are identified through semantics, contextualization, and linguistic features. These features make salient four dimensions of emotional expressions: aboutness, frequency, type, and ownership. Drawing on data from a large empirical study of pre-service elementary teachers' emotional expressions about climate change in a science course, we provide illustrative examples to describe what counts as emotional expressions in situ. In doing so we explain how our approach makes salient the nuanced nature of such expressions as well as the broader discourse in which they are constructed and the implications for researching emotional expressions in science education discourse. We suggest reasons why this discourse orientated research methodology can contribute to the interactional study of emotions in science education contexts.

  16. Positive expression of LSD1 and negative expression of E-cadherin correlate with metastasis and poor prognosis of colon cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jie, Ding; Zhongmin, Zhang; Guoqing, Liao; Sheng, Liu; Yi, Zhang; Jing, Wen; Liang, Zeng

    2013-06-01

    The first identified lysine-specific demethylase, LSD1, plays an important role in the metastatic progression of several types of cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate LSD1, E-cadherin, and N-cadherin expression in colon cancer specimens and their clinical significance. The expression of LSD1, E-cadherin, and N-cadherin in colon cancer specimens was determined by immunohistochemistry, and the relationship between the expression of the respective molecules and clinicopathological characteristics was analyzed. The positive expression rates of LSD1, E-cadherin, and N-cadherin in colon cancer specimens were 66.7 % (72/108), 85.2 % (92/108), and 41.7 % (45/108), respectively. LSD1 was significantly more highly expressed in colon cancer specimens classified as high TNM stage lesions and with distant metastasis (P colon cancer specimens classified as high TNM stage lesions and with distant metastasis (P clinical and pathological characteristics (P > 0.05). Correlation analysis revealed that LSD1 expression was negatively correlated with E-cadherin expression (r s = -0.318, P = 0.001), but not evidently correlated with N-cadherin expression (r s = 0.182, P = 0.06). Colon cancer specimens with positive LSD1 expression and negative E-cadherin expression were correlated with significantly lower overall survival. LSD1 showed a significantly higher expression, in contrast to the significantly lower expression of E-cadherin, in colon cancer specimens classified as high TNM stage lesions and with distant metastasis. Positive expression of LSD1 and negative expression of E-cadherin may be predictors of a worse colon cancer prognosis.

  17. [Prosopagnosia and facial expression recognition].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koyama, Shinichi

    2014-04-01

    This paper reviews clinical neuropsychological studies that have indicated that the recognition of a person's identity and the recognition of facial expressions are processed by different cortical and subcortical areas of the brain. The fusiform gyrus, especially the right fusiform gyrus, plays an important role in the recognition of identity. The superior temporal sulcus, amygdala, and medial frontal cortex play important roles in facial-expression recognition. Both facial recognition and facial-expression recognition are highly intellectual processes that involve several regions of the brain.

  18. Facial expressions and pair bonds in hylobatids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Florkiewicz, Brittany; Skollar, Gabriella; Reichard, Ulrich H

    2018-06-06

    Facial expressions are an important component of primate communication that functions to transmit social information and modulate intentions and motivations. Chimpanzees and macaques, for example, produce a variety of facial expressions when communicating with conspecifics. Hylobatids also produce various facial expressions; however, the origin and function of these facial expressions are still largely unclear. It has been suggested that larger facial expression repertoires may have evolved in the context of social complexity, but this link has yet to be tested at a broader empirical basis. The social complexity hypothesis offers a possible explanation for the evolution of complex communicative signals such as facial expressions, because as the complexity of an individual's social environment increases so does the need for communicative signals. We used an intraspecies, pair-focused study design to test the link between facial expressions and sociality within hylobatids, specifically the strength of pair-bonds. The current study compared 206 hr of video and 103 hr of focal animal data for ten hylobatid pairs from three genera (Nomascus, Hoolock, and Hylobates) living at the Gibbon Conservation Center. Using video footage, we explored 5,969 facial expressions along three dimensions: repertoire use, repertoire breadth, and facial expression synchrony [FES]. We then used focal animal data to compare dimensions of facial expressiveness to pair bond strength and behavioral synchrony. Hylobatids in our study overlapped in only half of their facial expressions (50%) with the only other detailed, quantitative study of hylobatid facial expressions, while 27 facial expressions were uniquely observed in our study animals. Taken together, hylobatids have a large facial expression repertoire of at least 80 unique facial expressions. Contrary to our prediction, facial repertoire composition was not significantly correlated with pair bond strength, rates of territorial synchrony

  19. Facial Expression Recognition Through Machine Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nazia Perveen

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Facial expressions communicate non-verbal cues which play an important role in interpersonal relations. Automatic recognition of facial expressions can be an important element of normal human-machine interfaces it might likewise be utilized as a part of behavioral science and in clinical practice. In spite of the fact that people perceive facial expressions for all intents and purposes immediately solid expression recognition by machine is still a challenge. From the point of view of automatic recognition a facial expression can be considered to comprise of disfigurements of the facial parts and their spatial relations or changes in the faces pigmentation. Research into automatic recognition of the facial expressions addresses the issues encompassing the representation and arrangement of static or dynamic qualities of these distortions or face pigmentation. We get results by utilizing the CVIPtools. We have taken train data set of six facial expressions of three persons and for train data set purpose we have total border mask sample 90 and 30 border mask sample for test data set purpose and we use RST- Invariant features and texture features for feature analysis and then classified them by using k- Nearest Neighbor classification algorithm. The maximum accuracy is 90.

  20. Glucose transporters: expression, regulation and cancer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    RODOLFO A. MEDINA

    2002-01-01

    Full Text Available Mammalian cells depend on glucose as a major substrate for energy production. Glucose is transported into the cell via facilitative glucose transporters (GLUT present in all cell types. Many GLUT isoforms have been described and their expression is cell-specific and subject to hormonal and environmental control. The kinetic properties and substrate specificities of the different isoforms are specifically suited to the energy requirements of the particular cell types. Due to the ubiquitousness of these transporters, their differential expression is involved in various disease states such as diabetes, ischemia and cancer. The majority of cancers and isolated cancer cell lines over-express the GLUT family members which are present in the respective tissue of origin under non-cancerous conditions. Moreover, due to the requirement of energy to feed uncontrolled proliferation, cancer cells often express GLUTs which under normal conditions would not be present in these tissues. This over-expression is predominantly associated with the likelihood of metastasis and hence poor patient prognosis. This article presents a review of the current literature on the regulation and expression of GLUT family members and has compiled clinical and research data on GLUT expression in human cancers and in isolated human cancer cell lines.

  1. CNPase Expression in Olfactory Ensheathing Cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christine Radtke

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available A large body of work supports the proposal that transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs into nerve or spinal cord injuries can promote axonal regeneration and remyelination. Yet, some investigators have questioned whether the transplanted OECs associate with axons and form peripheral myelin, or if they recruit endogenous Schwann cells that form myelin. Olfactory bulbs from transgenic mice expressing the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP under the control of the 2-3-cyclic nucleotide 3-phosphodiesterase (CNPase promoter were studied. CNPase is expressed in myelin-forming cells throughout their lineage. We examined CNPase expression in both in situ in the olfactory bulb and in vitro to determine if OECs express CNPase commensurate with their myelination potential. eGFP was observed in the outer nerve layer of the olfactory bulb. Dissociated OECs maintained in culture had both intense eGFP expression and CNPase immunostaining. Transplantation of OECs into transected peripheral nerve longitudinally associated with the regenerated axons. These data indicate that OECs in the outer nerve layer of the olfactory bulb of CNPase transgenic mice express CNPase. Thus, while OECs do not normally form myelin on olfactory nerve axons, their expression of CNPase is commensurate with their potential to form myelin when transplanted into injured peripheral nerve.

  2. Dynamic Facial Expression of Emotion Made Easy

    OpenAIRE

    Broekens, Joost; Qu, Chao; Brinkman, Willem-Paul

    2012-01-01

    Facial emotion expression for virtual characters is used in a wide variety of areas. Often, the primary reason to use emotion expression is not to study emotion expression generation per se, but to use emotion expression in an application or research project. What is then needed is an easy to use and flexible, but also validated mechanism to do so. In this report we present such a mechanism. It enables developers to build virtual characters with dynamic affective facial expressions. The mecha...

  3. Multiscale Embedded Gene Co-expression Network Analysis.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Won-Min Song

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Gene co-expression network analysis has been shown effective in identifying functional co-expressed gene modules associated with complex human diseases. However, existing techniques to construct co-expression networks require some critical prior information such as predefined number of clusters, numerical thresholds for defining co-expression/interaction, or do not naturally reproduce the hallmarks of complex systems such as the scale-free degree distribution of small-worldness. Previously, a graph filtering technique called Planar Maximally Filtered Graph (PMFG has been applied to many real-world data sets such as financial stock prices and gene expression to extract meaningful and relevant interactions. However, PMFG is not suitable for large-scale genomic data due to several drawbacks, such as the high computation complexity O(|V|3, the presence of false-positives due to the maximal planarity constraint, and the inadequacy of the clustering framework. Here, we developed a new co-expression network analysis framework called Multiscale Embedded Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (MEGENA by: i introducing quality control of co-expression similarities, ii parallelizing embedded network construction, and iii developing a novel clustering technique to identify multi-scale clustering structures in Planar Filtered Networks (PFNs. We applied MEGENA to a series of simulated data and the gene expression data in breast carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA. MEGENA showed improved performance over well-established clustering methods and co-expression network construction approaches. MEGENA revealed not only meaningful multi-scale organizations of co-expressed gene clusters but also novel targets in breast carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma.

  4. Multiscale Embedded Gene Co-expression Network Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Won-Min; Zhang, Bin

    2015-11-01

    Gene co-expression network analysis has been shown effective in identifying functional co-expressed gene modules associated with complex human diseases. However, existing techniques to construct co-expression networks require some critical prior information such as predefined number of clusters, numerical thresholds for defining co-expression/interaction, or do not naturally reproduce the hallmarks of complex systems such as the scale-free degree distribution of small-worldness. Previously, a graph filtering technique called Planar Maximally Filtered Graph (PMFG) has been applied to many real-world data sets such as financial stock prices and gene expression to extract meaningful and relevant interactions. However, PMFG is not suitable for large-scale genomic data due to several drawbacks, such as the high computation complexity O(|V|3), the presence of false-positives due to the maximal planarity constraint, and the inadequacy of the clustering framework. Here, we developed a new co-expression network analysis framework called Multiscale Embedded Gene Co-expression Network Analysis (MEGENA) by: i) introducing quality control of co-expression similarities, ii) parallelizing embedded network construction, and iii) developing a novel clustering technique to identify multi-scale clustering structures in Planar Filtered Networks (PFNs). We applied MEGENA to a series of simulated data and the gene expression data in breast carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). MEGENA showed improved performance over well-established clustering methods and co-expression network construction approaches. MEGENA revealed not only meaningful multi-scale organizations of co-expressed gene clusters but also novel targets in breast carcinoma and lung adenocarcinoma.

  5. Emotion Expression of Robot with Personality

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xue Hu

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available A robot emotional expression model based on Hidden Markov Model (HMM is built to enable robots which have different personalities to response in a more satisfactory emotional level. Gross emotion regulation theory and Five Factors Model (FFM which are the theoretical basis are firstly described. And then the importance of the personality effect on the emotion expression process is proposed, and how to make the effect quantization is discussed. After that, the algorithm of HMM is used to describe the process of emotional state transition and expression, and the performance transferring probability affected by personality is calculated. At last, the algorithm model is simulated and applied in a robot platform. The results prove that the emotional expression model can acquire humanlike expressions and improve the human-computer interaction.

  6. Converting nested algebra expressions into flat algebra expressions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Paredaens, J.; Van Gucht, D.

    1992-01-01

    Nested relations generalize ordinary flat relations by allowing tuple values to be either atomic or set valued. The nested algebra is a generalization of the flat relational algebra to manipulate nested relations. In this paper we study the expressive power of the nested algebra relative to its

  7. Overexpression of pucC improves the heterologous protein expression level in a Rhodobacter sphaeroides expression system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, L; Chen, G; Ding, G; Zhao, Z; Dong, T; Hu, Z

    2015-04-27

    The Rhodobacter sphaeroides system has been used to express membrane proteins. However, its low yield has substantially limited its application. In order to promote the protein expression capability of this system, the pucC gene, which plays a crucial role in assembling the R. sphaeroides light-harvesting 2 complex (LH2), was overexpressed. To build a pucC overexpression strain, a pucC overexpression vector was constructed and transformed into R. sphaeroides CQU68. The overexpression efficiency was evaluated by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. A well-used reporter β-glucuronidase (GUS) was fusion-expressed with LH2 to evaluate the heterologous protein expression level. As a result, the cell culture and protein in the pucC overexpression strain showed much higher typical spectral absorption peaks at 800 and 850 nm compared with the non-overexpression strain, suggesting a higher expression level of LH2-GUS fusion protein in the pucC overexpression strain. This result was further confirmed by Western blot, which also showed a much higher level of heterologous protein expression in the pucC overexpression strain. We further compared GUS activity in pucC overexpression and non-overexpression strains, the results of which showed that GUS activity in the pucC overexpression strain was approximately ten-fold that in the non-overexpression strain. These results demonstrate that overexpressed pucC can promote heterologous protein expression levels in R. sphaeroides.

  8. Judgments of subtle facial expressions of emotion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matsumoto, David; Hwang, Hyisung C

    2014-04-01

    Most studies on judgments of facial expressions of emotion have primarily utilized prototypical, high-intensity expressions. This paper examines judgments of subtle facial expressions of emotion, including not only low-intensity versions of full-face prototypes but also variants of those prototypes. A dynamic paradigm was used in which observers were shown a neutral expression followed by the target expression to judge, and then the neutral expression again, allowing for a simulation of the emergence of the expression from and then return to a baseline. We also examined how signal and intensity clarities of the expressions (explained more fully in the Introduction) were associated with judgment agreement levels. Low-intensity, full-face prototypical expressions of emotion were judged as the intended emotion at rates significantly greater than chance. A number of the proposed variants were also judged as the intended emotions. Both signal and intensity clarities were individually associated with agreement rates; when their interrelationships were taken into account, signal clarity independently predicted agreement rates but intensity clarity did not. The presence or absence of specific muscles appeared to be more important to agreement rates than their intensity levels, with the exception of the intensity of zygomatic major, which was positively correlated with agreement rates for judgments of joy.

  9. Perceiving and producing facial expressions of emotion : The role of dynamic expressions and culture

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Fang, X.

    2018-01-01

    We spend much of our waking lives interacting with other people, reading their facial expressions to figure out what they might be feeling, thinking, or intending to do next (Ekman 1994; Fridlund 1994). At the same time, we also express our own feelings, thoughts, and intentions through facial

  10. Expression in E. coli systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Krogsdam, Anne-M; Kristiansen, Karsten; Nøhr, Jane

    2003-01-01

    intracellularly in soluble form. In E. coli, proteins containing disulfide bonds are best produced by secretion because the disulfide forming foldases reside in the periplasm. Likewise, a correct N-terminus is more likely to be obtained upon secretion. Moreover, potentially toxic proteins are more likely......Owing to cost advantage, speed of production, and often high product yield (up to 50% of total cell protein), expression in Escherichia coli is generally the first choice when attempting to express a recombinant protein. Expression systems exist to produce recombinant protein intracellularly...

  11. Regional Brain Responses Are Biased Toward Infant Facial Expressions Compared to Adult Facial Expressions in Nulliparous Women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Bingbing; Cheng, Gang; Zhang, Dajun; Wei, Dongtao; Qiao, Lei; Wang, Xiangpeng; Che, Xianwei

    2016-01-01

    Recent neuroimaging studies suggest that neutral infant faces compared to neutral adult faces elicit greater activity in brain areas associated with face processing, attention, empathic response, reward, and movement. However, whether infant facial expressions evoke larger brain responses than adult facial expressions remains unclear. Here, we performed event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging in nulliparous women while they were presented with images of matched unfamiliar infant and adult facial expressions (happy, neutral, and uncomfortable/sad) in a pseudo-randomized order. We found that the bilateral fusiform and right lingual gyrus were overall more activated during the presentation of infant facial expressions compared to adult facial expressions. Uncomfortable infant faces compared to sad adult faces evoked greater activation in the bilateral fusiform gyrus, precentral gyrus, postcentral gyrus, posterior cingulate cortex-thalamus, and precuneus. Neutral infant faces activated larger brain responses in the left fusiform gyrus compared to neutral adult faces. Happy infant faces compared to happy adult faces elicited larger responses in areas of the brain associated with emotion and reward processing using a more liberal threshold of p facial expressions compared to adult facial expressions among nulliparous women, and this bias may be modulated by individual differences in Interest-In-Infants and perspective taking ability.

  12. Decreased expression of Beclin 1 correlates closely with Bcl-xL expression and poor prognosis of ovarian carcinoma.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huan-Xin Lin

    Full Text Available It has been suggested that autophagy-related Beclin 1 plays a critical role in the regulation of tumor development and/or progression, but its prognostic significance and relationship with Bcl-xL expression in ovarian carcinoma are unclear.In the present study, the methods of Western blotting and immunohistochemistry (IHC were utilized to investigate the expression status of Beclin 1 and Bcl-xL in fresh ovarian tissues and paraffin-embedded epithelial ovarian tumor tissues. Decreased expression of Beclin 1 was examined by IHC in 8.3% of normal ovaries, in 15.4% of cystadenomas, in 20.0% of borderline tumors, and in 55.6% of ovarian carcinomas, respectively. In ovarian carcinomas, decreased expression of Beclin 1 was correlated closely with ascending histological grade, later pT/pN/pM status and/or advanced clinical stage (P<0.05. In univariate survival analysis, a highly significant association between low-expressed Beclin 1 and shortened patient survival was evaluated in ovarian carcinoma patients (P<0.01, and Beclin 1 expression was an independent prognostic factor as evidenced by multivariate analysis (P = 0.013. In addition, decreased expression of Beclin 1 was inversely correlated with altered expression of Bcl-xL in ovarian carcinoma cohort, and combined analysis further showed that the low Beclin 1/high Bcl-xL group had the lowest survival rate.Our findings suggest that Beclin 1 expression, as examined by IHC, could be served as an additional tool in identifying ovarian carcinoma patients at risk of tumor progression, and predicting patient survival in ovarian carcinomas with increased expression of Bcl-xL.

  13. In Silico Expression Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bolívar, Julio; Hehl, Reinhard; Bülow, Lorenz

    2016-01-01

    Information on the specificity of cis-sequences enables the design of functional synthetic plant promoters that are responsive to specific stresses. Potential cis-sequences may be experimentally tested, however, correlation of genomic sequence with gene expression data enables an in silico expression analysis approach to bioinformatically assess the stress specificity of candidate cis-sequences prior to experimental verification. The present chapter demonstrates an example for the in silico validation of a potential cis-regulatory sequence responsive to cold stress. The described online tool can be applied for the bioinformatic assessment of cis-sequences responsive to most abiotic and biotic stresses of plants. Furthermore, a method is presented based on a reverted in silico expression analysis approach that predicts highly specific potentially functional cis-regulatory elements for a given stress.

  14. Expression of CD133 in acute leukemia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tolba, Fetnat M; Foda, Mona E; Kamal, Howyda M; Elshabrawy, Deena A

    2013-06-01

    There have been conflicting results regarding a correlation between CD133 expression and disease outcome. To assess CD133 expression in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and to evaluate its correlation with the different clinical and laboratory data as well as its relation to disease outcome, the present study included 60 newly diagnosed acute leukemic patients; 30 ALL patients with a male to female ratio of 1.5:1 and their ages ranged from 9 months to 48 years, and 30 AML patients with a male to female ratio of 1:1 and their ages ranged from 17 to 66 years. Flow cytometric assessment of CD133 expression was performed on blast cells. In ALL, no correlations were elicited between CD133 expression and some monoclonal antibodies, but in AML group, there was a significant positive correlation between CD133 and HLA-DR, CD3, CD7 and TDT, CD13 and CD34. In ALL group, patients with negative CD133 expression achieved complete remission more than patients with positive CD133 expression. In AML group, there was no statistically significant association found between positive CD133 expression and treatment outcome. The Kaplan-Meier curve illustrated a high significant negative correlation between CD133 expression and the overall survival of the AML patients. CD133 expression is an independent prognostic factor in acute leukemia, especially ALL patients and its expression could characterize a group of acute leukemic patients with higher resistance to standard chemotherapy and relapse. CD133 expression was highly associated with poor prognosis in acute leukemic patients.

  15. Synthetic promoter libraries- tuning of gene expression

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hammer, Karin; Mijakovic, Ivan; Jensen, Peter Ruhdal

    2006-01-01

    knockout and strong overexpression. However, applications such as metabolic optimization and control analysis necessitate a continuous set of expression levels with only slight increments in strength to cover a specific window around the wildtype expression level of the studied gene; this requirement can......The study of gene function often requires changing the expression of a gene and evaluating the consequences. In principle, the expression of any given gene can be modulated in a quasi-continuum of discrete expression levels but the traditional approaches are usually limited to two extremes: gene...

  16. Modulation of gene expression made easy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Solem, Christian; Jensen, Peter Ruhdal

    2002-01-01

    A new approach for modulating gene expression, based on randomization of promoter (spacer) sequences, was developed. The method was applied to chromosomal genes in Lactococcus lactis and shown to generate libraries of clones with broad ranges of expression levels of target genes. In one example...... that the method can be applied to modulating the expression of native genes on the chromosome. We constructed a series of strains in which the expression of the las operon, containing the genes pfk, pyk, and ldh, was modulated by integrating a truncated copy of the pfk gene. Importantly, the modulation affected...

  17. Large scale gene expression meta-analysis reveals tissue-specific, sex-biased gene expression in humans

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Benjamin Mayne

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available The severity and prevalence of many diseases are known to differ between the sexes. Organ specific sex-biased gene expression may underpin these and other sexually dimorphic traits. To further our understanding of sex differences in transcriptional regulation, we performed meta-analyses of sex biased gene expression in multiple human tissues. We analysed 22 publicly available human gene expression microarray data sets including over 2500 samples from 15 different tissues and 9 different organs. Briefly, by using an inverse-variance method we determined the effect size difference of gene expression between males and females. We found the greatest sex differences in gene expression in the brain, specifically in the anterior cingulate cortex, (1818 genes, followed by the heart (375 genes, kidney (224 genes, colon (218 genes and thyroid (163 genes. More interestingly, we found different parts of the brain with varying numbers and identity of sex-biased genes, indicating that specific cortical regions may influence sexually dimorphic traits. The majority of sex-biased genes in other tissues such as the bladder, liver, lungs and pancreas were on the sex chromosomes or involved in sex hormone production. On average in each tissue, 32% of autosomal genes that were expressed in a sex-biased fashion contained androgen or estrogen hormone response elements. Interestingly, across all tissues, we found approximately two-thirds of autosomal genes that were sex-biased were not under direct influence of sex hormones. To our knowledge this is the largest analysis of sex-biased gene expression in human tissues to date. We identified many sex-biased genes that were not under the direct influence of sex chromosome genes or sex hormones. These may provide targets for future development of sex-specific treatments for diseases.

  18. Expressive map design: OGC SLD/SE++ extension for expressive map styles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christophe, Sidonie; Duménieu, Bertrand; Masse, Antoine; Hoarau, Charlotte; Ory, Jérémie; Brédif, Mathieu; Lecordix, François; Mellado, Nicolas; Turbet, Jérémie; Loi, Hugo; Hurtut, Thomas; Vanderhaeghe, David; Vergne, Romain; Thollot, Joëlle

    2018-05-01

    In the context of custom map design, handling more artistic and expressive tools has been identified as a carto-graphic need, in order to design stylized and expressive maps. Based on previous works on style formalization, an approach for specifying the map style has been proposed and experimented for particular use cases. A first step deals with the analysis of inspiration sources, in order to extract `what does make the style of the source', i.e. the salient visual characteristics to be automatically reproduced (textures, spatial arrangements, linear stylization, etc.). In a second step, in order to mimic and generate those visual characteristics, existing and innovative rendering techniques have been implemented in our GIS engine, thus extending the capabilities to generate expressive renderings. Therefore, an extension of the existing cartographic pipeline has been proposed based on the following aspects: 1- extension of the symbolization specifications OGC SLD/SE in order to provide a formalism to specify and reference expressive rendering methods; 2- separate the specification of each rendering method and its parameterization, as metadata. The main contribution has been described in (Christophe et al. 2016). In this paper, we focus firstly on the extension of the cartographic pipeline (SLD++ and metadata) and secondly on map design capabilities which have been experimented on various topographic styles: old cartographic styles (Cassini), artistic styles (watercolor, impressionism, Japanese print), hybrid topographic styles (ortho-imagery & vector data) and finally abstract and photo-realist styles for the geovisualization of costal area. The genericity and interoperability of our approach are promising and have already been tested for 3D visualization.

  19. From molecular structure to macromolecular organization : keys to design supramolecular biomaterials

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hutin, M.C.; Burakowska-Meise, E.A.; Appel, W.P.J.; Dankers, P.Y.W.; Meijer, E.W.

    2013-01-01

    In the past decade, significant progress has been made in the field of biomaterials, for potential applications in tissue engineering or drug delivery. We have recently developed a new class of thermoplastic elastomers, based on ureidopyrimidinone (UPy) quadruple hydrogen bonding motifs. These

  20. Human Health

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Garland, Rebecca M

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Southern Africa has multiple risks that contribute to the overall burden of disease (i.e. the quadruple burden of disease), which may make people more vulnerable to the health impacts from climate change. In addition, the sector is vulnerable...

  1. Freezing Baboon Red Blood Cells in the Original 800 ml Polyvinylchloride Plastic Bag With 40% W/V Glycerol and Storage at -80 C and Deglycerolization Using the IBM Code Blood Processor 2991

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    1997-01-01

    ...) plastic collection bag. Up to four hundred fifty (450 + 45 ml) ml of blood is collected in a quadruple plastic bag system with a special adaptor port on the tubing connecting the primary 800 ml PVC plastic bag to the three transfer packs...

  2. Framing Creativity. User-driven Innovation in Changing Contexts

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Helms, Niels Henrik; Heilesen, Simon

    2011-01-01

    -project). After briefly discussing the concepts of creativity and innovation, the article outlines three levels of analysis. On a meta-level, a new model of quadruple helix innovation is introduced, providing a framework for interrelations between enterprise, government, knowledge institutions, and users...

  3. Intrahepatic expression of interferon alpha & interferon alpha ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    kemrilib

    IFN-α and IFN-α Receptor mRNA expression in the liver. All the patients showed IFN-α gene expression except one patient who had the highest degree of fibrosis (fibrosis grade 5) and HAI Index of 9. IFN- α Receptor mRNA was expressed in 30% (9/30). (Figure 4). Non of the patients with HCC had. IFNα-Rc expression and ...

  4. Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED): a relational database of gene expression profiles in kidney disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qingzhou; Yang, Bo; Chen, Xujiao; Xu, Jing; Mei, Changlin; Mao, Zhiguo

    2014-01-01

    We present a bioinformatics database named Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED), which contains comprehensive gene expression data sets from renal disease research. The web-based interface of RGED allows users to query the gene expression profiles in various kidney-related samples, including renal cell lines, human kidney tissues and murine model kidneys. Researchers can explore certain gene profiles, the relationships between genes of interests and identify biomarkers or even drug targets in kidney diseases. The aim of this work is to provide a user-friendly utility for the renal disease research community to query expression profiles of genes of their own interest without the requirement of advanced computational skills. Website is implemented in PHP, R, MySQL and Nginx and freely available from http://rged.wall-eva.net. http://rged.wall-eva.net. © The Author(s) 2014. Published by Oxford University Press.

  5. Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED): a relational database of gene expression profiles in kidney disease

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qingzhou; Yang, Bo; Chen, Xujiao; Xu, Jing; Mei, Changlin; Mao, Zhiguo

    2014-01-01

    We present a bioinformatics database named Renal Gene Expression Database (RGED), which contains comprehensive gene expression data sets from renal disease research. The web-based interface of RGED allows users to query the gene expression profiles in various kidney-related samples, including renal cell lines, human kidney tissues and murine model kidneys. Researchers can explore certain gene profiles, the relationships between genes of interests and identify biomarkers or even drug targets in kidney diseases. The aim of this work is to provide a user-friendly utility for the renal disease research community to query expression profiles of genes of their own interest without the requirement of advanced computational skills. Availability and implementation: Website is implemented in PHP, R, MySQL and Nginx and freely available from http://rged.wall-eva.net. Database URL: http://rged.wall-eva.net PMID:25252782

  6. Gene expression and gene therapy imaging

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rome, Claire; Couillaud, Franck; Moonen, Chrit T.W.

    2007-01-01

    The fast growing field of molecular imaging has achieved major advances in imaging gene expression, an important element of gene therapy. Gene expression imaging is based on specific probes or contrast agents that allow either direct or indirect spatio-temporal evaluation of gene expression. Direct evaluation is possible with, for example, contrast agents that bind directly to a specific target (e.g., receptor). Indirect evaluation may be achieved by using specific substrate probes for a target enzyme. The use of marker genes, also called reporter genes, is an essential element of MI approaches for gene expression in gene therapy. The marker gene may not have a therapeutic role itself, but by coupling the marker gene to a therapeutic gene, expression of the marker gene reports on the expression of the therapeutic gene. Nuclear medicine and optical approaches are highly sensitive (detection of probes in the picomolar range), whereas MRI and ultrasound imaging are less sensitive and require amplification techniques and/or accumulation of contrast agents in enlarged contrast particles. Recently developed MI techniques are particularly relevant for gene therapy. Amongst these are the possibility to track gene therapy vectors such as stem cells, and the techniques that allow spatiotemporal control of gene expression by non-invasive heating (with MRI guided focused ultrasound) and the use of temperature sensitive promoters. (orig.)

  7. Behavioral experience induces zif268 expression in mature granule cells but suppresses its expression in immature granule cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huckleberry, Kylie A.; Kane, Gary A.; Mathis, Rita J.; Cook, Sarah G.; Clutton, Jonathan E.; Drew, Michael R.

    2015-01-01

    Thousands of neurons are born each day in the dentate gyrus (DG), but many of these cells die before reaching maturity. Both death and survival of adult-born neurons are regulated by neuronal activity in the DG. The immediate-early gene (IEG) zif268 appears to be an important mediator of these effects, as its expression can be induced by neural activity and knockout of zif268 impairs survival of adult-born neurons (Richardson et al., 1992; Veyrac et al., 2013). Despite the apparent importance of zif268 for adult neurogenesis, its behavior-induced expression has not been fully characterized in adult-born neurons. Here we characterize behavior-evoked expression of zif268 in mature and newborn dentate granule cells (DGCs). We first quantified zif268 expression in doublecortin-positive (DCX+) immature neurons and in the general granule cell population after brief exposure to a novel environment (NE). In the general granule cell population, zif268 expression peaked 1 h after NE exposure and returned to baseline by 8 h post-exposure. However, in the DCX+ cells, zif268 expression was suppressed relative to home cage for at least 8 h post-exposure. We next asked whether suppression of zif268 in DCX+ immature cells occurs in other behavioral paradigms that recruit the hippocampus. Exposure to Morris water maze (MWM) training, an enriched environment, or a NE caused approximately equal suppression of zif268 expression in DCX+ cells and approximately equal activation of zif268 expression among the general granule cell population. The same behavioral procedures activated zif268 expression in 6-week-old BrdU-labeled adult-born neurons, indicating that zif268 suppression is specific to immature neurons. Finally, we asked whether zif268 suppression varied as a function of age within the DCX+ population, which ranges in age from 0 to approximately 4 weeks. NE exposure had no significant effect on zif268 expression in 2- or 4-week-old BrdU-labeled neurons, but it significantly

  8. Definition, Detection and Generation of Iyashi Expressions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kitaoka, Tetsuko; Diago, Luis A.; Hagiwara, Ichiro; Kitazaki, Satoshi; Yamane, Shigeru

    This paper concerns the engineering analysis of “Iyashi”, a peculiar concept to the Japanese, which affect person's heart and may change their expression and behavior. We have integrated the advocator's view of “Iyashi”, analyzed the social background of “Iyashi” and have defined Iyashi and also the Iyashi expression. As the facial expression is the special and important stimulus for both observers and people who show expressions, we want to prove the existence of expressions that change the observer's emotion with Iyashi. We have developed the system to clarify the combination of facial features important for Iyashi through the psychological experiments and the analysis by Holographic Neural Networks (HNN). HNN analysis gave the structure of the Iyashi expression, that is the important combination of the physical facial parameters contributing to the high degree of Iyashi. Based on the structure of Iyashi we are able to generate the Iyashi expression appropriate for each person.

  9. Adaptive Evolution of Gene Expression in Drosophila.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nourmohammad, Armita; Rambeau, Joachim; Held, Torsten; Kovacova, Viera; Berg, Johannes; Lässig, Michael

    2017-08-08

    Gene expression levels are important quantitative traits that link genotypes to molecular functions and fitness. In Drosophila, population-genetic studies have revealed substantial adaptive evolution at the genomic level, but the evolutionary modes of gene expression remain controversial. Here, we present evidence that adaptation dominates the evolution of gene expression levels in flies. We show that 64% of the observed expression divergence across seven Drosophila species are adaptive changes driven by directional selection. Our results are derived from time-resolved data of gene expression divergence across a family of related species, using a probabilistic inference method for gene-specific selection. Adaptive gene expression is stronger in specific functional classes, including regulation, sensory perception, sexual behavior, and morphology. Moreover, we identify a large group of genes with sex-specific adaptation of expression, which predominantly occurs in males. Our analysis opens an avenue to map system-wide selection on molecular quantitative traits independently of their genetic basis. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Adaptive Evolution of Gene Expression in Drosophila

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Armita Nourmohammad

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Gene expression levels are important quantitative traits that link genotypes to molecular functions and fitness. In Drosophila, population-genetic studies have revealed substantial adaptive evolution at the genomic level, but the evolutionary modes of gene expression remain controversial. Here, we present evidence that adaptation dominates the evolution of gene expression levels in flies. We show that 64% of the observed expression divergence across seven Drosophila species are adaptive changes driven by directional selection. Our results are derived from time-resolved data of gene expression divergence across a family of related species, using a probabilistic inference method for gene-specific selection. Adaptive gene expression is stronger in specific functional classes, including regulation, sensory perception, sexual behavior, and morphology. Moreover, we identify a large group of genes with sex-specific adaptation of expression, which predominantly occurs in males. Our analysis opens an avenue to map system-wide selection on molecular quantitative traits independently of their genetic basis.

  11. Correlation of Slug gene expression with lymph node metastasis and invasion molecule expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shan-Ming Lu

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To study the correlation of Slug gene expression with lymph node metastasis and invasion molecule expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue. Methods: Oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue surgical removed in Affiliated Stomatological Hospital of Nanjing Medical University between March 2015 and April 2017 was selected and divided into the oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue with neck lymph node metastasis and the oral squamous cell carcinoma tissues without lymph node metastasis according to the condition of lymph node metastasis. The expression of Slug, epithelial-mesenchymal transition molecules and invasion molecules in the oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue were detected. Results: Slug, N-cadherin, Vimentin, CD147, OPN, GRP78, SDF-1 and CXCR4 protein expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue with neck lymph node metastasis were significantly higher than those in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue without lymph node metastasis while E-cadherin, P120ctn and ZO-1 protein expression were significantly lower than those in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue without lymph node metastasis; N-cadherin, Vimentin, CD147, OPN, GRP78, SDF-1 and CXCR4 protein expression in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue with high Slug expression were significantly higher than those in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue with low Slug expression while E-cadherin, P120ctn and ZO-1 protein expression were significantly lower than those in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue with low Slug expression. Conclusion: The highly expressed Slug in oral squamous cell carcinoma tissue can promote the epithelial-mesenchymal transition and invasion of the cells to participate in the lymph node metastasis of tumor cells.

  12. Social Use of Facial Expressions in Hylobatids

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scheider, Linda; Waller, Bridget M.; Oña, Leonardo; Burrows, Anne M.; Liebal, Katja

    2016-01-01

    Non-human primates use various communicative means in interactions with others. While primate gestures are commonly considered to be intentionally and flexibly used signals, facial expressions are often referred to as inflexible, automatic expressions of affective internal states. To explore whether and how non-human primates use facial expressions in specific communicative interactions, we studied five species of small apes (gibbons) by employing a newly established Facial Action Coding System for hylobatid species (GibbonFACS). We found that, despite individuals often being in close proximity to each other, in social (as opposed to non-social contexts) the duration of facial expressions was significantly longer when gibbons were facing another individual compared to non-facing situations. Social contexts included grooming, agonistic interactions and play, whereas non-social contexts included resting and self-grooming. Additionally, gibbons used facial expressions while facing another individual more often in social contexts than non-social contexts where facial expressions were produced regardless of the attentional state of the partner. Also, facial expressions were more likely ‘responded to’ by the partner’s facial expressions when facing another individual than non-facing. Taken together, our results indicate that gibbons use their facial expressions differentially depending on the social context and are able to use them in a directed way in communicative interactions with other conspecifics. PMID:26978660

  13. TRPA1 expression levels and excitability brake by KV channels influence cold sensitivity of TRPA1-expressing neurons.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Memon, Tosifa; Chase, Kevin; Leavitt, Lee S; Olivera, Baldomero M; Teichert, Russell W

    2017-06-14

    The molecular sensor of innocuous (painless) cold sensation is well-established to be transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily M, member 8 (TRPM8). However, the role of transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily A, member 1 (TRPA1) in noxious (painful) cold sensation has been controversial. We find that TRPA1 channels contribute to the noxious cold sensitivity of mouse somatosensory neurons, independent of TRPM8 channels, and that TRPA1-expressing neurons are largely non-overlapping with TRPM8-expressing neurons in mouse dorsal-root ganglia (DRG). However, relatively few TRPA1-expressing neurons (e.g., responsive to allyl isothiocyanate or AITC, a selective TRPA1 agonist) respond overtly to cold temperature in vitro, unlike TRPM8-expressing neurons, which almost all respond to cold. Using somatosensory neurons from TRPM8-/- mice and subtype-selective blockers of TRPM8 and TRPA1 channels, we demonstrate that responses to cold temperatures from TRPA1-expressing neurons are mediated by TRPA1 channels. We also identify two factors that affect the cold-sensitivity of TRPA1-expressing neurons: (1) cold-sensitive AITC-sensitive neurons express relatively more TRPA1 transcripts than cold-insensitive AITC-sensitive neurons and (2) voltage-gated potassium (K V ) channels attenuate the cold-sensitivity of some TRPA1-expressing neurons. The combination of these two factors, combined with the relatively weak agonist-like activity of cold temperature on TRPA1 channels, partially explains why few TRPA1-expressing neurons respond to cold. Blocking K V channels also reveals another subclass of noxious cold-sensitive DRG neurons that do not express TRPM8 or TRPA1 channels. Altogether, the results of this study provide novel insights into the cold-sensitivity of different subclasses of somatosensory neurons. Copyright © 2017 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. The motivation to express prejudice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forscher, Patrick S.; Cox, William T. L.; Graetz, Nicholas; Devine, Patricia G.

    2015-01-01

    Contemporary prejudice research focuses primarily on people who are motivated to respond without prejudice and the ways in which unintentional bias can cause these people to act inconsistent with this motivation. However, some real-world phenomena (e.g., hate speech, hate crimes) and experimental findings (e.g., Plant & Devine, 2001; 2009) suggest that some expressions of prejudice are intentional. These phenomena and findings are difficult to explain solely from the motivations to respond without prejudice. We argue that some people are motivated to express prejudice, and we develop the motivation to express prejudice (MP) scale to measure this motivation. In seven studies involving more than 6,000 participants, we demonstrate that, across scale versions targeted at Black people and gay men, the MP scale has good reliability and convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. In normative climates that prohibit prejudice, the internal and external motivations to express prejudice are functionally non-independent, but they become more independent when normative climates permit more prejudice toward a target group. People high in the motivation to express prejudice are relatively likely to resist pressure to support programs promoting intergroup contact and vote for political candidates who support oppressive policies. The motivation to express prejudice predicted these outcomes even when controlling for attitudes and the motivations to respond without prejudice. This work encourages contemporary prejudice researchers to broaden the range of samples, target groups, and phenomena that they study, and more generally to consider the intentional aspects of negative intergroup behavior. PMID:26479365

  15. Differential expression of homeobox-containing genes Msx-1 and Msx-2 and homeoprotein Msx-2 expression during chick craniofacial development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nishikawa, K; Nakanishi, T; Aoki, C; Hattori, T; Takahashi, K; Taniguchi, S

    1994-03-01

    The expression pattern of chick Msx-1 and Msx-2 homeobox genes in craniofacial primordia was examined by in situ hybridization using cRNA probes. Both genes were expressed in the distal region of the facial primordia, where the distribution of Msx-2 expression was restricted distally within the Msx-1 expression domain. On the contrary, Msx-2 expression in the lateral choroid plexus and cranial skull was broader and more intensive than Msx-1 expression. Our findings suggest that these two genes cooperate to play differential roles in craniofacial development. Msx-2 protein was detected immunohistochemically, and its localization essentially corresponded to the mRNA expression pattern, substantiating the involvement of Msx-2 protein as a transcriptional regulator in developing limb and face.

  16. DEXTER: Disease-Expression Relation Extraction from Text.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gupta, Samir; Dingerdissen, Hayley; Ross, Karen E; Hu, Yu; Wu, Cathy H; Mazumder, Raja; Vijay-Shanker, K

    2018-01-01

    Gene expression levels affect biological processes and play a key role in many diseases. Characterizing expression profiles is useful for clinical research, and diagnostics and prognostics of diseases. There are currently several high-quality databases that capture gene expression information, obtained mostly from large-scale studies, such as microarray and next-generation sequencing technologies, in the context of disease. The scientific literature is another rich source of information on gene expression-disease relationships that not only have been captured from large-scale studies but have also been observed in thousands of small-scale studies. Expression information obtained from literature through manual curation can extend expression databases. While many of the existing databases include information from literature, they are limited by the time-consuming nature of manual curation and have difficulty keeping up with the explosion of publications in the biomedical field. In this work, we describe an automated text-mining tool, Disease-Expression Relation Extraction from Text (DEXTER) to extract information from literature on gene and microRNA expression in the context of disease. One of the motivations in developing DEXTER was to extend the BioXpress database, a cancer-focused gene expression database that includes data derived from large-scale experiments and manual curation of publications. The literature-based portion of BioXpress lags behind significantly compared to expression information obtained from large-scale studies and can benefit from our text-mined results. We have conducted two different evaluations to measure the accuracy of our text-mining tool and achieved average F-scores of 88.51 and 81.81% for the two evaluations, respectively. Also, to demonstrate the ability to extract rich expression information in different disease-related scenarios, we used DEXTER to extract information on differential expression information for 2024 genes in lung

  17. TRANSGENIC PLANTS EXPRESSING BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS DELTA-ENDOTOXINS

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Hua-rong,Li; BrendaOppert; KunYanZhu; RandallA.Higgins; Fang-nengHuang; LawrentL.Buschman

    2003-01-01

    Commercial varieties of transgenic Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) plants have been developed in many countries to control target pests. Initially, the expression of native Bt genes in plants was low due to mRNA instability, improper splicing, and post-translation modifications. Subsequently, modifications of the native Bt genes greatly enhanced expression levels. This is a review of the developments that made modem high-expression transgenic Bt plants possible, with an emphasis on the reasons for the low-level expression of native Bt genes in plant systems, and the techniques that have been used to improve plant expression of Bt toxin genes.

  18. VEGF expression in hepatectomized tumor-bearing mice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andrini, L; Blanco, A Fernandez; Inda, A; García, M; Garcia, A; Errecalde, A

    2011-01-01

    The experiments were designed in order to study the VEGF expression in intact (group I), hepatectomized (group II), and hepatectomized-tumor bearing mice (group III) throughout one complete circadian time span. Adult male mice were used for the VEGF expression study. The statistical analysis was performed using analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed statistical differences in the VEGF expression between groups I and II, but the most significant differences were found between groups I and III. In conclusion, these expressions have a circadian rhythm in all groups; moreover, in group III, this expression was higher and appeared before than in the others.

  19. C-reactive protein inhibits survivin expression via Akt/mTOR pathway downregulation by PTEN expression in cardiac myocytes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Beom Seob Lee

    Full Text Available C-reactive protein (CRP is one of the most important biomarkers for arteriosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. Recent studies have shown that CRP affects cell cycle and inflammatory process in cardiac myocytes. Survivin is also involved in cardiac myocytes replication and apoptosis. Reduction of survivin expression is associated with less favorable cardiac remodeling in animal models. However, the effect of CRP on survivin expression and its cellular mechanism has not yet been studied. We demonstrated that treatment of CRP resulted in a significant decrease of survivin protein expression in a concentration-dependent manner in cardiac myocytes. The upstream signaling proteins of survivin, such as Akt, mTOR and p70S6K, were also downregulated by CRP treatment. In addition, CRP increased the protein and mRNA levels of PTEN. The siRNA transfection or specific inhibitor treatment for PTEN restored the CRP-induced downregulation of Akt/mTOR/p70S6K pathway and survivin protein expression. Moreover, pretreatment with a specific p53 inhibitor decreased the CRP-induced PTEN expression. ERK-specific inhibitor also blocked the p53 phosphorylation and PTEN expression induced by CRP. Our study provides a novel insight into CRP-induced downregulation of survivin protein expression in cardiac myocytes through mechanisms that involved in downregulation of Akt/mTOR/p70S6K pathway by expression of PTEN.

  20. Long chain fatty Acyl-CoA synthetase 4 is a biomarker for and mediator of hormone resistance in human breast cancer.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xinyu Wu

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to determine the role of long-chain fatty acyl-CoA synthetase 4 (ACSL4 in breast cancer. Public databases were utilized to analyze the relationship between ACSL4 mRNA expression and the presence of steroid hormone and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2 in both breast cancer cell lines and tissue samples. In addition, cell lines were utilized to assess the consequences of either increased or decreased levels of ACSL4 expression. Proliferation, migration, anchorage-independent growth and apoptosis were used as biological end points. Effects on mRNA expression and signal transduction pathways were also monitored. A meta-analysis of public gene expression databases indicated that ACSL4 expression is positively correlated with a unique subtype of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC, characterized by the absence of androgen receptor (AR and therefore referred to as quadruple negative breast cancer (QNBC. Results of experiments in breast cancer cell lines suggest that simultaneous expression of ACSL4 and a receptor is associated with hormone resistance. Forced expression of ACSL4 in ACSL4-negative, estrogen receptor α (ER-positive MCF-7 cells resulted in increased growth, invasion and anchorage independent growth, as well as a loss of dependence on estrogen that was accompanied by a reduction in the levels of steroid hormone receptors. Sensitivity to tamoxifen, triacsin C and etoposide was also attenuated. Similarly, when HER2-positive, ACSL4-negative, SKBr3 breast cancer cells were induced to express ACSL4, the proliferation rate increased and the apoptotic effect of lapatinib was reduced. The growth stimulatory effect of ACSL4 expression was also observed in vivo in nude mice when MCF-7 control and ACSL4-expressing cells were utilized to induce tumors. Our data strongly suggest that ACSL4 can serve as both a biomarker for, and mediator of, an aggressive breast cancer phenotype.

  1. During development intense Sox2 expression marks not only Prox1-expressing taste bud cell but also perigemmal cell lineages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakayama, Ayumi; Miura, Hirohito; Ooki, Makoto; Harada, Shuitsu

    2015-03-01

    Sox2 is proposed to regulate the differentiation of bipotential progenitor cells into taste bud cells. However, detailed expression of Sox2 remains unclear. In this report, Sox2 expression during taste bud development in the fungiform (FF), circumvallate (CV) and soft palate (SP) areas is examined together with Prox1. First, we immunohistochemically checked Prox1 expression in adults and found that almost all taste bud cells are Prox1-positive. During FF development, intense Sox2 expression was restricted to taste bud primordia expressing Prox1 at E12.5. However, at E14.5, Sox2 was intensely expressed outside the developing taste buds resolving to perigemmal Sox2 expression in adults. In the SP, at E14.5, taste bud primordia emerged as Prox1-expressing cell clusters. However, intense Sox2 expression was not restricted to taste bud primordia but was detected widely in the epithelium. During development, Sox2 expression outside developing taste buds was generally down-regulated but was retained in the perigemmal region similarly to that in the FF. In the CV, the initial stage of taste bud development remained unclear because of the lack of taste bud primordia comparable to that in the FF and SP. Here, we show that Prox1-expressing cells appear in the apical epithelium at E12.5, in the inner trench wall at E17.5 and in the outer trench wall at E18.5. Sox2 was again not restricted to developing taste bud cells expressing Prox1 during CV development. The expression patterns support that Sox2 does not serve as a cell fate selector between taste bud cells and surrounding keratinocytes but rather may contribute to them both.

  2. DAG expression: high-throughput gene expression analysis of real-time PCR data using standard curves for relative quantification.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    María Ballester

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR is still the gold-standard technique for gene-expression quantification. Recent technological advances of this method allow for the high-throughput gene-expression analysis, without the limitations of sample space and reagent used. However, non-commercial and user-friendly software for the management and analysis of these data is not available. RESULTS: The recently developed commercial microarrays allow for the drawing of standard curves of multiple assays using the same n-fold diluted samples. Data Analysis Gene (DAG Expression software has been developed to perform high-throughput gene-expression data analysis using standard curves for relative quantification and one or multiple reference genes for sample normalization. We discuss the application of DAG Expression in the analysis of data from an experiment performed with Fluidigm technology, in which 48 genes and 115 samples were measured. Furthermore, the quality of our analysis was tested and compared with other available methods. CONCLUSIONS: DAG Expression is a freely available software that permits the automated analysis and visualization of high-throughput qPCR. A detailed manual and a demo-experiment are provided within the DAG Expression software at http://www.dagexpression.com/dage.zip.

  3. Investigation of the temporal evolution and spatial variation of in-cylinder engine fuel spray characteristics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Qin, Wenjin; Hung, David L.S.; Xu, Min

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • POD quadruple decomposition can reconstruct spray structure into different parts. • Different quadruple POD parts reveal different levels of spay field intensity. • Large scale structure part dominates the CCV of the entire spray. • In-cylinder flow field has the strongest effect on CCV of spray structure. - Abstract: The proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) method is applied to analyze the pulsing spray characteristics of the fuel injection inside a four-valve optical spark-ignition direct-injection (SIDI) engine. The instantaneous spray structures are decomposed into four parts, namely the mean structure, large scale structure, transition structure and small scale structure, respectively, by using POD quadruple decomposition. The cycle-to-cycle variations (CCV) of the in-cylinder pulsing spray structure are examined separately based on the four parts. Analysis results indicate that the four parts have different characteristics, and each individual part represents a specific instantaneous spray structure. First, the mean part contains more than 90% of the total intensity of the spray field throughout the whole injection process. Moreover, the large scale structure part has the highest CCV level among all four parts, and it dominates the CCV of the entire spray field. The CCV of spray can be influenced by different engine operating conditions. In particular, the in-cylinder flow field has the strongest effect on the spray CCV. The varying motion of the in-cylinder flow field significantly influences the CCV of the large scale spray part, which in turn affects the CCV characteristics of the whole spray field

  4. Online handwritten mathematical expression recognition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Büyükbayrak, Hakan; Yanikoglu, Berrin; Erçil, Aytül

    2007-01-01

    We describe a system for recognizing online, handwritten mathematical expressions. The system is designed with a user-interface for writing scientific articles, supporting the recognition of basic mathematical expressions as well as integrals, summations, matrices etc. A feed-forward neural network recognizes symbols which are assumed to be single-stroke and a recursive algorithm parses the expression by combining neural network output and the structure of the expression. Preliminary results show that writer-dependent recognition rates are very high (99.8%) while writer-independent symbol recognition rates are lower (75%). The interface associated with the proposed system integrates the built-in recognition capabilities of the Microsoft's Tablet PC API for recognizing textual input and supports conversion of hand-drawn figures into PNG format. This enables the user to enter text, mathematics and draw figures in a single interface. After recognition, all output is combined into one LATEX code and compiled into a PDF file.

  5. Micro-Expression Recognition Using Color Spaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Su-Jing; Yan, Wen-Jing; Li, Xiaobai; Zhao, Guoying; Zhou, Chun-Guang; Fu, Xiaolan; Yang, Minghao; Tao, Jianhua

    2015-12-01

    Micro-expressions are brief involuntary facial expressions that reveal genuine emotions and, thus, help detect lies. Because of their many promising applications, they have attracted the attention of researchers from various fields. Recent research reveals that two perceptual color spaces (CIELab and CIELuv) provide useful information for expression recognition. This paper is an extended version of our International Conference on Pattern Recognition paper, in which we propose a novel color space model, tensor independent color space (TICS), to help recognize micro-expressions. In this paper, we further show that CIELab and CIELuv are also helpful in recognizing micro-expressions, and we indicate why these three color spaces achieve better performance. A micro-expression color video clip is treated as a fourth-order tensor, i.e., a four-dimension array. The first two dimensions are the spatial information, the third is the temporal information, and the fourth is the color information. We transform the fourth dimension from RGB into TICS, in which the color components are as independent as possible. The combination of dynamic texture and independent color components achieves a higher accuracy than does that of RGB. In addition, we define a set of regions of interests (ROIs) based on the facial action coding system and calculated the dynamic texture histograms for each ROI. Experiments are conducted on two micro-expression databases, CASME and CASME 2, and the results show that the performances for TICS, CIELab, and CIELuv are better than those for RGB or gray.

  6. The functional landscape of mouse gene expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhang Wen

    2004-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Large-scale quantitative analysis of transcriptional co-expression has been used to dissect regulatory networks and to predict the functions of new genes discovered by genome sequencing in model organisms such as yeast. Although the idea that tissue-specific expression is indicative of gene function in mammals is widely accepted, it has not been objectively tested nor compared with the related but distinct strategy of correlating gene co-expression as a means to predict gene function. Results We generated microarray expression data for nearly 40,000 known and predicted mRNAs in 55 mouse tissues, using custom-built oligonucleotide arrays. We show that quantitative transcriptional co-expression is a powerful predictor of gene function. Hundreds of functional categories, as defined by Gene Ontology 'Biological Processes', are associated with characteristic expression patterns across all tissues, including categories that bear no overt relationship to the tissue of origin. In contrast, simple tissue-specific restriction of expression is a poor predictor of which genes are in which functional categories. As an example, the highly conserved mouse gene PWP1 is widely expressed across different tissues but is co-expressed with many RNA-processing genes; we show that the uncharacterized yeast homolog of PWP1 is required for rRNA biogenesis. Conclusions We conclude that 'functional genomics' strategies based on quantitative transcriptional co-expression will be as fruitful in mammals as they have been in simpler organisms, and that transcriptional control of mammalian physiology is more modular than is generally appreciated. Our data and analyses provide a public resource for mammalian functional genomics.

  7. Profiling Gene Expression in Germinating Brassica Roots.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Myoung Ryoul; Wang, Yi-Hong; Hasenstein, Karl H

    2014-01-01

    Based on previously developed solid-phase gene extraction (SPGE) we examined the mRNA profile in primary roots of Brassica rapa seedlings for highly expressed genes like ACT7 (actin7), TUB (tubulin1), UBQ (ubiquitin), and low expressed GLK (glucokinase) during the first day post-germination. The assessment was based on the mRNA load of the SPGE probe of about 2.1 ng. The number of copies of the investigated genes changed spatially along the length of primary roots. The expression level of all genes differed significantly at each sample position. Among the examined genes ACT7 expression was most even along the root. UBQ was highest at the tip and root-shoot junction (RS). TUB and GLK showed a basipetal gradient. The temporal expression of UBQ was highest in the MZ 9 h after primary root emergence and higher than at any other sample position. Expressions of GLK in EZ and RS increased gradually over time. SPGE extraction is the result of oligo-dT and oligo-dA hybridization and the results illustrate that SPGE can be used for gene expression profiling at high spatial and temporal resolution. SPGE needles can be used within two weeks when stored at 4 °C. Our data indicate that gene expression studies that are based on the entire root miss important differences in gene expression that SPGE is able to resolve for example growth adjustments during gravitropism.

  8. Cyclin D1 expression in prostate carcinoma

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pereira, R.A.; Ravinal, R.C.; Costa, R.S.; Lima, M.S. [Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Patologia, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil, Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Tucci, S. [Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Cirurgia e Anatomia, Divisão de Urologia, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil, Divisão de Urologia, Departamento de Cirurgia e Anatomia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Muglia, V.F. [Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Medicina Interna (Centro de Ciência da Imagem), Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil, Departamento de Medicina Interna (Centro de Ciência da Imagem), Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Reis, R.B. Dos [Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Cirurgia e Anatomia, Divisão de Urologia, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil, Divisão de Urologia, Departamento de Cirurgia e Anatomia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Silva, G.E.B. [Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Departamento de Patologia, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil, Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil)

    2014-05-09

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between cyclin D1 expression and clinicopathological parameters in patients with prostate carcinoma. We assessed cyclin D1 expression by conventional immunohistochemistry in 85 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy for prostate carcinoma and 10 normal prostate tissue samples retrieved from autopsies. We measured nuclear immunostaining in the entire tumor area and based the results on the percentage of positive tumor cells. The preoperative prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 8.68±5.16 ng/mL (mean±SD). Cyclin D1 staining was positive (cyclin D1 expression in >5% of tumor cells) in 64 cases (75.4%) and negative (cyclin D1 expression in ≤5% of tumor cells) in 21 cases (including 15 cases with no immunostaining). Normal prostate tissues were negative for cyclin D1. Among patients with a high-grade Gleason score (≥7), 86% of patients demonstrated cyclin D1 immunostaining of >5% (P<0.05). In the crude analysis of cyclin D1 expression, the high-grade Gleason score group showed a mean expression of 39.6%, compared to 26.9% in the low-grade Gleason score group (P<0.05). Perineural invasion tended to be associated with cyclin D1 expression (P=0.07), whereas cyclin D1 expression was not associated with PSA levels or other parameters. Our results suggest that high cyclin D1 expression could be a potential marker for tumor aggressiveness.

  9. Cyclin D1 expression in prostate carcinoma

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pereira, R.A.; Ravinal, R.C.; Costa, R.S.; Lima, M.S.; Tucci, S.; Muglia, V.F.; Reis, R.B. Dos; Silva, G.E.B.

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between cyclin D1 expression and clinicopathological parameters in patients with prostate carcinoma. We assessed cyclin D1 expression by conventional immunohistochemistry in 85 patients who underwent radical prostatectomy for prostate carcinoma and 10 normal prostate tissue samples retrieved from autopsies. We measured nuclear immunostaining in the entire tumor area and based the results on the percentage of positive tumor cells. The preoperative prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 8.68±5.16 ng/mL (mean±SD). Cyclin D1 staining was positive (cyclin D1 expression in >5% of tumor cells) in 64 cases (75.4%) and negative (cyclin D1 expression in ≤5% of tumor cells) in 21 cases (including 15 cases with no immunostaining). Normal prostate tissues were negative for cyclin D1. Among patients with a high-grade Gleason score (≥7), 86% of patients demonstrated cyclin D1 immunostaining of >5% (P<0.05). In the crude analysis of cyclin D1 expression, the high-grade Gleason score group showed a mean expression of 39.6%, compared to 26.9% in the low-grade Gleason score group (P<0.05). Perineural invasion tended to be associated with cyclin D1 expression (P=0.07), whereas cyclin D1 expression was not associated with PSA levels or other parameters. Our results suggest that high cyclin D1 expression could be a potential marker for tumor aggressiveness

  10. Bcl-2 protein expression is associated with p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts in breast cancer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsutsui, Shinichi; Yasuda, Kazuhiro; Suzuki, Kosuke; Takeuchi, Hideya; Nishizaki, Takashi; Higashi, Hidefumi; Era, Shoichi

    2006-01-01

    Recent experimental studies have shown that Bcl-2, which has been established as a key player in the control of apoptosis, plays a role in regulating the cell cycle and proliferation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between Bcl-2 and p27 protein expression, p53 protein expression and the proliferation activity as defined by the MIB-1 counts. The prognostic implication of Bcl-2 protein expression in relation to p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts for breast cancer was also evaluated. The immunohistochemical expression of Bcl-2 protein was evaluated in a series of 249 invasive ductal carcinomas of the breast, in which p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts had been determined previously. The Bcl-2 protein expression was found to be decreased in 105 (42%) cases. A decreased Bcl-2 protein expression was significantly correlated with a nuclear grade of III, a negative estrogen receptor, a decreased p27 protein expression, a positive p53 protein expression, positive MIB-1 counts and a positive HER2 protein expression. The incidence of a nuclear grade of III and positive MIB-1 counts increased as the number of abnormal findings of Bcl-2, p27 and p53 protein expressions increased. A univariate analysis indicated a decreased Bcl-2 protein expression to be significantly (p = 0.0089) associated with a worse disease free survival (DFS), while a multivariate analysis indicated the lymph node status and MIB-1 counts to be independently significant prognostic factors for the DFS. The Bcl-2 protein expression has a close correlation with p27 and p53 protein expressions and the proliferation activity determined by MIB-1 counts in invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast. The prognostic value of Bcl-2 as well as p27 and p53 protein expressions was dependent on the proliferation activity in breast cancer

  11. Bcl-2 protein expression is associated with p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts in breast cancer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nishizaki Takashi

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent experimental studies have shown that Bcl-2, which has been established as a key player in the control of apoptosis, plays a role in regulating the cell cycle and proliferation. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between Bcl-2 and p27 protein expression, p53 protein expression and the proliferation activity as defined by the MIB-1 counts. The prognostic implication of Bcl-2 protein expression in relation to p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts for breast cancer was also evaluated. Methods The immunohistochemical expression of Bcl-2 protein was evaluated in a series of 249 invasive ductal carcinomas of the breast, in which p27 and p53 protein expressions and MIB-1 counts had been determined previously. Results The Bcl-2 protein expression was found to be decreased in 105 (42% cases. A decreased Bcl-2 protein expression was significantly correlated with a nuclear grade of III, a negative estrogen receptor, a decreased p27 protein expression, a positive p53 protein expression, positive MIB-1 counts and a positive HER2 protein expression. The incidence of a nuclear grade of III and positive MIB-1 counts increased as the number of abnormal findings of Bcl-2, p27 and p53 protein expressions increased. A univariate analysis indicated a decreased Bcl-2 protein expression to be significantly (p = 0.0089 associated with a worse disease free survival (DFS, while a multivariate analysis indicated the lymph node status and MIB-1 counts to be independently significant prognostic factors for the DFS. Conclusion The Bcl-2 protein expression has a close correlation with p27 and p53 protein expressions and the proliferation activity determined by MIB-1 counts in invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast. The prognostic value of Bcl-2 as well as p27 and p53 protein expressions was dependent on the proliferation activity in breast cancer.

  12. PRAME gene expression profile in medulloblastoma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tânia Maria Vulcani-Freitas

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant tumors of central nervous system in the childhood. The treatment is severe, harmful and, thus, has a dismal prognosis. As PRAME is present in various cancers, including meduloblastoma, and has limited expression in normal tissues, this antigen can be an ideal vaccine target for tumor immunotherapy. In order to find a potential molecular target, we investigated PRAME expression in medulloblastoma fragments and we compare the results with the clinical features of each patient. Analysis of gene expression was performed by real-time quantitative PCR from 37 tumor samples. The Mann-Whitney test was used to analysis the relationship between gene expression and clinical characteristics. Kaplan-Meier curves were used to evaluate survival. PRAME was overexpressed in 84% samples. But no statistical association was found between clinical features and PRAME overexpression. Despite that PRAME gene could be a strong candidate for immunotherapy since it is highly expressed in medulloblastomas.

  13. Structural development of child's artistic expression

    OpenAIRE

    Sanja Filipović; Milica Vojvodić

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Structural development implies control and capability of the expression usage in terms of independent creative expression and making. Understanding of structural development of child's artistic expression as a phenomenon (which is suitable to child's age) has some implications on methodical acts considering artistic education of children and youngsters. Therefore, it is of unexceptional importance to know these laws as well as methodical acts which encourage the structural develop...

  14. Hop, Step, Step and Jump : Towards Real-World Complexity @ Delft University of Technology

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pruyt, E.; Slinger, J.H.; Van Daalen, C.; Yucel, G.; Thissen, W.A.H.

    2009-01-01

    This paper deals with System Dynamics education at Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. It focuses more specifically on the quadruple jump approach towards dealing with real-world dynamic complexity. The paper starts with an overview of the System Dynamics courses, situated within the

  15. Preparation of leukocyte-poor platelet concentrates from buffy coats. I. Special inserts for centrifuge cups

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Pietersz, R. N.; Reesink, H. W.; Dekker, W. J.; Fijen, F. J.

    1987-01-01

    A special insert was developed for centrifuge cups in order to prepare leukocyte-poor platelet concentrates from buffy coats by using quadruple citrate phosphate dextrose-saline adenine glucose mannitol systems from different manufacturers. Each centrifuge cup could contain up to 4 sets of double

  16. Smart specialisation as a process tool in lower-tier territories

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Drejer, Ina; Laursen, Lea Louise Holst

    The paper focuses on the potential of combining the smart specialization – and the associated quadruple helix – framework with a place-specific planning perspective in proposing as process tool for organizing business development in small and medium-sized non-urban, lower-tier territories...

  17. Gender Differences in Forestalling Anti-Social Behaviours among Student Fitness Aspirants and Recreationists in Nigerian Universities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Okunbor, A. O.; Agwubike, E. O.

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of the research was quadrupled. It investigated the prevalence of anti-social behaviours in campuses of Nigerian universities. Several student fitness aspirants and recreationists perceived examination malpractices (85%), stealing (83%), armed robbery (81%), prostitution (82%), drunkenness (80%), smoking (79%), hard drug consumption…

  18. The expressions of emotions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Vishnivetz, Berta

    Abstract On the broadness of the vast field called “Expressions of Emotions” this study focuses on the whole bodily emotional expression. The main question posed is: Whether there are movement patterns specific to each emotion?. I carried out a thorough review of the theories of emotion...... and of expressions of emotions and movement notation that provided the sources for a careful research plan for the empirical process of this study. On this basis I chose to record onto video the four previously choreographed movements that I considered to correspond each of the following emotions: joy, fear, sadness......, anger. The selection of these four emotions demanded previously to clear up the problems the above named survey ensued. When researchers want to describe a certain movement in the field of psychology and non-verbal communication, it may result in disagreements and misunderstandings which sometimes lead...

  19. Regulation of Expressive Behavior as Reflecting Affect Socialization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saarni, Carolyn

    Regulated expressiveness (the modification of expressive behavior) is a complex phenomenon. Accomplished basically in four ways, regulated expressiveness has developmental dimensions, motivational precursors, and cognitive antecedents, including perspective-taking ability and the growth of self-awareness. Ability to regulate expressiveness appears…

  20. Time perception and dynamics of facial expressions of emotions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sophie L Fayolle

    Full Text Available Two experiments were run to examine the effects of dynamic displays of facial expressions of emotions on time judgments. The participants were given a temporal bisection task with emotional facial expressions presented in a dynamic or a static display. Two emotional facial expressions and a neutral expression were tested and compared. Each of the emotional expressions had the same affective valence (unpleasant, but one was high-arousing (expressing anger and the other low-arousing (expressing sadness. Our results showed that time judgments are highly sensitive to movements in facial expressions and the emotions expressed. Indeed, longer perceived durations were found in response to the dynamic faces and the high-arousing emotional expressions compared to the static faces and low-arousing expressions. In addition, the facial movements amplified the effect of emotions on time perception. Dynamic facial expressions are thus interesting tools for examining variations in temporal judgments in different social contexts.

  1. Inferring gene expression dynamics via functional regression analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leng Xiaoyan

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Temporal gene expression profiles characterize the time-dynamics of expression of specific genes and are increasingly collected in current gene expression experiments. In the analysis of experiments where gene expression is obtained over the life cycle, it is of interest to relate temporal patterns of gene expression associated with different developmental stages to each other to study patterns of long-term developmental gene regulation. We use tools from functional data analysis to study dynamic changes by relating temporal gene expression profiles of different developmental stages to each other. Results We demonstrate that functional regression methodology can pinpoint relationships that exist between temporary gene expression profiles for different life cycle phases and incorporates dimension reduction as needed for these high-dimensional data. By applying these tools, gene expression profiles for pupa and adult phases are found to be strongly related to the profiles of the same genes obtained during the embryo phase. Moreover, one can distinguish between gene groups that exhibit relationships with positive and others with negative associations between later life and embryonal expression profiles. Specifically, we find a positive relationship in expression for muscle development related genes, and a negative relationship for strictly maternal genes for Drosophila, using temporal gene expression profiles. Conclusion Our findings point to specific reactivation patterns of gene expression during the Drosophila life cycle which differ in characteristic ways between various gene groups. Functional regression emerges as a useful tool for relating gene expression patterns from different developmental stages, and avoids the problems with large numbers of parameters and multiple testing that affect alternative approaches.

  2. Prognostic significance of snail expression in hilar cholangiocarcinoma

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kong, Dalu [Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Hexi District, Tianjin (China); Liang, Jun [Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province (China); Li, Rong [Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Hexi District, Tianjin (China); Liu, Shihai [Department of Laboratory Center, Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province (China); Wang, Jigang [Department of Oncology, Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province (China); Zhang, Kejun; Chen, Dong [Department of General Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, Shandong Province (China)

    2012-05-11

    Many patients with hilar cholangiocarcinoma (HC) have a poor prognosis. Snail, a transcription factor and E-cadherin repressor, is a novel prognostic factor in many cancers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between snail and E-cadherin protein expression and the prognostic significance of snail expression in HC. We examined the protein expression of snail and E-cadherin in HC tissues from 47 patients (22 males and 25 females, mean age 61.2 years) using immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR. Proliferation rate was also evaluated in the same cases by the MIB1 index. High, low and negative snail protein expression was recorded in 18 (38%), 17 (36%), and 12 (26%) cases, respectively, and 40.4% (19/47) cases showed reduced E-cadherin protein expression in HC samples. No significant correlation was found between snail and E-cadherin protein expression levels (P = 0.056). No significant correlation was found between snail protein expression levels and gender, age, tumor grade, vascular or perineural invasion, nodal metastasis and invasion, or proliferative index. Cancer samples with positive snail protein expression were associated with poor survival compared with the negative expresser groups. Kaplan-Meier curves comparing different snail protein expression levels to survival showed highly significant separation (P < 0.0001, log-rank test). With multivariate analysis, only snail protein expression among all parameters was found to influence survival (P = 0.0003). We suggest that snail expression levels can predict poor survival regardless of pathological features and tumor proliferation. Immunohistochemical detection of snail protein expression levels in routine sections may provide the first biological prognostic marker.

  3. The Arabidopsis co-expression tool (act): a WWW-based tool and database for microarray-based gene expression analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jen, C. H.; Manfield, I. W.; Michalopoulos, D. W.

    2006-01-01

    be examined using the novel clique finder tool to determine the sets of genes most likely to be regulated in a similar manner. In combination, these tools offer three levels of analysis: creation of correlation lists of co-expressed genes, refinement of these lists using two-dimensional scatter plots......We present a new WWW-based tool for plant gene analysis, the Arabidopsis Co-Expression Tool (act) , based on a large Arabidopsis thaliana microarray data set obtained from the Nottingham Arabidopsis Stock Centre. The co-expression analysis tool allows users to identify genes whose expression...

  4. Positive Bioluminescence Imaging of MicroRNA Expression in Small Animal Models Using an Engineered Genetic-Switch Expression System, RILES.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baril, Patrick; Pichon, Chantal

    2016-01-01

    MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small, noncoding RNAs which regulate gene expression by directing their target mRNA for degradation or translational repression. Since their discovery in the early 1990s, miRNAs have emerged as key components in the posttranscriptional regulation of gene networks, shaping many biological processes from development, morphogenesis, differentiation, proliferation and apoptosis. Although understanding of the molecular basis of miRNA biology is improving, methods to monitor the dynamic and the spatiotemporal aspects of miRNA expression under physiopathological conditions are required. However, monitoring of miRNAs is difficult due to their small size, low abundance, high degree of sequence similarity, and their dynamic expression pattern which is subjected to tight transcriptional and post-transcriptional controls. Recently, we developed a miRNA monitoring system called RILES, standing for RNAi-inducible expression system, which relies on an engineered regulatable expression system, to switch on the expression of the luciferase gene when the targeted miRNA is expressed in cells. We demonstrated that RILES is a specific, sensitive, and robust method to determine the fine-tuning of miRNA expression during the development of an experimental pathological process in mice. Because RILES offers the possibility for longitudinal studies on individual subjects, sharper insights into miRNA regulation can be generated, with applications in physiology, pathophysiology and development of RNAi-based therapies. This chapter describes methods and protocols to monitor the expression of myomiR-206, -1, and -133 in the tibialis anterior muscle of mice. These protocols can be used and adapted to monitor the expression of other miRNAs in other biological processes.

  5. Expression of an Msx homeobox gene in ascidians: insights into the archetypal chordate expression pattern.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, L; Swalla, B J; Zhou, J; Dobias, S L; Bell, J R; Chen, J; Maxson, R E; Jeffery, W R

    1996-03-01

    The Msx homeobox genes are expressed in complex patterns during vertebrate development in conjunction with inductive tissue interactions. As a means of understanding the archetypal role of Msx genes in chordates, we have isolated and characterized an Msx gene in ascidians, protochordates with a relatively simple body plan. The Mocu Msx-a and McMsx-a genes, isolated from the ascidians Molgula oculata and Molgula citrina, respectively, have homeodomains that place them in the msh-like subclass of Msx genes. Therefore, the Molgula Msx-a genes are most closely related to the msh genes previously identified in a number of invertebrates. Southern blot analysis suggests that there are one or two copies of the Msx-a gene in the Molgula genome. Northern blot and RNase protection analysis indicate that Msx-a transcripts are restricted to the developmental stages of the life cycle. In situ hybridization showed that Msx-a mRNA first appears just before gastrulation in the mesoderm (presumptive notochord and muscle) and ectoderm (neural plate) cells. Transcript levels decline in mesoderm cells after the completion of gastrulation, but are enhanced in the folding neural plate during neurulation. Later, Msx-a mRNA is also expressed in the posterior ectoderm and in a subset of the tail muscle cells. The ectoderm and mesoderm cells that express Msx-a are undergoing morphogenetic movements during gastrulation, neurulation, and tail formation. Msx-a expression ceases after these cells stop migrating. The ascidian M. citrina, in which adult tissues and organs begin to develop precociously in the larva, was used to study Msx-a expression during adult development. Msx-a transcripts are expressed in the heart primordium and the rudiments of the ampullae, epidermal protrusions with diverse functions in the juvenile. The heart and ampullae develop in regions where mesenchyme cells interact with endodermal or epidermal epithelia. A comparison of the expression patterns of the Molgula genes

  6. Lysine-specific demethylase 2A expression is associated with cell growth and cyclin D1 expression in colorectal adenocarcinoma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Lin-Lin; Du, Changzheng; Liu, Hangqi; Pei, Lin; Qin, Li; Jia, Mei; Wang, Hui

    2018-04-01

    Lysine-specific demethylase 2A (KDM2A), a specific H3K36me1/2 demethylase, has been reported to be closely associated with several types of cancer. In this study, we aimed to investigate the expression and function of KDM2A in colorectal adenocarcinoma. A total of 215 colorectal adenocarcinoma specimens were collected, and then subjected to immunohistochemistry assay to evaluate the expression levels of KDM2A, cyclin D1 and other proteins in colorectal adenocarcinoma tissues. Real-time polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and other molecular biology methods were used to explore the role of KDM2A in colorectal adenocarcinoma cells. In this study, we report that the expression level of KDM2A is high in colorectal adenocarcinoma tissues, and this high expression promotes the proliferation and colony formation of colorectal adenocarcinoma cells, as demonstrated by KDM2A knockdown experiments. In addition, the expression of KDM2A is closely associated with cyclin D1 expression in colorectal adenocarcinoma tissues and cell lines. Our study reveals a novel role for high-expressed KDM2A in colorectal adenocarcinoma cell growth, and that the expression of KDM2A is associated with that of cyclin D1 in colorectal adenocarcinoma.

  7. Expression profile of the Schistosoma japonicum degradome reveals differential protease expression patterns and potential anti-schistosomal intervention targets.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuai Liu

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Blood fluke proteases play pivotal roles in the processes of invasion, nutrition acquisition, immune evasion, and other host-parasite interactions. Hundreds of genes encoding putative proteases have been identified in the recently published schistosome genomes. However, the expression profiles of these proteases in Schistosoma species have not yet been systematically analyzed. We retrieved and culled the redundant protease sequences of Schistosoma japonicum, Schistosoma mansoni, Echinococcus multilocularis, and Clonorchis sinensis from public databases utilizing bioinformatic approaches. The degradomes of the four parasitic organisms and Homo sapiens were then comparatively analyzed. A total of 262 S. japonicum protease sequences were obtained and the expression profiles generated using whole-genome microarray. Four main clusters of protease genes with different expression patterns were identified: proteases up-regulated in hepatic schistosomula and adult worms, egg-specific or predominantly expressed proteases, cercaria-specific or predominantly expressed proteases, and constantly expressed proteases. A subset of protease genes with different expression patterns were further validated using real-time quantitative PCR. The present study represents the most comprehensive analysis of a degradome in Schistosoma species to date. These results provide a firm foundation for future research on the specific function(s of individual proteases and may help to refine anti-proteolytic strategies in blood flukes.

  8. Behavioral experience induces zif268 expression in mature granule cells but suppresses its expression in immature granule cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kylie A. Huckleberry

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Thousands of neurons are born each day in the dentate gyrus (DG, but many of these cells die before reaching maturity. Both death and survival of adult-born neurons are regulated by neuronal activity in DG. The immediate-early gene (IEG zif268 is an important mediator of these effects, as its expression is induced by neural activity and knockout of zif268 impairs survival of adult-born neurons (Veyrac et al., 2013. Despite the apparent importance of zif268 for adult neurogenesis, its behavior-induced expression has not been fully characterized in adult-born neurons. Here we characterize behavior-evoked expression of zif268 in mature and newborn dentate granule cells (DGCs. In the general granule cell population, zif268 expression peaked 1 hour after novel environment exposure and returned to baseline by 8 hours post-exposure. However, in the doublecortin-positive (DCX+ immature neurons, zif268 expression was suppressed relative to home cage for at least 8 hours post-exposure. We next determined that exposure to water maze training, an enriched environment, or a novel environment caused approximately equal suppression of zif268 expression in DCX+ cells and approximately equal activation of zif268 in the general DGC population and in 6-week-old adult-born neurons. Finally, we asked whether zif268 suppression varied as a function of age within the DCX+ population, which ranges in age from 0 to approximately 4 weeks. Novel environment exposure had no significant effect on zif268 expression in 2- or 4-week-old BrdU-labeled neurons, but it significantly suppressed zif268 expression in 3-week-old neurons. In summary, behavioral experience transiently activated expression of zif268 in mature DGCs but caused a more long-lasting suppression of zif268 expression in immature, adult-born DGCs. We hypothesize that zif268 suppression inhibits memory-related synaptic plasticity in immature DGCs or mediates learning-induced apoptosis of immature adult

  9. 75 FR 80561 - Community Express Pilot Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-12-22

    ... SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Community Express Pilot Program AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). ACTION: Notice of short-term extension and termination of the Community Express Pilot Program. SUMMARY: This notice announces the termination of the Community Express Pilot Program following a...

  10. HLA-G is expressed in intestinal samples of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease patients and HLA-G5 expression is differentially correlated with TNF and IL-10 cytokine expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomes, Renan Garcia; Brito, Carlos Alexandre Antunes de; Martinelli, Valéria Ferreira; Santos, Rossana Nascimento Dos; Gomes, Fabiana Oliveira Dos Santos; Peixoto, Christina Alves; Crispim, Janaína Oliveira; Diniz, George Tadeu Nunes; Donadi, Eduardo Antônio; Lucena-Silva, Norma

    2018-06-01

    HLA-G is an immunomodulatory molecule that can be produced by epithelial cells. Considering that TNF and IL-10 participate in bowel inflammatory disorders and that both cytokines modulate HLA-G, we evaluated HLA-G, TNF and IL-10 mRNA expression by qPCR and HLA-G protein levels by immunohistochemistry in two intestinal samples exhibiting different degree of inflammation within a patient suffering from Crohn's disease (CD) or ulcerative colitis (UC). Tissue HLA-G5 (P < 0.0001), TNF (P = 0.0004) and IL-10 (P = 0.0169) mRNA expression levels were higher in intestinal areas exhibiting intense inflammation compared to areas of low inflammation, and HLA-G protein levels were not associated with degree of mucosal inflammation. In CD, the expression of TNF was correlated with IL-10 in low inflamed areas, exhibiting a TNF:IL-10 ratio = 3, but in inflamed areas the ratio increased to 9-folds. In UC, the expression of TNF was correlated to IL-10, irrespective of the inflammation grade, with little variation of the TNF:IL-10 ratio in the various inflamed areas. TNF and IL-10 expression was correlated with HLA-G5 expression in mild inflamed areas. Both CD and UC samples exhibited gene and protein expression of HLA-G; and the HLA-G5 expression is differentially correlated with TNF and IL-10 levels depending on the type of the underlying inflammatory bowel disorder. Copyright © 2018 American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Edix: A Software for Editing Algebraic Expressions.

    OpenAIRE

    Bouhineau , Denis; Nicaud , Jean-François; Pavard , X.

    2001-01-01

    International audience; The paper presents a computer software, called Edix, devoted to the edition of algebraic expressions in their usual 2D representation. At present, many systems display fine algebraic expressions, but the edition of such expressions is weak. Systems like Word and FrameMaker place sub-expressions in too many boxes so that many editing actions are not simple, while usual CAS (computer algebra systems) just use a 1D representation for the edition. Furthermore, Edix allows ...

  12. Kivy and Langer on expressiveness in music

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    van der Schoot Albert

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available From 1980 onwards, Peter Kivy has put forward that music does not so much express emotions but rather is expressive of emotions. The character of the music does not represent the character or mood of the composer, but reflects his knowledge of emotional life. Unfortunately, Kivy fails to give credit to Susanne Langer, who brought these views to the fore as early as 1942, claiming that the vitality of music lies in expressiveness, not in expression.

  13. VMEXT: A Visualization Tool for Mathematical Expression Trees

    OpenAIRE

    Schubotz, Moritz; Meuschke, Norman; Hepp, Thomas; Cohl, Howard S.; Gipp, Bela

    2017-01-01

    Mathematical expressions can be represented as a tree consisting of terminal symbols, such as identifiers or numbers (leaf nodes), and functions or operators (non-leaf nodes). Expression trees are an important mechanism for storing and processing mathematical expressions as well as the most frequently used visualization of the structure of mathematical expressions. Typically, researchers and practitioners manually visualize expression trees using general-purpose tools. This approach is labori...

  14. Expression of Sox genes in tooth development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kawasaki, Katsushige; Kawasaki, Maiko; Watanabe, Momoko; Idrus, Erik; Nagai, Takahiro; Oommen, Shelly; Maeda, Takeyasu; Hagiwara, Nobuko; Que, Jianwen; Sharpe, Paul T; Ohazama, Atsushi

    2015-01-01

    Members of the Sox gene family play roles in many biological processes including organogenesis. We carried out comparative in situ hybridization analysis of seventeen sox genes (Sox1-14, 17, 18, 21) during murine odontogenesis from the epithelial thickening to the cytodifferentiation stages. Localized expression of five Sox genes (Sox6, 9, 13, 14 and 21) was observed in tooth bud epithelium. Sox13 showed restricted expression in the primary enamel knots. At the early bell stage, three Sox genes (Sox8, 11, 17 and 21) were expressed in pre-ameloblasts, whereas two others (Sox5 and 18) showed expression in odontoblasts. Sox genes thus showed a dynamic spatio-temporal expression during tooth development.

  15. 75 FR 473 - Community Express Pilot Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-05

    ... SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Community Express Pilot Program AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). ACTION: Notice of extension of the Community Express Pilot Program. SUMMARY: This notice extends the Community Express Pilot Program in its current form through December 31, 2010. Based upon the...

  16. Foxp3 expression in human cancer cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gourgoulianis Konstantinos I

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Objective Transcription factor forkhead box protein 3 (Foxp3 specifically characterizes the thymically derived naturally occurring regulatory T cells (Tregs. Limited evidence indicates that it is also expressed, albeit to a lesser extent, in tissues other than thymus and spleen, while, very recently, it was shown that Foxp3 is expressed by pancreatic carcinoma. This study was scheduled to investigate whether expression of Foxp3 transcripts and mature protein occurs constitutively in various tumor types. Materials and methods Twenty five tumor cell lines of different tissue origins (lung cancer, colon cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, erythroid leukemia, acute T-cell leukemia were studied. Detection of Foxp3 mRNA was performed using both conventional RT-PCR and quantitative real-time PCR while protein expression was assessed by immunocytochemistry and flow cytometry, using different antibody clones. Results Foxp3 mRNA as well as Foxp3 protein was detected in all tumor cell lines, albeit in variable levels, not related to the tissue of origin. This expression correlated with the expression levels of IL-10 and TGFb1. Conclusion We offer evidence that Foxp3 expression, characterizes tumor cells of various tissue origins. The biological significance of these findings warrants further investigation in the context of tumor immune escape, and especially under the light of current anti-cancer efforts interfering with Foxp3 expression.

  17. Change of SPARC expression after chemotherapy in gastric cancer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gao, Yong-Yin; Han, Ru-Bing; Wang, Xia; Ge, Shao-Hua; Li, Hong-Li; Deng, Ting; Liu, Rui; Bai, Ming; Zhou, Li-Kun; Zhang, Xin-Yuan; Ba, Yi; Huang, Ding-Zhi

    2015-01-01

    The expression of tumor biomarkers may change after chemotherapy. However, whether secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) expression changes after chemotherapy in gastric cancer (GC) is unclear. This study investigated the influence of chemotherapy on SPARC expression in GC. Immunohistochemistry was used to analyze SPARC expression in 132 GC cases (including 54 cases with preoperative chemotherapy and 78 cases without preoperative chemotherapy). SPARC expression of postoperative specimens with and without preoperative chemotherapy was assessed to analyze the influence of chemotherapy on SPARC expression. SPARC was highly expressed in GC compared with the desmoplastic stroma surrounding tumor cells and noncancerous tissues. High SPARC expression was correlated with invasion depth, lymph node, and TNM stage. After chemotherapy, a lower proportion of high SPARC expression was observed in patients with preoperative chemotherapy than in the controls. For 54 patients with preoperative chemotherapy, gross type, histology, depth of invasion, lymph node, TNM stage, and SPARC expression were related to overall survival. Further multivariate analysis showed that lymph node, histology, and SPARC expression after chemotherapy were independent prognostic factors. SPARC expression may change after chemotherapy in GC. SPARC expression should be reassessed for patients with GC after chemotherapy

  18. Functional features of gene expression profiles differentiating gastrointestinal stromal tumours according to KIT mutations and expression

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ostrowski, Jerzy; Dobosz, Anna Jerzak Vel; Jarosz, Dorota; Ruka, Wlodzimierz; Wyrwicz, Lucjan S; Polkowski, Marcin; Paziewska, Agnieszka; Skrzypczak, Magdalena; Goryca, Krzysztof; Rubel, Tymon; Kokoszyñska, Katarzyna; Rutkowski, Piotr; Nowecki, Zbigniew I

    2009-01-01

    Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) represent a heterogeneous group of tumours of mesenchymal origin characterized by gain-of-function mutations in KIT or PDGFRA of the type III receptor tyrosine kinase family. Although mutations in either receptor are thought to drive an early oncogenic event through similar pathways, two previous studies reported the mutation-specific gene expression profiles. However, their further conclusions were rather discordant. To clarify the molecular characteristics of differentially expressed genes according to GIST receptor mutations, we combined microarray-based analysis with detailed functional annotations. Total RNA was isolated from 29 frozen gastric GISTs and processed for hybridization on GENECHIP ® HG-U133 Plus 2.0 microarrays (Affymetrix). KIT and PDGFRA were analyzed by sequencing, while related mRNA levels were analyzed by quantitative RT-PCR. Fifteen and eleven tumours possessed mutations in KIT and PDGFRA, respectively; no mutation was found in three tumours. Gene expression analysis identified no discriminative profiles associated with clinical or pathological parameters, even though expression of hundreds of genes differentiated tumour receptor mutation and expression status. Functional features of genes differentially expressed between the two groups of GISTs suggested alterations in angiogenesis and G-protein-related and calcium signalling. Our study has identified novel molecular elements likely to be involved in receptor-dependent GIST development and allowed confirmation of previously published results. These elements may be potential therapeutic targets and novel markers of KIT mutation status

  19. Differential expression and interaction of host factors augment HIV-1 gene expression in neonatal mononuclear cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sundaravaradan, Vasudha; Mehta, Roshni; Harris, David T.; Zack, Jerome A.; Ahmad, Nafees

    2010-01-01

    We have previously shown a higher level of HIV-1 replication and gene expression in neonatal (cord) blood mononuclear cells (CBMC) compared with adult blood cells (PBMC), which could be due to differential expression of host factors. We performed the gene expression profile of CBMC and PBMC and found that 8013 genes were expressed at higher levels in CBMC than PBMC and 8028 genes in PBMC than CBMC, including 1181 and 1414 genes upregulated after HIV-1 infection in CBMC and PBMC, respectively. Several transcription factors (NF-κB, E2F, HAT-1, TFIIE, Cdk9, Cyclin T1), signal transducers (STAT3, STAT5A) and cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10) were upregulated in CBMC than PBMC, which are known to influence HIV-1 replication. In addition, a repressor of HIV-1 transcription, YY1, was down regulated in CBMC than PBMC and several matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-7, -12, -14) were significantly upregulated in HIV-1 infected CBMC than PBMC. Furthermore, we show that CBMC nuclear extracts interacted with a higher extent to HIV-1 LTR cis-acting sequences, including NF-κB, NFAT, AP1 and NF-IL6 compared with PBMC nuclear extracts and retroviral based short hairpin RNA (shRNA) for STAT3 and IL-6 down regulated their own and HIV-1 gene expression, signifying that these factors influenced differential HIV-1 gene expression in CBMC than PBMC.

  20. The Communicative Function of Sad Facial Expressions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reed, Lawrence Ian; DeScioli, Peter

    2017-01-01

    What are the communicative functions of sad facial expressions? Research shows that people feel sadness in response to losses but it's unclear whether sad expressions function to communicate losses to others and if so, what makes these signals credible. Here we use economic games to test the hypothesis that sad expressions lend credibility to claims of loss. Participants play the role of either a proposer or recipient in a game with a fictional backstory and real monetary payoffs. The proposers view a (fictional) video of the recipient's character displaying either a neutral or sad expression paired with a claim of loss. The proposer then decided how much money to give to the recipient. In three experiments, we test alternative theories by using situations in which the recipient's losses were uncertain (Experiment 1), the recipient's losses were certain (Experiment 2), or the recipient claims failed gains rather than losses (Experiment 3). Overall, we find that participants gave more money to recipients who displayed sad expressions compared to neutral expressions, but only under conditions of uncertain loss. This finding supports the hypothesis that sad expressions function to increase the credibility of claims of loss.

  1. The Communicative Function of Sad Facial Expressions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lawrence Ian Reed

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available What are the communicative functions of sad facial expressions? Research shows that people feel sadness in response to losses but it’s unclear whether sad expressions function to communicate losses to others and if so, what makes these signals credible. Here we use economic games to test the hypothesis that sad expressions lend credibility to claims of loss. Participants play the role of either a proposer or recipient in a game with a fictional backstory and real monetary payoffs. The proposers view a (fictional video of the recipient’s character displaying either a neutral or sad expression paired with a claim of loss. The proposer then decided how much money to give to the recipient. In three experiments, we test alternative theories by using situations in which the recipient’s losses were uncertain (Experiment 1, the recipient’s losses were certain (Experiment 2, or the recipient claims failed gains rather than losses (Experiment 3. Overall, we find that participants gave more money to recipients who displayed sad expressions compared to neutral expressions, but only under conditions of uncertain loss. This finding supports the hypothesis that sad expressions function to increase the credibility of claims of loss.

  2. The evolution of gene expression in primates

    OpenAIRE

    Tashakkori Ghanbarian, Avazeh

    2015-01-01

    The evolution of a gene’s expression profile is commonly assumed to be independent of its genomic neighborhood. This is, however, in contrast to what we know about the lack of autonomy between expression of neighboring genes in extant taxa. Indeed, in all eukaryotic genomes, genes of similar expression-profile tend to cluster, reflecting chromatin level dynamics. Does it follow that if a gene increases expression in a particular lineage then the genomic neighbors will also increase in their e...

  3. Anger Expression Types and Interpersonal Problems in Nurses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Aekyung; Won, Jongsoon; Kim, Oksoo; Lee, Sang E

    2015-06-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the anger expression types in nurses and to analyze the differences between the anger expression types and interpersonal problems. The data were collected from 149 nurses working in general hospitals with 300 beds or more in Seoul or Gyeonggi province, Korea. For anger expression type, the anger expression scale from the Korean State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory was used. For interpersonal problems, the short form of the Korean Inventory of Interpersonal Problems Circumplex Scales was used. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, cluster analysis, multivariate analysis of variance, and Duncan's multiple comparisons test. Three anger expression types in nurses were found: low-anger expression, anger-in, and anger-in/control type. From the results of multivariate analysis of variance, there were significant differences between anger expression types and interpersonal problems (Wilks lambda F = 3.52, p interpersonal problems by Duncan's post hoc test (p interpersonal problems. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  4. SOX4 expression in bladder carcinoma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aaboe, Mads; Birkenkamp-Demtroder, Karin; Wiuf, Carsten

    2006-01-01

    The human transcription factor SOX4 was 5-fold up-regulated in bladder tumors compared with normal tissue based on whole-genome expression profiling of 166 clinical bladder tumor samples and 27 normal urothelium samples. Using a SOX4-specific antibody, we found that the cancer cells expressed...... in the clinical bladder material and a small subset of the genes showed a high correlation to SOX4 expression. The present data suggest a role of SOX4 in the bladder cancer disease....... the SOX4 protein and, thus, did an evaluation of SOX4 protein expression in 2,360 bladder tumors using a tissue microarray with clinical annotation. We found a correlation (P bladder cell line HU609, SOX4...

  5. Paradoxical expression of INK4c in proliferative multiple myeloma tumors: bi-allelic deletion vs increased expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hanamura Ichiro

    2006-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A high proliferative capacity of tumor cells usually is associated with shortened patient survival. Disruption of the RB pathway, which is critically involved in regulating the G1 to S cell cycle transition, is a frequent target of oncogenic events that are thought to contribute to increased proliferation during tumor progression. Previously, we determined that p18INK4c, an essential gene for normal plasma cell differentiation, was bi-allelically deleted in five of sixteen multiple myeloma (MM cell lines. The present study was undertaken to investigate a possible role of p18INK4c in increased proliferation of myeloma tumors as they progress. Results Thirteen of 40 (33% human myeloma cell lines do not express normal p18INK4c, with bi-allelic deletion of p18 in twelve, and expression of a mutated p18 fragment in one. Bi-allelic deletion of p18, which appears to be a late progression event, has a prevalence of about 2% in 261 multiple myeloma (MM tumors, but the prevalence is 6 to10% in the 50 tumors with a high expression-based proliferation index. Paradoxically, 24 of 40 (60% MM cell lines, and 30 of 50 (60% MM tumors with a high proliferation index express an increased level of p18 RNA compared to normal bone marrow plasma cells, whereas this occurs in only five of the 151 (3% MM tumors with a low proliferation index. Tumor progression is often accompanied by increased p18 expression and an increased proliferation index. Retroviral-mediated expression of exogenous p18 results in marked growth inhibition in three MM cell lines that express little or no endogenous p18, but has no effect in another MM cell line that already expresses a high level of p18. Conclusion Paradoxically, although loss of p18 appears to contribute to increased proliferation of nearly 10% of MM tumors, most MM cell lines and proliferative MM tumors have increased expression of p18. Apart from a small fraction of cell lines and tumors that have inactivated

  6. Sialyl Lewis x expression in canine malignant mammary tumours: correlation with clinicopathological features and E-Cadherin expression

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pinho, Salomé S; Matos, Augusto JF; Lopes, Célia; Marcos, Nuno T; Carvalheira, Júlio; Reis, Celso A; Gärtner, Fátima

    2007-01-01

    Sialyl Lewis x (sLe x ) antigen is a carbohydrate antigen that is considered not only a marker for cancer but also implicated functionally in the malignant behaviour of cancer cells. Overexpression of sLe x is associated with enhanced progression and metastases of many types of cancer including those of the mammary gland. Canine mammary tumours can invade and give rise to metastases via either lymphatic or blood vessels. E-Cadherin is specifically involved in epithelial cell-to-cell adhesion. In cancer, E-Cadherin underexpression is one of the alterations that characterizes the invasive phenotype and is considered an invasion/tumour suppressor gene. Partial or complete loss of E-Cadherin expression correlates with poor prognosis in canine malignant mammary cancer. The aim of this study was to analyse the sLe x expression in canine malignant mammary tumours and to evaluate if the presence of sLe x correlates with the expression of E-Cadherin and with clinicopathological features. Fifty-three cases of canine mammary carcinomas were analysed immunohistochemically using monoclonal antibodies against sLe x (IgM) and E-Cadherin (IgG). The clinicopathological data were then assessed to determine whether there was a correlation with sLe x tumour expression. Double labelled immunofluorescence staining was performed to analyse the combined expression of sLe x and E-Cadherin. sLe x expression was consistently demonstrated in all cases of canine mammary carcinomas with different levels of expression. We found a significant relationship between the levels of sLe x expression and the presence of lymph node metastases. We also demonstrated that when E-Cadherin expression was increased sLe x was reduced and vice-versa. The combined analysis of both adhesion molecules revealed an inverse relationship. In the present study we demonstrate the importance of sLe x in the malignant phenotype of canine malignant mammary tumours. Our results support the use of sLe x as a prognostic tumour

  7. Century-Scale Change in Water Availability. CO2-Quadrupling Experiment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Manabe, S.; Wetherald, R.T.; Delworth, T.L.; Stouffer, R.J.; Milly, P.C.D.

    2004-01-01

    It has been suggested that, unless a major effort is made, the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide may rise above four times the pre-industrial level in a few centuries. Here we use a coupled atmosphere-ocean-land model to explore the response of the global water cycle to such a large increase in carbon dioxide, focusing on river discharge and soil moisture. Our results suggest that water is going to be more plentiful in those regions of the world that are already 'water-rich'. However, water stresses will increase significantly in regions and seasons that are already relatively dry. This could pose a very challenging problem for water-resource management around the world. For soil moisture, our results indicate reductions during much of the year in many semi-arid regions of the world, such as the southwestern region of North America, the northeastern region of China, the Mediterranean coast of Europe, and the grasslands of Australia and Africa. In some of these regions, soil moisture values are reduced by almost a factor of two during the dry season. The drying in semi-arid regions is likely to induce the outward expansion of deserts to the surrounding regions. Over extensive regions of both the Eurasian and North American continents in high and middle latitudes, soil moisture decreases in summer but increases in winter, in contrast to the situation in semi-arid regions. For river discharge, our results indicate an average increase of circa 15% during the next few centuries. The discharges from Arctic rivers such as the Mackenzie and Ob' increase by much larger fractions. In the tropics, the discharges from the Amazonas and Ganga-Brahmaputra also increase considerably. However, the percentage changes in runoff from other tropical and many mid-latitude rivers are smaller

  8. Electric quadruple moments of high-spin isomers in 209Po

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ivanov, E.A.; Nicolescu, G.; Plostinaru, D.

    1998-01-01

    The electric quadrupole interaction of the 209 Po (17/2) - and (13/2) - isomers in a Bi single-crystal was measured. The results for the quadrupole moments are connected with studies of isomers in Po isotopes. A two level analysis procedure was employed for the combined data of (17/2) - and (13/2) - isomers. The quadrupole moments of the Po isotopes are of special interest for testing nuclear models because of supposed simple nuclear structure with two protons outside a closed magic number shell. While the g-factors are significant for the predominant few-particle structures often present at high spins, the quadrupole moments are sensitive to additional contributions arising from core deformation effects. A systematic study of quadrupole moments of 12 + isomers in Pb isotopes has indeed demonstrated that the valence neutron effective charge increases as more particle pairs are removed from the 208 Pb core. In the present work, quadrupole coupling constants were measured for the isomers by the time-differential perturbed angular distribution (TDPAD) technique, in the presence of quadrupole interactions from the internal electric field gradient (EFG) in Bi crystal. The experiments were performed using a pulsed deuteron-beam of 13 MeV. The (17/2) - isomer state (T 1/2 = 88 ns) and the (13/2) - isomer state (T 1/2 = 24 ns) were populated and aligned by the 209 Bi(d,2n) reaction. The repetition time of the pulse was 10 μs and the width was around 5 ns (FWHM). The rather low bombardment energy was chosen to reduce population of higher spin isomers and to optimize the population of 209 Po((17/2) - ) and 209 Po((13/2) - ). The 209 Po single crystal target was held at a temperature of 470 K in order to reduce possible radiation damage effects. The experiments have been performed with the c axis of the single crystal at 45 angle and 90 angle to the beam direction. We chose to use a calibration based on isomers with well-understood nuclear structure allowing a reliable calculation of their moments from measured E2 transitions rates. In order to deduce the values of the Q((17/2) - ) and Q((13/2) - ) quadrupole moments of 209 Po we considered a 210 Po calibration based on the fact that the 210 Po(8 + ) isomer is known to have a very pure πh 1/2 8 configuration and the quadrupole moments can be computed from the (8 + →6 + )B(E2) value as Q[ 210 Po(8 + )] = -57 efm 2 . We finally arrive at the values: |Q[ 209 Po(17/2) - ]| = 67(5) efm 2 and |Q[ 209 Po(13/2) - ]| = 26(6) efm 2 . The sign of the ratio Q((17/2) - )/Q((13/2) - ) was determined as being positive. The absolute signs of the moments cannot be determined from our experiment but they are expected to be negative. A measurement of the quadrupole interaction of 209 Po nuclei in a Bi single crystal target yielded the quadrupole coupling constants for 209 Po((17/2) - ) and 209 Po((13/2) - ) isomers employing a two-level analysis formalism. In summarizing our results for the investigation of quadrupole moments of isomeric states in Po nuclei near N=126, we have observed a quite large increase in the quadrupole moments when the p 1/2 neutron shell is empty. Within the concept of the deformed single particle model the larger polarization is interpreted as an increased preference for deformation. (authors)

  9. Generating Expressive Speech for Storytelling Applications

    OpenAIRE

    Bailly, G.; Theune, Mariet; Meijs, Koen; Campbell, N.; Hamza, W.; Heylen, Dirk K.J.; Ordelman, Roeland J.F.; Hoge, H.; Jianhua, T.

    2006-01-01

    Work on expressive speech synthesis has long focused on the expression of basic emotions. In recent years, however, interest in other expressive styles has been increasing. The research presented in this paper aims at the generation of a storytelling speaking style, which is suitable for storytelling applications and more in general, for applications aimed at children. Based on an analysis of human storytellers' speech, we designed and implemented a set of prosodic rules for converting "neutr...

  10. Methods for monitoring multiple gene expression

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Berka, Randy [Davis, CA; Bachkirova, Elena [Davis, CA; Rey, Michael [Davis, CA

    2012-05-01

    The present invention relates to methods for monitoring differential expression of a plurality of genes in a first filamentous fungal cell relative to expression of the same genes in one or more second filamentous fungal cells using microarrays containing Trichoderma reesei ESTs or SSH clones, or a combination thereof. The present invention also relates to computer readable media and substrates containing such array features for monitoring expression of a plurality of genes in filamentous fungal cells.

  11. Methods for monitoring multiple gene expression

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Berka, Randy; Bachkirova, Elena; Rey, Michael

    2013-10-01

    The present invention relates to methods for monitoring differential expression of a plurality of genes in a first filamentous fungal cell relative to expression of the same genes in one or more second filamentous fungal cells using microarrays containing Trichoderma reesei ESTs or SSH clones, or a combination thereof. The present invention also relates to computer readable media and substrates containing such array features for monitoring expression of a plurality of genes in filamentous fungal cells.

  12. Cloning, Expression and Purification of the Recombinant HIV-1 Tat-Nef Fusion Protein in Prokaryotic Expression System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Somayeh Kadkhodayan

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background: Nef is one of the HIV-1 critical proteins, because it is essential for viral replication and AIDS disease progression and induction of immune response against it can partially inhibit viral infection. Moreover, a domain of the HIV-1 Trans-Activator of Transcription (Tat, 48-60 aa could act as a cell penetrating peptide (CPP. In current study, cloning and expression of Tat-Nef fusion protein was performed in E. coli for the first time. The protein expression was confirmed by western blot analysis and was purified using reverse staining method. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, primarily, cloning of Tat-Nef fusion gene was done in pGEX6p2 expression vector. Then, the expression of Tat-Nef recombinat protein in E.coli BL21 (DE3 strain was performed by using IPTG inducer. The protein expression was confirmed by SDS-PAGE and western blotting using anti-Nef monoclonal antibody. Then, the recombinant fusion protein was purified from gel using reverse staining method. Results: The results of PCR analysis and enzyme digestion showed a clear band of ~ 726 bp in agarose gel indicating the correct Tat-Nef fusion cloning in pGEX6p2 prokaryotic expression vector. In addition, a 54 kDa band of Tat-Nef on SDS-PAGE revealed Tat-Nef protein expression that western blot analysis using anti-Nef monoclonal antibody confirmed it. Conclusion: The purified Tat-Nef recombinant fusion protein will be used as an antigen for protein vaccine design against HIV infection.

  13. Building embodied agents that experience and express emotions

    OpenAIRE

    Bui, T.D.; Magnenat-Thalmann, N.; Heylen, Dirk K.J.; Joslin, C.; Nijholt, Antinus; Kim, H.S.

    2004-01-01

    In this paper we presented Obie, an embodied agent that experiences and expresses emotions. Obie has an adaptive, quantitative and domain-independent emotion component which appraises events to trigger emotions. Obie’s emotions are expressed via his utterances or his facial expressions. The expression via utterances is done by a simple mapping from emotions to text fragments. The mapping from emotions to facial expressions is done by a fuzzy rule-based system. Obie’s utterances and facial exp...

  14. A promoter-level mammalian expression atlas

    KAUST Repository

    Forest, Alistair R R

    2014-03-26

    Regulated transcription controls the diversity, developmental pathways and spatial organization of the hundreds of cell types that make up a mammal. Using single-molecule cDNA sequencing, we mapped transcription start sites (TSSs) and their usage in human and mouse primary cells, cell lines and tissues to produce a comprehensive overview of mammalian gene expression across the human body. We find that few genes are truly ‘housekeeping’, whereas many mammalian promoters are composite entities composed of several closely separated TSSs, with independent cell-type-specific expression profiles. TSSs specific to different cell types evolve at different rates, whereas promoters of broadly expressed genes are the most conserved. Promoter-based expression analysis reveals key transcription factors defining cell states and links them to binding-site motifs. The functions of identified novel transcripts can be predicted by coexpression and sample ontology enrichment analyses. The functional annotation of the mammalian genome 5 (FANTOM5) project provides comprehensive expression profiles and functional annotation of mammalian cell-type-specific transcriptomes with wide applications in biomedical research.

  15. A promoter-level mammalian expression atlas

    KAUST Repository

    Forest, Alistair R R; Kawaji, Hideya; Rehli, Michael; Baillie, John Kenneth; De Hoon, Michiel Jl L; Haberle, Vanja; Lassmann, Timo; Kulakovskiy, Ivan V.; Lizio, Marina; Itoh, Masayoshi; Andersson, Robin; Iida, Kei; Ikawa, Tomokatsu; Jankovic, Boris R.; Jia, Hui; Joshi, Anagha Madhusudan; Jurman, Giuseppe; Kaczkowski, Bogumił; Kai, Chieko; Kaida, Kaoru; Kaiho, Ai; Mungall, Christopher J.; Kajiyama, Kazuhiro; Kanamori-Katayama, Mutsumi; Kasianov, Artem S.; Kasukawa, Takeya; Katayama, Shintaro; Kato, Sachi; Kawaguchi, Shuji; Kawamoto, Hiroshi; Kawamura, Yuki I.; Kawashima, Tsugumi; Meehan, Terrence F.; Kempfle, Judith S.; Kenna, Tony J.; Kere, Juha; Khachigian, Levon M.; Kitamura, Toshio; Klinken, Svend Peter; Knox, Alan; Kojima, Miki; Kojima, Soichi; Kondo, Naoto; Schmeier, Sebastian; Koseki, Haruhiko; Koyasu, Shigeo; Krampitz, Sarah; Kubosaki, Atsutaka; Kwon, Andrew T.; Laros, Jeroen F J; Lee, Weonju; Lennartsson, Andreas; Li, Kang; Lilje, Berit; Bertin, Nicolas; Lipovich, Leonard; MacKay-Sim, Alan; Manabe, Riichiroh; Mar, Jessica; Marchand, Benoî t; Mathelier, Anthony; Mejhert, Niklas; Meynert, Alison M.; Mizuno, Yosuke; De Morais, David A Lima; Jø rgensen, Mette Christine; Morikawa, Hiromasa; Morimoto, Mitsuru; Moro, Kazuyo; Motakis, Efthymios; Motohashi, Hozumi; Mummery, Christine L.; Murata, Mitsuyoshi; Nagao-Sato, Sayaka; Nakachi, Yutaka; Nakahara, Fumio; Dimont, Emmanuel; Nakamura, Toshiyuki; Nakamura, Yukio; Nakazato, Kenichi; Van Nimwegen, Erik; Ninomiya, Noriko; Nishiyori, Hiromi; Noma, Shohei; Nozaki, Tadasuke; Ogishima, Soichi; Ohkura, Naganari; Arner, Erik; Ohmiya, Hiroko; Ohno, Hiroshi; Ohshima, Mitsuhiro; Okada-Hatakeyama, Mariko; Okazaki, Yasushi; Orlando, Valerio; Ovchinnikov, Dmitry A.; Pain, Arnab; Passier, Robert C J J; Patrikakis, Margaret; Schmidl, Christian; Persson, Helena A.; Piazza, Silvano; Prendergast, James G D; Rackham, Owen J L; Ramilowski, Jordan A.; Rashid, Mamoon; Ravasi, Timothy; Rizzu, Patrizia; Roncador, Marco; Roy, Sugata; Schaefer, Ulf; Rye, Morten Beck; Saijyo, Eri; Sajantila, Antti; Saka, Akiko; Sakaguchi, Shimon; Sakai, Mizuho; Sato, Hiroki; Satoh, Hironori; Savvi, Suzana; Saxena, Alka; Medvedeva, Yulia; Schneider, Claudio H.; Schultes, Erik A.; Schulze-Tanzil, Gundula G.; Schwegmann, Anita; Sengstag, Thierry; Sheng, Guojun; Shimoji, Hisashi; Shimoni, Yishai; Shin, Jay W.; Simon, Chris M.; Plessy, Charles; Sugiyama, Daisuke; Sugiyama, Takaaki; Suzuki, Masanori; Suzuki, Naoko; Swoboda, Rolf K.; 't Hoen, Peter Ac Chr; Tagami, Michihira; Tagami, Naokotakahashi; Takai, Jun; Tanaka, Hiroshi; Vitezic, Morana; Tatsukawa, Hideki; Tatum, Zuotian; Thompson, Mark; Toyoda, Hiroo; Toyoda, Tetsuro; Valen, Eivind; Van De Wetering, Marc L.; Van Den Berg, Linda M.; Verardo, Roberto; Vijayan, Dipti; Severin, Jessica M.; Vorontsov, Ilya E.; Wasserman, Wyeth W.; Watanabe, Shoko; Wells, Christine A.; Winteringham, Louise Natalie; Wolvetang, Ernst Jurgen; Wood, Emily J.; Yamaguchi, Yoko; Yamamoto, Masayuki; Yoneda, Misako; Semple, Colin Am M; Yonekura, Yohei; Yoshida, Shigehiro; Zabierowski, Susan E.; Zhang, Peter; Zhao, Xiaobei; Zucchelli, Silvia; Summers, Kim M.; Suzuki, Harukazu; Daub, Carsten Olivier; Kawai, Jun; Ishizu, Yuri; Heutink, Peter; Hide, Winston; Freeman, Tom C.; Lenhard, Boris; Bajic, Vladimir B.; Taylor, Martin S.; Makeev, Vsevolod J.; Sandelin, Albin; Hume, David A.; Carninci, Piero; Young, Robert S.; Hayashizaki, Yoshihide Yoshihide; Francescatto, Margherita; Altschuler, Intikhab Alam; Albanese, Davide; Altschule, Gabriel M.; Arakawa, Takahiro; Archer, John A.C.; Arner, Peter; Babina, Magda; Rennie, Sarah; Balwierz, Piotr J.; Beckhouse, Anthony G.; Pradhan-Bhatt, Swati; Blake, Judith A.; Blumenthal, Antje; Bodega, Beatrice; Bonetti, Alessandro; Briggs, James A.; Brombacher, Frank; Burroughs, Alexander Maxwell; Califano, Andrea C.; Cannistraci, Carlo; Carbajo, Daniel; Chen, Yun; Chierici, Marco; Ciani, Yari; Clevers, Hans C.; Dalla, Emiliano; Davis, Carrie Anne; Detmar, Michael J.; Diehl, Alexander D.; Dohi, Taeko; Drablø s, Finn; Edge, Albert SB B; Edinger, Matthias G.; Ekwall, Karl; Endoh, Mitsuhiro; Enomoto, Hideki; Fagiolini, Michela; Fairbairn, Lynsey R.; Fang, Hai; Farach-Carson, Mary Cindy; Faulkner, Geoffrey J.; Favorov, Alexander V.; Fisher, Malcolm E.; Frith, Martin C.; Fujita, Rie; Fukuda, Shiro; Furlanello, Cesare; Furuno, Masaaki; Furusawa, Junichi; Geijtenbeek, Teunis Bh H; Gibson, Andrew P.; Gingeras, Thomas R.; Goldowitz, Dan; Gough, Julian; Guhl, Sven; Guler, Reto; Gustincich, Stefano; Ha, Thomas; Hamaguchi, Masahide; Hara, Mitsuko; Harbers, Matthias; Harshbarger, Jayson; Hasegawa, Akira; Hasegawa, Yuki; Hashimoto, Takehiro; Herlyn, Meenhard F.; Hitchens, Kelly J.; Sui, Shannan J Ho; Hofmann, Oliver M.; Hoof, Ilka; Hori, Fumi; Huminiecki, Łukasz B.

    2014-01-01

    Regulated transcription controls the diversity, developmental pathways and spatial organization of the hundreds of cell types that make up a mammal. Using single-molecule cDNA sequencing, we mapped transcription start sites (TSSs) and their usage in human and mouse primary cells, cell lines and tissues to produce a comprehensive overview of mammalian gene expression across the human body. We find that few genes are truly ‘housekeeping’, whereas many mammalian promoters are composite entities composed of several closely separated TSSs, with independent cell-type-specific expression profiles. TSSs specific to different cell types evolve at different rates, whereas promoters of broadly expressed genes are the most conserved. Promoter-based expression analysis reveals key transcription factors defining cell states and links them to binding-site motifs. The functions of identified novel transcripts can be predicted by coexpression and sample ontology enrichment analyses. The functional annotation of the mammalian genome 5 (FANTOM5) project provides comprehensive expression profiles and functional annotation of mammalian cell-type-specific transcriptomes with wide applications in biomedical research.

  16. The College Student's Freedom of Expression

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gibbs, Annette

    1974-01-01

    Discussion of means to ensure freedom of expression by college students. Areas of expression noted are student newspapers, lectures by off-campus speakers, freedom to assemble peaceably and freedom to associate. (EK)

  17. Suppression of lipin-1 expression increases monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 expression in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takahashi, Nobuhiko; Yoshizaki, Takayuki; Hiranaka, Natsumi; Suzuki, Takeshi; Yui, Tomoo; Akanuma, Masayasu; Oka, Kazuya; Kanazawa, Kaoru; Yoshida, Mika; Naito, Sumiyoshi; Fujiya, Mikihiro; Kohgo, Yutaka; Ieko, Masahiro

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: ► Lipin-1 affects lipid metabolism, adipocyte differentiation, and transcription. ► Adipose lipin-1 expression is reduced in obesity. ► Lipin-1 depletion using siRNA in 3T3-L1 adipocytes increased MCP-1 expression. ► Lipin-1 is involved in adipose inflammation. -- Abstract: Lipin-1 plays a crucial role in the regulation of lipid metabolism and cell differentiation in adipocytes. Expression of adipose lipin-1 is reduced in obesity, and metabolic syndrome. However, the significance of this reduction remains unclear. This study investigated if and how reduced lipin-1 expression affected metabolism. We assessed mRNA expression levels of various genes related to adipocyte metabolism in lipin-1-depleted 3T3-L1 adipocytes by introducing its specific small interfering RNA. In lipin-1-depleted adipocytes, mRNA and protein expression levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were significantly increased, although the other genes tested were not altered. The conditioned media from the cells promoted monocyte chemotaxis. The increase in MCP-1 expression was prevented by treatment with quinazoline or salicylate, inhibitors of nuclear factor-κB activation. Because MCP-1 is related to adipose inflammation and systemic insulin resistance, these results suggest that a reduction in adipose lipin-1 in obesity may exacerbate adipose inflammation and metabolism.

  18. Suppression of lipin-1 expression increases monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 expression in 3T3-L1 adipocytes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Takahashi, Nobuhiko, E-mail: ntkhs@hoku-iryo-u.ac.jp [Department of Internal Medicine, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan); Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido 078-8510 (Japan); Yoshizaki, Takayuki [Innovation Center, Kagoshima University, 1-21-40 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065 (Japan); Hiranaka, Natsumi; Suzuki, Takeshi [Department of Internal Medicine, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan); Yui, Tomoo; Akanuma, Masayasu; Oka, Kazuya [Department of Fixed Prosthodontics and Oral Implantology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan); Kanazawa, Kaoru [Department of Dental Anesthesiology, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan); Yoshida, Mika; Naito, Sumiyoshi [Department of Clinical Laboratory, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan); Fujiya, Mikihiro; Kohgo, Yutaka [Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology/Oncology, Department of Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, 2-1-1-1 Midorigaoka-Higashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido 078-8510 (Japan); Ieko, Masahiro [Department of Internal Medicine, School of Dentistry, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, 1757 Kanazawa, Ishikari-Toubetsu, Hokkaido 061-0023 (Japan)

    2011-11-11

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Lipin-1 affects lipid metabolism, adipocyte differentiation, and transcription. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Adipose lipin-1 expression is reduced in obesity. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Lipin-1 depletion using siRNA in 3T3-L1 adipocytes increased MCP-1 expression. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Lipin-1 is involved in adipose inflammation. -- Abstract: Lipin-1 plays a crucial role in the regulation of lipid metabolism and cell differentiation in adipocytes. Expression of adipose lipin-1 is reduced in obesity, and metabolic syndrome. However, the significance of this reduction remains unclear. This study investigated if and how reduced lipin-1 expression affected metabolism. We assessed mRNA expression levels of various genes related to adipocyte metabolism in lipin-1-depleted 3T3-L1 adipocytes by introducing its specific small interfering RNA. In lipin-1-depleted adipocytes, mRNA and protein expression levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were significantly increased, although the other genes tested were not altered. The conditioned media from the cells promoted monocyte chemotaxis. The increase in MCP-1 expression was prevented by treatment with quinazoline or salicylate, inhibitors of nuclear factor-{kappa}B activation. Because MCP-1 is related to adipose inflammation and systemic insulin resistance, these results suggest that a reduction in adipose lipin-1 in obesity may exacerbate adipose inflammation and metabolism.

  19. Willingness to express emotions to caregiving spouses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monin, Joan K; Martire, Lynn M; Schulz, Richard; Clark, Margaret S

    2009-02-01

    This study examined the association between care-recipients' willingness to express emotions to spousal caregivers and caregiver's well-being and support behaviors. Using self-report measures in the context of a larger study, 262 care-recipients with osteoarthritis reported on their willingness to express emotions to caregivers, and caregivers reported on their stress and insensitive responding to care-recipients. Results revealed that care-recipients' willingness to express happiness was associated with less insensitive caregiver responding, and willingness to express interpersonal emotions (e.g., compassion, guilt) was associated with less caregiving stress. There were also gender differences, such that caregiving wives, in particular, benefited from their husband's willingness to express vulnerable (e.g., anxiety, sadness) and interpersonal emotions. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved

  20. TMV-Cg Coat Protein stabilizes DELLA proteins and in turn negatively modulates salicylic acid-mediated defense pathway during Arabidopsis thaliana viral infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodriguez, Maria Cecilia; Conti, Gabriela; Zavallo, Diego; Manacorda, Carlos Augusto; Asurmendi, Sebastian

    2014-08-03

    Plant viral infections disturb defense regulatory networks during tissue invasion. Emerging evidence demonstrates that a significant proportion of these alterations are mediated by hormone imbalances. Although the DELLA proteins have been reported to be central players in hormone cross-talk, their role in the modulation of hormone signaling during virus infections remains unknown. This work revealed that TMV-Cg coat protein (CgCP) suppresses the salicylic acid (SA) signaling pathway without altering defense hormone SA or jasmonic acid (JA) levels in Arabidopsis thaliana. Furthermore, it was observed that the expression of CgCP reduces plant growth and delays the timing of floral transition. Quantitative RT-qPCR analysis of DELLA target genes showed that CgCP alters relative expression of several target genes, indicating that the DELLA proteins mediate transcriptional changes produced by CgCP expression. Analyses by fluorescence confocal microscopy showed that CgCP stabilizes DELLA proteins accumulation in the presence of gibberellic acid (GA) and that the DELLA proteins are also stabilized during TMV-Cg virus infections. Moreover, DELLA proteins negatively modulated defense transcript profiles during TMV-Cg infection. As a result, TMV-Cg accumulation was significantly reduced in the quadruple-DELLA mutant Arabidopsis plants compared to wild type plants. Taken together, these results demonstrate that CgCP negatively regulates the salicylic acid-mediated defense pathway by stabilizing the DELLA proteins during Arabidopsis thaliana viral infection, suggesting that CgCP alters the stability of DELLAs as a mechanism of negative modulation of antiviral defense responses.

  1. The Efficacy of Sequential Therapy in Eradication of Helicobacter ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    2017-05-22

    May 22, 2017 ... pylori (H. pylori) eradication rates of standard triple, sequential and quadruple therapies including claritromycin regimes in this study. Materials and Methods: A total of 160 patients with dyspeptic symptoms were enrolled to the study. The patients were randomized to four groups of treatment protocols.

  2. The efficacy of sequential therapy in eradication of Helicobacter ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... the Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication rates of standard triple, sequential and quadruple therapies including claritromycin regimes in this study. Materials and Methods: A total of 160 patients with dyspeptic symptoms were enrolled to the study. The patients were randomized to four groups of treatment protocols.

  3. 21 CFR 71.1 - Petitions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES GENERAL COLOR ADDITIVE PETITIONS General Provisions § 71.1 Petitions. (a) Any interested person may propose the listing of a color additive... submitted in triplicate (quadruplicate, if intended uses include uses in meat, meat food product, or poultry...

  4. Perennial Grass Bioenergy Cropping on Wet Marginal Land

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Das, Srabani; Teuffer, Karin; Stoof, Cathelijne R.; Walter, Michael F.; Walter, M.T.; Steenhuis, Tammo S.; Richards, Brian K.

    2018-01-01

    The control of soil moisture, vegetation type, and prior land use on soil health parameters of perennial grass cropping systems on marginal lands is not well known. A fallow wetness-prone marginal site in New York (USA) was converted to perennial grass bioenergy feedstock production. Quadruplicate

  5. Brugerinvolvering i design af læreprocesser – refleksioner over et større forsknings- og udviklingsprojekt

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Helms, Niels Henrik; Heilesen, Simon

    2012-01-01

    quadruple helix model. Begrebet "didaktisk design" problematiseres ud fra betragtningen, at der i design-aktiviteter er behov for at medtænke og involvere forskellige tilgange samt forskellige kompetencer hos aktørerne. "Design thinking" inddrages for at pointere, at design er en eksplorativ, dialogisk og...

  6. Brugerinvolvering i design af læreprocesser

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Heilesen, Simon; Helms, Niels Henrik

    2012-01-01

    quadruple helix model. Begrebet "didaktisk design" problematiseres ud fra betragtningen, at der i design-aktiviteter er behov for at medtænke og involvere forskellige tilgange samt forskellige kompetencer hos aktørerne. "Design thinking" inddrages for at pointere, at design er en eksplorativ, dialogisk og...

  7. Author Details

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Byakika, TK. Vol 1, No 1 (2007) - Articles Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries and Outcome of Arthroscopic Reconstruction Using Quadrupled Hamstrings: A Kenyan Experience Abstract PDF · Vol 8, No 2 (2014) - Articles Correlation of magnetic resonance imaging findings with arthroscopy in the evaluation of rotator cuff ...

  8. ASASSN-18gb: Discovery of A Probable Nova in NGC 3109

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brimacombe, J.; Vallely, P.; Stanek, K. Z.; Kochanek, C. S.; Brown, J. S.; Shields, J.; Thompson, T. A.; Shappee, B. J.; Holoien, T. W.-S.; Prieto, J. L.; Bersier, D.; Dong, Subo; Bose, S.; Chen, Ping; Stritzinger, M.; Holmbo, S.

    2018-03-01

    During the ongoing All Sky Automated Survey for SuperNovae (ASAS-SN, Shappee et al. 2014), using data from the quadruple 14-cm "Payne-Gaposchkin" telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, we discovered a new transient source, most likely a nova, in the Local Group galaxy NGC 3109.

  9. cis sequence effects on gene expression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacobs Kevin

    2007-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Sequence and transcriptional variability within and between individuals are typically studied independently. The joint analysis of sequence and gene expression variation (genetical genomics provides insight into the role of linked sequence variation in the regulation of gene expression. We investigated the role of sequence variation in cis on gene expression (cis sequence effects in a group of genes commonly studied in cancer research in lymphoblastoid cell lines. We estimated the proportion of genes exhibiting cis sequence effects and the proportion of gene expression variation explained by cis sequence effects using three different analytical approaches, and compared our results to the literature. Results We generated gene expression profiling data at N = 697 candidate genes from N = 30 lymphoblastoid cell lines for this study and used available candidate gene resequencing data at N = 552 candidate genes to identify N = 30 candidate genes with sufficient variance in both datasets for the investigation of cis sequence effects. We used two additive models and the haplotype phylogeny scanning approach of Templeton (Tree Scanning to evaluate association between individual SNPs, all SNPs at a gene, and diplotypes, with log-transformed gene expression. SNPs and diplotypes at eight candidate genes exhibited statistically significant (p cis sequence effects in our study, respectively. Conclusion Based on analysis of our results and the extant literature, one in four genes exhibits significant cis sequence effects, and for these genes, about 30% of gene expression variation is accounted for by cis sequence variation. Despite diverse experimental approaches, the presence or absence of significant cis sequence effects is largely supported by previously published studies.

  10. Unstable Expression of Commonly Used Reference Genes in Rat Pancreatic Islets Early after Isolation Affects Results of Gene Expression Studies.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lucie Kosinová

    Full Text Available The use of RT-qPCR provides a powerful tool for gene expression studies; however, the proper interpretation of the obtained data is crucially dependent on accurate normalization based on stable reference genes. Recently, strong evidence has been shown indicating that the expression of many commonly used reference genes may vary significantly due to diverse experimental conditions. The isolation of pancreatic islets is a complicated procedure which creates severe mechanical and metabolic stress leading possibly to cellular damage and alteration of gene expression. Despite of this, freshly isolated islets frequently serve as a control in various gene expression and intervention studies. The aim of our study was to determine expression of 16 candidate reference genes and one gene of interest (F3 in isolated rat pancreatic islets during short-term cultivation in order to find a suitable endogenous control for gene expression studies. We compared the expression stability of the most commonly used reference genes and evaluated the reliability of relative and absolute quantification using RT-qPCR during 0-120 hrs after isolation. In freshly isolated islets, the expression of all tested genes was markedly depressed and it increased several times throughout the first 48 hrs of cultivation. We observed significant variability among samples at 0 and 24 hrs but substantial stabilization from 48 hrs onwards. During the first 48 hrs, relative quantification failed to reflect the real changes in respective mRNA concentrations while in the interval 48-120 hrs, the relative expression generally paralleled the results determined by absolute quantification. Thus, our data call into question the suitability of relative quantification for gene expression analysis in pancreatic islets during the first 48 hrs of cultivation, as the results may be significantly affected by unstable expression of reference genes. However, this method could provide reliable information

  11. Vocal Emotion Expressions Effects on Cooperation Behavior

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caballero Meneses, Jonathan Azael; Menez Díaz, Judith Marina

    2017-01-01

    Emotional expressions have been proposed to be important for regulating social interaction as they can serve as cues for behavioral intentions. The issue has been mainly addressed analyzing the effects of facial emotional expressions in cooperation behavior, but there are contradictory results regarding the impact of emotional expressions on that…

  12. Endogenous retrovirus sequences expressed in male mammalian ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In humans, one ERV family, human endogenous retrovirus- K (HERV-K) is abundantly expressed, and is associated with germ cell tumours, while ERV3 env is expressed in normal human testis. Conclusion: The expression of ERVs in male reproductive tissues suggests a possible role in normal and disease conditions ...

  13. Stably Expressed Genes Involved in Basic Cellular Functions.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kejian Wang

    Full Text Available Stably Expressed Genes (SEGs whose expression varies within a narrow range may be involved in core cellular processes necessary for basic functions. To identify such genes, we re-analyzed existing RNA-Seq gene expression profiles across 11 organs at 4 developmental stages (from immature to old age in both sexes of F344 rats (n = 4/group; 320 samples. Expression changes (calculated as the maximum expression / minimum expression for each gene of >19000 genes across organs, ages, and sexes ranged from 2.35 to >109-fold, with a median of 165-fold. The expression of 278 SEGs was found to vary ≤4-fold and these genes were significantly involved in protein catabolism (proteasome and ubiquitination, RNA transport, protein processing, and the spliceosome. Such stability of expression was further validated in human samples where the expression variability of the homologous human SEGs was significantly lower than that of other genes in the human genome. It was also found that the homologous human SEGs were generally less subject to non-synonymous mutation than other genes, as would be expected of stably expressed genes. We also found that knockout of SEG homologs in mouse models was more likely to cause complete preweaning lethality than non-SEG homologs, corroborating the fundamental roles played by SEGs in biological development. Such stably expressed genes and pathways across life-stages suggest that tight control of these processes is important in basic cellular functions and that perturbation by endogenous (e.g., genetics or exogenous agents (e.g., drugs, environmental factors may cause serious adverse effects.

  14. Brain region-dependent differential expression of alpha-synuclein.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taguchi, Katsutoshi; Watanabe, Yoshihisa; Tsujimura, Atsushi; Tanaka, Masaki

    2016-04-15

    α-Synuclein, the major constituent of Lewy bodies (LBs), is normally expressed in presynapses and is involved in synaptic function. Abnormal intracellular aggregation of α-synuclein is observed as LBs and Lewy neurites in neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson's disease (PD) or dementia with Lewy bodies. Accumulated evidence suggests that abundant intracellular expression of α-synuclein is one of the risk factors for pathological aggregation. Recently, we reported differential expression patterns of α-synuclein between excitatory and inhibitory hippocampal neurons. Here we further investigated the precise expression profile in the adult mouse brain with special reference to vulnerable regions along the progression of idiopathic PD. The results show that α-synuclein was highly expressed in the neuronal cell bodies of some early PD-affected brain regions, such as the olfactory bulb, dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus, and substantia nigra pars compacta. Synaptic expression of α-synuclein was mostly accompanied by expression of vesicular glutamate transporter-1, an excitatory presynaptic marker. In contrast, expression of α-synuclein in the GABAergic inhibitory synapses was different among brain regions. α-Synuclein was clearly expressed in inhibitory synapses in the external plexiform layer of the olfactory bulb, globus pallidus, and substantia nigra pars reticulata, but not in the cerebral cortex, subthalamic nucleus, or thalamus. These results suggest that some neurons in early PD-affected human brain regions express high levels of perikaryal α-synuclein, as happens in the mouse brain. Additionally, synaptic profiles expressing α-synuclein are different in various brain regions. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  15. Lithium ions induce prestalk-associated gene expression and inhibit prespore gene expression in Dictyostelium discoideum

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Peters, Dorien J.M.; Lookeren Campagne, Michiel M. van; Haastert, Peter J.M. van; Spek, Wouter; Schaap, Pauline

    1989-01-01

    We investigated the effect of Li+ on two types of cyclic AMP-regulated gene expression and on basal and cyclic AMP-stimulated inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (Ins(1,4,5)P3) levels. Li+ effectively inhibits cyclic AMP-induced prespore gene expression, half-maximal inhibition occurring at about 2mM-LiCl.

  16. An atlas of Caenorhabditis elegans chemoreceptor expression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Berta Vidal

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available One goal of modern day neuroscience is the establishment of molecular maps that assign unique features to individual neuron types. Such maps provide important starting points for neuron classification, for functional analysis, and for developmental studies aimed at defining the molecular mechanisms of neuron identity acquisition and neuron identity diversification. In this resource paper, we describe a nervous system-wide map of the potential expression sites of 244 members of the largest gene family in the C. elegans genome, rhodopsin-like (class A G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR chemoreceptors, using classic gfp reporter gene technology. We cover representatives of all sequence families of chemoreceptor GPCRs, some of which were previously entirely uncharacterized. Most reporters are expressed in a very restricted number of cells, often just in single cells. We assign GPCR reporter expression to all but two of the 37 sensory neuron classes of the sex-shared, core nervous system. Some sensory neurons express a very small number of receptors, while others, particularly nociceptive neurons, coexpress several dozen GPCR reporter genes. GPCR reporters are also expressed in a wide range of inter- and motorneurons, as well as non-neuronal cells, suggesting that GPCRs may constitute receptors not just for environmental signals, but also for internal cues. We observe only one notable, frequent association of coexpression patterns, namely in one nociceptive amphid (ASH and two nociceptive phasmid sensory neurons (PHA, PHB. We identified GPCRs with sexually dimorphic expression and several GPCR reporters that are expressed in a left/right asymmetric manner. We identified a substantial degree of GPCR expression plasticity; particularly in the context of the environmentally-induced dauer diapause stage when one third of all tested GPCRs alter the cellular specificity of their expression within and outside the nervous system. Intriguingly, in a number of

  17. SSC collider quadrupole cold mass design and development

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Farrell, R.A.; Murray, F.S.; Jonas, P.A.; Mischler, W.R.; Blecher, L.

    1992-01-01

    Approximately 1,664 focussing and defocussing superconducting quadrupoles are required for the two SSC collider rings. Collider quadruple magnets (CQMS) must satisfy stringent performance, reliability, life and low cost criteria. Performance requirements include field uniformity, training, quench, tracking, thermal cycling and alignment. The CQM cold mass design presented incorporates lessons IGC and Alsthom Intermagnetics S.A. (AISA), our joint venture with GEC-Alsthom, learned in the design, development and manufacture of 500 MRI, 160 high-field custom and 126 HERA quadruple superconducting magnets. This baseline design reflects careful quantitative assessment of coil winding placement and collar material, evaluation of field uniformity and mechanical performance of the magnet coil ends using 3-D modeling and analysis, and considers tolerance and process variability. Selected CQM cold mass design highlights and a proposed prototype development program that allows incorporation of test feedback into the design to minimize risk are detailed in this paper. This information may be helpful to SSCL in the design and development of prototype CQM'S

  18. The Active Role of the Ocean in the Temporal Evolution of Climate Sensitivity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garuba, Oluwayemi A.; Lu, Jian; Liu, Fukai; Singh, Hansi A.

    2018-01-01

    The temporal evolution of the effective climate sensitivity is shown to be influenced by the changing pattern of sea surface temperature (SST) and ocean heat uptake (OHU), which in turn have been attributed to ocean circulation changes. A set of novel experiments are performed to isolate the active role of the ocean by comparing a fully coupled CO2 quadrupling community Earth System Model (CESM) simulation against a partially coupled one, where the effect of the ocean circulation change and its impact on surface fluxes are disabled. The active OHU is responsible for the reduced effective climate sensitivity and weaker surface warming response in the fully coupled simulation. The passive OHU excites qualitatively similar feedbacks to CO2 quadrupling in a slab ocean model configuration due to the similar SST spatial pattern response in both experiments. Additionally, the nonunitary forcing efficacy of the active OHU (1.7) explains the very different net feedback parameters in the fully and partially coupled responses.

  19. RADIAL VELOCITY STUDIES OF CLOSE BINARY STARS. XIV

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pribulla, Theodor; Rucinski, Slavek M.; DeBond, Heide; De Ridder, Archie; Karmo, Toomas; Thomson, J. R.; Croll, Bryce; Ogloza, Waldemar; Pilecki, Bogumil; Siwak, Michal

    2009-01-01

    Radial velocity (RV) measurements and sine curve fits to the orbital RV variations are presented for 10 close binary systems: TZ Boo, VW Boo, EL Boo, VZ CVn, GK Cep, RW Com, V2610 Oph, V1387 Ori, AU Ser, and FT UMa. Our spectroscopy revealed two quadruple systems, TZ Boo and V2610 Oph, while three stars showing small photometric amplitudes, EL Boo, V1387 Ori, and FT UMa, were found to be triple systems. GK Cep is a close binary with a faint third component. While most of the studied eclipsing systems are contact binaries, VZ CVn and GK Cep are detached or semidetached double-lined binaries, and EL Boo, V1387 Ori, and FT UMa are close binaries of uncertain binary type. The large fraction of triple and quadruple systems found in this sample supports the hypothesis of formation of close binaries in multiple stellar systems; it also demonstrates that low photometric amplitude binaries are a fertile ground for further discoveries of multiple systems.

  20. Optical cross-connect circuit using hitless wavelength selective switch.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goebuchi, Yuta; Hisada, Masahiko; Kato, Tomoyuki; Kokubun, Yasuo

    2008-01-21

    We have proposed and demonstrated the basic elements of a full matrix optical switching circuit (cross-connect circuit) using a hitless wavelength selective switch (WSS). The cross-connect circuits are made of a multi-wavelength channel selective switch consisting of cascaded hitless WSSs, and a multi-port switch. These switching elements are realized through the individual Thermo-Optic (TO) tuning of a series-coupled microring resonator, and can switch arbitrary wavelength channels without blocking other wavelength channels during tuning. We demonstrate a four wavelength selective switch using a parallel topology of double series coupled microring resonators and a three wavelength selective switch using a parallel topology of quadruple series coupled microring resonators. Since the spectrum shape of quadruple series coupled microring is much more box-like than the double series, a high extinction ratio of 39.0-46.6 dB and low switching cross talk of 19.3-24.5 dB were achieved.

  1. Sensitivity of the Humboldt current system to global warming: a downscaling experiment of the IPSL-CM4 model

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Echevin, Vincent [LOCEAN, Paris (France); Goubanova, Katerina; Dewitte, Boris [LEGOS, Toulouse (France); IMARPE, IGP, LEGOS, Lima (Peru); Belmadani, Ali [LOCEAN, Paris (France); LEGOS, Toulouse (France); University of Hawaii at Manoa, IPRC, International Pacific Research Center, SOEST, Honolulu, Hawaii (United States)

    2012-02-15

    The impact of climate warming on the seasonal variability of the Humboldt Current system ocean dynamics is investigated. The IPSL-CM4 large scale ocean circulation resulting from two contrasted climate scenarios, the so-called Preindustrial and quadrupling CO{sub 2}, are downscaled using an eddy-resolving regional ocean circulation model. The intense surface heating by the atmosphere in the quadrupling CO{sub 2} scenario leads to a strong increase of the surface density stratification, a thinner coastal jet, an enhanced Peru-Chile undercurrent, and an intensification of nearshore turbulence. Upwelling rates respond quasi-linearly to the change in wind stress associated with anthropogenic forcing, and show a moderate decrease in summer off Peru and a strong increase off Chile. Results from sensitivity experiments show that a 50% wind stress increase does not compensate for the surface warming resulting from heat flux forcing and that the associated mesoscale turbulence increase is a robust feature. (orig.)

  2. Panofsky magnet for the beam extraction from the synchrotron using a fast Q-magnet and RF-knockout

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masubuchi, S.; Nakanishi, T.

    2011-12-01

    The fast control of the beam spill extracted from a synchrotron is a key function for the spot scanning irradiation in cancer therapy application. The authors propose an extraction method which uses the quadruple field of fast response, as well as the RF-knockout. A Panofsky magnet was developed as a quadruple magnet, with a frequency response of around 10 kHz. The Panofsky magnet has a rectangular beam aperture and plate coils attached to the pole face. A model magnet has been manufactured with ferrite, and static and dynamic magnetic fields were measured. From the measurement we observed that the effects of eddy current in the plate coils were large and the uniformity of the magnetic field gradient in the beam aperture was worse than ±5% with a plate thickness of 0.02 cm and a frequency of current of 10 kHz. For the future, in a detailed design the eddy current effects have to be taken into account.

  3. Gender roles, sex and the expression of driving anger.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sullman, M J M; Paxion, J; Stephens, A N

    2017-09-01

    The present study investigated the validity of the 25-item Driving Anger Expression Inventory (DAX) as well as the role of sex and gender-roles in relation to the expression of driving anger in a sample of 378 French drivers (males=38%, M=32.9years old). Confirmatory Factor Analysis supported the four-factor structure of the 25-item DAX (Adaptive/Constructive Expression; Use of the Vehicle to Express Anger; Verbal Aggressive Expression and Personal Physical Aggressive Expression) and two of the three aggressive factors were found to have significant positive relationships with driving anger, while adaptive/constructive expression was negatively related to driving anger. Use of the vehicle to express anger was not significantly related to crash involvement, but was significantly related to all other crash-related conditions (traffic tickets, loss of concentration, loss of control of the vehicle, near crash). The presence of feminine traits, but not sex, was predictive of adaptive/constructive behaviours, while masculine traits predicted more frequent verbal aggressive expression, use of the vehicle to express anger, personal physical aggressive expression and total aggressive expression. This finding may account for the inconsistent relationship found between driving anger and sex in previous research. This research also found that the 25-item DAX is a valid tool to measure the expression of driving anger and that the endorsement of masculine traits are related to more aggressive forms of driving anger expression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Functional expression of an ajmaline pathway-specific esterase from Rauvolfia in a novel plant-virus expression system.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruppert, Martin; Woll, Jörn; Giritch, Anatoli; Genady, Ezzat; Ma, Xueyan; Stöckigt, Joachim

    2005-11-01

    Acetylajmalan esterase (AAE) plays an essential role in the late stage of ajmaline biosynthesis. Based on the partial peptide sequences of AAE isolated and purified from Rauvolfia cell suspensions, a full-length AAE cDNA clone was isolated. The amino acid sequence of AAE has the highest level of identity of 40% to putative lipases known from the Arabidopsis thaliana genome project. Based on the primary structure AAE is a new member of the GDSL lipase superfamily. The expression in Escherichia coli failed although a wide range of conditions were tested. With a novel virus-based plant expression system, it was possible to express AAE functionally in leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana Domin. An extraordinarily high enzyme activity was detected in the Nicotiana tissue, which exceeded that in Rauvolfia serpentina (L.) Benth. ex Kurz cell suspension cultures about 20-fold. This expression allowed molecular analysis of AAE for the first time and increased the number of functionally expressed alkaloid genes from Rauvolfia now to eight, and the number of ajmaline pathway-specific cDNAs to a total of six.

  5. Expression of livin protein in lung cancer and its relation with the expression of pro-caspase3 protein

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hongru LI

    2008-10-01

    Full Text Available Background and objective Livin is a novel inhibitor of apoptosis protein (IAP, recent studies showed it overexpresses in a variety of carcinomas including lung cancer and contributes much to the cancerous development. The objective of this study is to explore the expression of livin in tissues of lung cancer and its relationshipwith histological types, chemotherapy, Lymph node metastasis and to study its correlation with the expression of pro-caspase3 as well. Methods Expressions of Livin and caspase3 were detected by Western blot assay in lung cancer tissues as well as in controls. Results Livin was expressed in 15 of 27 lung cancer, significantly more than those in lung para-cancerous (1/5 or benign disease lung tissues (2/12 (P 0.05. Conclusion Livin are differently expressed in different histological types of lung cancer; High levels of livin expression do not relate to chemotherapy, lymph node metastasis (P >0.05. The levels of livin tends to be positively associated with those of accordingly pro-caspase3, it is presumed that livin could bind pro-caspase3 and suppress its activation.

  6. A constructive approach to gene expression dynamics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ochiai, T.; Nacher, J.C.; Akutsu, T.

    2004-01-01

    Recently, experiments on mRNA abundance (gene expression) have revealed that gene expression shows a stationary organization described by a scale-free distribution. Here we propose a constructive approach to gene expression dynamics which restores the scale-free exponent and describes the intermediate state dynamics. This approach requires only one assumption: Markov property

  7. CD40 expression in Wehi-164 cell line.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karimi, Mohammad Hossein; Ebadi, Padideh; Pourfathollah, Ali Akbar; Soheili, Zahra Soheila; Moazzeni, Seyed Mohammad

    2010-07-01

    CD40-CD154 interaction is an important process for cellular and humoral immunity regulation and can be effective in the body's defense against tumors. In the present study, we evaluated the expression of CD40 in Wehi-164 cell line. CD40 expressions on the cell surface and in the cytoplasm were assessed by flow cytometry and intracellular staining assay, respectively. Also, the mRNA expression was identified by real time-PCR. The obtained results showed the high mRNA and cytoplasmic protein expression of CD40 but no surface expression. These results suggest that the Wehi-164 cell line down regulates expression of CD40 on the surface for evasion of immune system.

  8. Construction of PVX virus-expression vector to express enterotoxin ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Potato X potyvirus (PVX)-based vector has been comprehensively applied in transient expression system. In order to produce the heterologous proteins more quickly and stably, the ClaI and NotI enzyme sites were introduced into the Enterotoxin fusion gene LTB-ST by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the LTB-ST ...

  9. Compartmentalised expression of meprin in small intestinal mucosa: enhanced expression in lamina propria in coeliac disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lottaz, Daniel; Buri, Caroline; Monteleone, Giovanni; Rösmann, Sandra; Macdonald, Thomas T; Sanderson, Ian R; Sterchi, Erwin E

    2007-03-01

    Epithelial cells in the human small intestine express meprin, an astacin-like metalloprotease, which accumulates normally at the brush border membrane and in the gut lumen. Therefore, meprin is targeted towards luminal components. In coeliac disease patients, peptides from ingested cereals trigger mucosal inflammation in the small intestine, disrupting epithelial cell differentiation and function. Using in situ hybridisation on duodenal tissue sections, we observed a marked shift of meprin mRNA expression from epithelial cells, the predominant expression site in normal mucosa, to lamina propria leukocytes in coeliac disease. Meprin thereby gains access to the substrate repertoire present beneath the epithelium.

  10. Designing Emotionally Expressive Robots

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tsiourti, Christiana; Weiss, Astrid; Wac, Katarzyna

    2017-01-01

    Socially assistive agents, be it virtual avatars or robots, need to engage in social interactions with humans and express their internal emotional states, goals, and desires. In this work, we conducted a comparative study to investigate how humans perceive emotional cues expressed by humanoid...... robots through five communication modalities (face, head, body, voice, locomotion) and examined whether the degree of a robot's human-like embodiment affects this perception. In an online survey, we asked people to identify emotions communicated by Pepper -a highly human-like robot and Hobbit – a robot...... for robots....

  11. Glucose transporter expression in human skeletal muscle fibers

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gaster, M; Handberg, A; Beck-Nielsen, H

    2000-01-01

    , but its expression is markedly reduced around birth and is further reduced to undetectable levels within the first year of life; 2) GLUT-3 protein expression appears at 18 wk of gestation and disappears after birth; and 3) GLUT-4 protein is diffusely expressed in muscle cells throughout gestation, whereas...... after birth, the characteristic subcellular localization is as seen in adult muscle fibers. Our results show that GLUT-1, GLUT-3, and GLUT-4 seem to be of importance during muscle fiber growth and development. GLUT-5 protein was undetectable in fetal and adult skeletal muscle fibers. In adult muscle...... amplification (TSA) technique to detect the localization of glucose transporter expression in human skeletal muscle. We found expression of GLUT-1, GLUT-3, and GLUT-4 in developing human muscle fibers showing a distinct expression pattern. 1) GLUT-1 is expressed in human skeletal muscle cells during gestation...

  12. Construction of expression vectors carrying mouse peroxisomal ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    PRECIOUS

    2009-11-16

    Nov 16, 2009 ... The aim of this study was to construct expression vectors carrying mouse peroxisomal protein gene. (PEP-cDNA) in prokaryotic and mammalian expression vectors in chimeric cDNA types, encompassing. GST and FLAG with PEP-cDNA. PEP-cDNA was sub-cloned in pGEX6p2 prokaryotic expression ...

  13. Differentially-Expressed Pseudogenes in HIV-1 Infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aditi Gupta

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Not all pseudogenes are transcriptionally silent as previously thought. Pseudogene transcripts, although not translated, contribute to the non-coding RNA pool of the cell that regulates the expression of other genes. Pseudogene transcripts can also directly compete with the parent gene transcripts for mRNA stability and other cell factors, modulating their expression levels. Tissue-specific and cancer-specific differential expression of these “functional” pseudogenes has been reported. To ascertain potential pseudogene:gene interactions in HIV-1 infection, we analyzed transcriptomes from infected and uninfected T-cells and found that 21 pseudogenes are differentially expressed in HIV-1 infection. This is interesting because parent genes of one-third of these differentially-expressed pseudogenes are implicated in HIV-1 life cycle, and parent genes of half of these pseudogenes are involved in different viral infections. Our bioinformatics analysis identifies candidate pseudogene:gene interactions that may be of significance in HIV-1 infection. Experimental validation of these interactions would establish that retroviruses exploit this newly-discovered layer of host gene expression regulation for their own benefit.

  14. Differentially-Expressed Pseudogenes in HIV-1 Infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gupta, Aditi; Brown, C Titus; Zheng, Yong-Hui; Adami, Christoph

    2015-09-29

    Not all pseudogenes are transcriptionally silent as previously thought. Pseudogene transcripts, although not translated, contribute to the non-coding RNA pool of the cell that regulates the expression of other genes. Pseudogene transcripts can also directly compete with the parent gene transcripts for mRNA stability and other cell factors, modulating their expression levels. Tissue-specific and cancer-specific differential expression of these "functional" pseudogenes has been reported. To ascertain potential pseudogene:gene interactions in HIV-1 infection, we analyzed transcriptomes from infected and uninfected T-cells and found that 21 pseudogenes are differentially expressed in HIV-1 infection. This is interesting because parent genes of one-third of these differentially-expressed pseudogenes are implicated in HIV-1 life cycle, and parent genes of half of these pseudogenes are involved in different viral infections. Our bioinformatics analysis identifies candidate pseudogene:gene interactions that may be of significance in HIV-1 infection. Experimental validation of these interactions would establish that retroviruses exploit this newly-discovered layer of host gene expression regulation for their own benefit.

  15. Ectopic ERK Expression Induces Phenotypic Conversion of C10 Cells and Alters DNA Methyltransferase Expression

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sontag, Ryan L.; Weber, Thomas J.

    2012-05-04

    In some model systems constitutive extracellular signal regulated kinase (ERK) activation is sufficient to promote an oncogenic phenotype. Here we investigate whether constitutive ERK expression influences phenotypic conversion in murine C10 type II alveolar epithelial cells. C10 cells were stably transduced with an ERK1-green fluorescent protein (ERK1-GFP) chimera or empty vector and ectopic ERK expression was associated with the acquisition of soft agar focus-forming potential in late passage, but not early passage cells. Late passage ERK1-GFP cells exhibited a significant increase in the expression of DNA methyl transferases (DNMT1 and 3b) and a marked increase in sensitivity to 5-azacytidine (5-azaC)-mediated toxicity, relative to early passage ERK1-GFP cells and vector controls. The expression of xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group A (XPA) and DNA-dependent protein kinase catalytic subunit (DNA-PKcs) were significantly increased in late passage cells, suggesting enhanced DNA damage recognition and repair activity which we interpret as a reflection of genomic instability. Phospho-ERK levels were dramatically decreased in late passage ERK1-GFP cells, relative to early passage and vector controls, and phospho-ERK levels were restored by treatment with sodium orthovanadate, indicating a role for phosphatase activity in this response. Collectively these observations suggest that ectopic ERK expression promotes phenotypic conversion of C10 cells that is associated with latent effects on epigenetic programming and phosphatase activities.

  16. Genetic Variants Contribute to Gene Expression Variability in Humans

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hulse, Amanda M.; Cai, James J.

    2013-01-01

    Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies have established convincing relationships between genetic variants and gene expression. Most of these studies focused on the mean of gene expression level, but not the variance of gene expression level (i.e., gene expression variability). In the present study, we systematically explore genome-wide association between genetic variants and gene expression variability in humans. We adapt the double generalized linear model (dglm) to simultaneously fit the means and the variances of gene expression among the three possible genotypes of a biallelic SNP. The genomic loci showing significant association between the variances of gene expression and the genotypes are termed expression variability QTL (evQTL). Using a data set of gene expression in lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) derived from 210 HapMap individuals, we identify cis-acting evQTL involving 218 distinct genes, among which 8 genes, ADCY1, CTNNA2, DAAM2, FERMT2, IL6, PLOD2, SNX7, and TNFRSF11B, are cross-validated using an extra expression data set of the same LCLs. We also identify ∼300 trans-acting evQTL between >13,000 common SNPs and 500 randomly selected representative genes. We employ two distinct scenarios, emphasizing single-SNP and multiple-SNP effects on expression variability, to explain the formation of evQTL. We argue that detecting evQTL may represent a novel method for effectively screening for genetic interactions, especially when the multiple-SNP influence on expression variability is implied. The implication of our results for revealing genetic mechanisms of gene expression variability is discussed. PMID:23150607

  17. Pragmatic expressions in cross-linguistic perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maryann Overstreet

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available This paper focuses on some pragmatic expressions that are characteristic of informal spoken English, their possible equivalents in some other languages, and their use by EFL learners from different backgrounds. These expressions, called general extenders (e.g. and stuff, or something, are shown to be different from discourse markers and to exhibit variation in form, function and distribution across varieties of English, as well as in other languages. In EFL contexts, students are reported to use fewer pragmatic expressions and a smaller range of possible forms. They also tend to favor expressions more often associated with writing and formal speaking (e.g. and so on, include literal translation equivalents from their first language that are not used in English (e.g. and, and, and, or used only in restricted contexts (e.g. or so, and often seem not to realize that some forms may carry negative connotations (e.g. and blah, blah, blah. The possibility of fostering better pragmatic awareness among EFL students is discussed in terms of an explicit cross-linguistic focus on the forms and functions of pragmatic expressions.

  18. Transgene expression in cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Transgene expression in cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) ... and Bar genes for β-glucuronidase expression and bialaphos resistance respectively. ... expression also showed positive signals under PCR and Southern analysis giving ...

  19. TRPM4 protein expression in prostate cancer

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Berg, Kasper Drimer; Soldini, Davide; Jung, Maria

    2016-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily M, member 4 (TRPM4) messenger RNA (mRNA) has been shown to be upregulated in prostate cancer (PCa) and might be a new promising tissue biomarker. We evaluated TRPM4 protein expression and correlated the expression level.......79-2.62; p = 0.01-0.03 for the two observers) when compared to patients with a lower staining intensity. CONCLUSIONS: TRPM4 protein expression is widely expressed in benign and cancerous prostate tissue, with highest staining intensities found in PCa. Overexpression of TRPM4 in PCa (combination of high...

  20. Sustained enhancement of OCTN1 transporter expression in association with hydroxyurea induced gamma-globin expression in erythroid progenitors

    OpenAIRE

    Walker, Aisha L.; Ofori-Acquah, Solomon

    2016-01-01

    The clinical benefits of hydroxyurea treatment in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) are due largely to increased gamma-globin expression. However, mechanisms that control gamma-globin expression by hydroxyurea in erythroid progenitors are incompletely understood. Here, we investigated the role of two hydroxyurea transporters, urea transporter B (UTB) and organic cation/carnitine transporter 1 (OCTN1), in this process. Endogenous expression of both transporters peaked towards the end of ...

  1. Tunable Control of an Escherichia coli Expression System for the Overproduction of Membrane Proteins by Titrated Expression of a Mutant lac Repressor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Seong Keun; Lee, Dae-Hee; Kim, Oh Cheol; Kim, Jihyun F; Yoon, Sung Ho

    2017-09-15

    Most inducible expression systems suffer from growth defects, leaky basal induction, and inhomogeneous expression levels within a host cell population. These difficulties are most prominent with the overproduction of membrane proteins that are toxic to host cells. Here, we developed an Escherichia coli inducible expression system for membrane protein production based on titrated expression of a mutant lac repressor (mLacI). Performance of the mLacI inducible system was evaluated in conjunction with commonly used lac operator-based expression vectors using a T7 or tac promoter. Remarkably, expression of a target gene can be titrated by the dose-dependent addition of l-rhamnose, and the expression levels were homogeneous in the cell population. The developed system was successfully applied to overexpress three membrane proteins that were otherwise difficult to produce in E. coli. This gene expression control system can be easily applied to a broad range of existing protein expression systems and should be useful in constructing genetic circuits that require precise output signals.

  2. Positivity bias in judging ingroup members' emotional expressions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lazerus, Talya; Ingbretsen, Zachary A; Stolier, Ryan M; Freeman, Jonathan B; Cikara, Mina

    2016-12-01

    We investigated how group membership impacts valence judgments of ingroup and outgroup members' emotional expressions. In Experiment 1, participants, randomized into 2 novel, competitive groups, rated the valence of in- and outgroup members' facial expressions (e.g., fearful, happy, neutral) using a circumplex affect grid. Across all emotions, participants judged ingroup members' expressions as more positive than outgroup members' expressions. In Experiment 2, participants categorized fearful and happy expressions as being either positive or negative using a mouse-tracking paradigm. Participants exhibited the most direct trajectories toward the "positive" label for ingroup happy expressions and an initial attraction toward positive for ingroup expressions of fear, with outgroup emotion trajectories falling in between. Experiment 3 replicated Experiment 2 and demonstrated that the effect could not be accounted for by targets' gaze direction. Overall, people judged ingroup faces as more positive, regardless of emotion, both in deliberate and implicit judgments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  3. THE USE OF EXPRESSIVE SPEECH ACTS IN HANNAH MONTANA SESSION 1

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nur Vita Handayani

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to describe kinds and forms of expressive speech act in Hannah Montana Session 1. It belongs to descriptive qualitative method. The research object was expressive speech act. The data source was utterances which contain expressive speech acts in the film Hannah Montana Session 1. The researcher used observation method and noting technique in collecting the data. In analyzing the data, descriptive qualitative method was used. The research findings show that there are ten kinds of expressive speech act found in Hannah Montana Session 1, namely expressing apology, expressing thanks, expressing sympathy, expressing attitudes, expressing greeting, expressing wishes, expressing joy, expressing pain, expressing likes, and expressing dislikes. The forms of expressive speech act are direct literal expressive speech act, direct non-literal expressive speech act, indirect literal expressive speech act, and indirect non-literal expressive speech act.

  4. Androgen Receptor Expression in Thai Breast Cancer Patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suthat Chottanapund

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to investigate prevalence and related factors of androgen receptor (AR expression in Thai breast cancer patients. A descriptive study was done in 95 patients, who were admitted to Charoenkrung Pracharak Hospital, Bangkok (2011–2013. Statistical relationships were examined between AR protein expression, tumor status, and patient characteristics. Compared with those from Western countries, ethnic Thai patients were younger at age of diagnosis and had a higher proliferative index (high Ki-67 expression, which indicates unfavorable prognosis. In addition, 91% of the Thai breast tumors that were positive for any of the following receptors, estrogen receptor (ER, progesterone receptor (PR, and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2 also expressed the AR protein, while in triple negative breast tumors only 33% were AR positive. ER and PR expression was positively related with AR expression, while AR expression was inversely correlated to Ki-67 expression. AR status was strongly correlated with ER and PR status in Thai patients. There is an inverse relationship between Ki-67 and AR, which suggests that AR may be a prognostic factor for breast cancer.

  5. Extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN) expression correlates positively with active angiogenesis and negatively with basic fibroblast growth factor expression in epithelial ovarian cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szubert, Sebastian; Szpurek, Dariusz; Moszynski, Rafal; Nowicki, Michal; Frankowski, Andrzej; Sajdak, Stefan; Michalak, Slawomir

    2014-03-01

    The primary aim of this paper was to evaluate the expression of extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN) and its relationship with proangiogenic factors and microvessel density (MVD) in ovarian cancer. The study group included 58 epithelial ovarian cancers (EOCs), 35 benign ovarian tumors, and 21 normal ovaries. The expression of EMMPRIN, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was assessed by ELISA of tissue homogenates. Antibodies against CD105, CD31, and CD34 were used to immunohistochemically assess MVD. We have found significantly higher EMMPRIN expression in EOC than in benign ovarian tumors and normal ovaries. Similarly, the VEGF expression was higher in EOC than in benign ovarian tumors and normal ovaries. By contrast, bFGF expression was lower in EOC than in benign ovarian tumors and ovary samples. EMMPRIN expression in EOC was directly correlated with VEGF expression and CD105-MVD, but inversely correlated with bFGF expression. Grade 2/3 ovarian cancers had increased expression of EMMPRIN and VEGF, increased CD105-MVD, and lowered expression of bFGF compared to grade 1 ovarian cancers. Moreover, EMMPRIN expression was higher in advanced (FIGO III and IV) ovarian cancer. The upregulation of EMMPRIN and VEGF expression is correlated with increased CD105-MVD and silenced bFGF, which suggests early and/or reactivated angiogenesis in ovarian cancer. Aggressive EOC is characterized by the following: high expression of EMMPRIN and VEGF, high CD105-MVD, and low expression of bFGF.

  6. The motivation to express prejudice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forscher, Patrick S; Cox, William T L; Graetz, Nicholas; Devine, Patricia G

    2015-11-01

    Contemporary prejudice research focuses primarily on people who are motivated to respond without prejudice and the ways in which unintentional bias can cause these people to act in a manner inconsistent with this motivation. However, some real-world phenomena (e.g., hate speech, hate crimes) and experimental findings (e.g., Plant & Devine, 2001, 2009) suggest that some prejudice is intentional. These phenomena and findings are difficult to explain solely from the motivations to respond without prejudice. We argue that some people are motivated to express prejudice, and we develop the Motivation to Express Prejudice Scale (MP) to measure this motivation. In 7 studies involving more than 6,000 participants, we demonstrate that, across scale versions targeted at Black people and gay men, the MP has good reliability and convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. In normative climates that prohibit prejudice, the internal and external motivations to express prejudice are functionally nonindependent, but they become more independent when normative climates permit more prejudice toward a target group. People high in the motivation to express prejudice are relatively likely to resist pressure to support programs promoting intergroup contact and to vote for political candidates who support oppressive policies. The motivation to express prejudice predicted these outcomes even when controlling for attitudes and the motivations to respond without prejudice. This work encourages contemporary prejudice researchers to give greater consideration to the intentional aspects of negative intergroup behavior and to broaden the range of phenomena, target groups, and samples that they study. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  7. Vascular Gene Expression: A Hypothesis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Angélica Concepción eMartínez-Navarro

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The phloem is the conduit through which photoassimilates are distributed from autotrophic to heterotrophic tissues and is involved in the distribution of signaling molecules that coordinate plant growth and responses to the environment. Phloem function depends on the coordinate expression of a large array of genes. We have previously identified conserved motifs in upstream regions of the Arabidopsis genes, encoding the homologs of pumpkin phloem sap mRNAs, displaying expression in vascular tissues. This tissue-specific expression in Arabidopsis is predicted by the overrepresentation of GA/CT-rich motifs in gene promoters. In this work we have searched for common motifs in upstream regions of the homologous genes from plants considered to possess a primitive vascular tissue (a lycophyte, as well as from others that lack a true vascular tissue (a bryophyte, and finally from chlorophytes. Both lycophyte and bryophyte display motifs similar to those found in Arabidopsis with a significantly low E-value, while the chlorophytes showed either a different conserved motif or no conserved motif at all. These results suggest that these same genes are expressed coordinately in non- vascular plants; this coordinate expression may have been one of the prerequisites for the development of conducting tissues in plants. We have also analyzed the phylogeny of conserved proteins that may be involved in phloem function and development. The presence of CmPP16, APL, FT and YDA in chlorophytes suggests the recruitment of ancient regulatory networks for the development of the vascular tissue during evolution while OPS is a novel protein specific to vascular plants.

  8. Tenascin in meningioma: expression is correlated with anaplasia, vascular endothelial growth factor expression, and peritumoral edema but not with tumor border shape.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kiliç, Türker; Bayri, Yaşar; Ozduman, Koray; Acar, Melih; Diren, Semin; Kurtkaya, Ozlem; Ekinci, Gazanfer; Buğra, Kuyaş; Sav, Aydin; Ozek, M Memet; Pamir, M Necmettin

    2002-07-01

    Tenascin is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein that is expressed during embryogenesis, inflammation, angiogenesis, and carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to investigate how tenascin expression relates to histological grade, angiogenesis, and radiological findings in meningiomas. Twenty typical, 20 atypical, and 5 malignant meningiomas were studied retrospectively. Tenascin expression and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in the tumor tissue were investigated by immunohistochemistry. Tenascin messenger ribonucleic acid expression was also studied by comparative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. Magnetic resonance images from each case were assessed for peritumoral edema and tumor border shape. The atypical and malignant meningiomas showed higher levels of tenascin expression than the typical meningiomas. The more sensitive messenger ribonucleic acid-based methods confirmed this finding. Tenascin expression was correlated with peritumoral edema and VEGF expression but not with tumor border shape. In the 13 tumors with marked tenascin expression, peritumoral edema was Grade 0 in one, Grade 1 in three, and Grade 2 in nine specimens. In the same 13 tumors, VEGF expression was Grade 1 in five and Grade 2 in eight specimens, and the findings for tumor border shape were Grade 0 in seven, Grade 1 in four, and Grade 2 in two specimens. In meningiomas, tenascin expression is correlated with anaplasia, tumor-associated edema, and VEGF expression but not with tumor border shape. This protein may play a role in the neoplastic and/or angiogenic processes in atypical and malignant meningiomas and may thus be a potential target for meningioma therapy.

  9. Expressive Dissonance: When Emotional Inconsistency Arouses Dissonance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Audrey Pelt

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the two studies was to explore a new dissonance paradigm–expressive dissonance–based on the inconsistency between what people feel and what people express behaviorally. Expressive dissonance was aroused by asking participants to watch a film with a high emotional content, either positive (joy or negative (sadness. In the no-dissonance condition, they received the instruction to naturally watch the film. In the expressive dissonance condition, they received the instruction to facially express emotions that were the opposite of what they felt. We expected that the expressive dissonance situation would: 1 require cognitive resources leading to a decrease in cognitive performance (studies 1 and 2; 2 be accompanied by emotional regulation strategies (study 1; 3 be accompanied by an increase in dissonance-related affects (study 2. Although our results (studies 1 and 2 corroborated those obtained previously in terms of performance, they also showed that participants in the expressive dissonance situation use emotional regulation strategies: exaggeration and suppression (study 1, and that they felt self-directed negative affects (study 2, just like the participants in a cognitive dissonance situation. These first results allowed us to establish a theoretical bridge between the theories of emotions–particularly those related to the emotional regulation processes–and to widen the scope of relevance of the dissonance theory.

  10. A comparative gene expression database for invertebrates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ormestad Mattias

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background As whole genome and transcriptome sequencing gets cheaper and faster, a great number of 'exotic' animal models are emerging, rapidly adding valuable data to the ever-expanding Evo-Devo field. All these new organisms serve as a fantastic resource for the research community, but the sheer amount of data, some published, some not, makes detailed comparison of gene expression patterns very difficult to summarize - a problem sometimes even noticeable within a single lab. The need to merge existing data with new information in an organized manner that is publicly available to the research community is now more necessary than ever. Description In order to offer a homogenous way of storing and handling gene expression patterns from a variety of organisms, we have developed the first web-based comparative gene expression database for invertebrates that allows species-specific as well as cross-species gene expression comparisons. The database can be queried by gene name, developmental stage and/or expression domains. Conclusions This database provides a unique tool for the Evo-Devo research community that allows the retrieval, analysis and comparison of gene expression patterns within or among species. In addition, this database enables a quick identification of putative syn-expression groups that can be used to initiate, among other things, gene regulatory network (GRN projects.

  11. Reproductive performance in three neighbouring Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) colonies in sw Kattegat, Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bregnballe, Thomas; Gregersen, Jens; Hénaux, Viviane

    of Great Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo sinensis in the old Danish Vorsø colony as it quadrupled in number of breeding pairs and later declined markedly. Some of these parameters were also studied in two neighbouring colonies. We found marked declines in breeding success in the old colony while breeding...

  12. BIG - a binary generator for testing digital devices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Annuziata, M.; Sechi, G.

    1988-01-01

    This paper presents an unusual approach to the testing of digital devices. In order to test real time systems, we have designed, built, and used a digital generator able to send 2047 quadruples of 12-bit words, with a frequency range of up to 0.7 MHz. (orig.)

  13. Food Preservation Mini-Modules Offer Options for Learners and Extension Staff

    Science.gov (United States)

    Driessen, Suzanne

    2013-01-01

    Renewed interest in growing and purchasing locally grown foods quadrupled requests for food preservation classes. Economic times tightened budgets, decreasing staffing levels of Extension educators. Offering options via the Internet was a natural progression to meet the increased demand. Extension educators created 20 5-minute online video--like…

  14. Cs-K-Te photo cathodes: a promising electron source for free-electron lasers

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bisero, D.; Bisero, D.; van Oerle, B.M.; van Oerle, B.M.; Ernst, G.J.; Verschuur, Jeroen W.J.; Witteman, W.J.

    1998-01-01

    The characteristics of Cs–K–Te photo-cathodes when used in a photo-cathode linear accelerator will be presented together with a short review of their photo-emissive properties. The cathodes have been illuminated by light pulses obtained by frequency quadrupling the light of a Nd:YLF laser. The

  15. Nonverbal expressive behaviour in schizophrenia and social phobia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Del-Monte, Jonathan; Raffard, Stéphane; Salesse, Robin N; Marin, Ludovic; Schmidt, Richard C; Varlet, Manuel; Bardy, Benoît G; Philippe Boulenger, Jean; Christine Gély-Nargeot, Marie; Capdevielle, Delphine

    2013-11-30

    Expressive behaviour plays a crucial role in the success of social interactions. Abnormality of expressive behaviour has been reported in interpersonal interactions of patients suffering from schizophrenia and social phobia, two debilitating mental disorders with important social deficits. However, no study has compared the expressive behaviour in these two disorders. Thirty schizophrenia patients, 21 social phobia patients and 30 healthy controls were evaluated and compared on expressive, cognitive and clinical dimensions. Expressive behaviour was assessed using the Motor Affective subscale of the Motor-Affective-Social-Scale (MASS). Covariables include the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), the anxiety level Liebowitz-Social-Anxiety-Scale (LSAS) and cognitive tasks. After controlling for depression, schizophrenia and social phobia patients both exhibited significantly fewer expressive behaviours compared to healthy controls. Moreover, our results showed specific signatures: schizophrenia patients performed fewer spontaneous gestures (hand gestures and smiles) whereas social phobia patients had an impaired ability to produce voluntary smiles in comparison to healthy controls. Interestingly, poor social functioning was significantly correlated with a decrease of expressive behaviour for schizophrenia patients. Expressive behaviour is impaired in different ways in social phobia and schizophrenia and is associated in schizophrenia with poorer social functioning. The Motor Affective subscale of the MASS is an interesting tool for assessing the dysfunction of interpersonal expressive behaviour in mental disorders. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Automatic Control of Gene Expression in Mammalian Cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fracassi, Chiara; Postiglione, Lorena; Fiore, Gianfranco; di Bernardo, Diego

    2016-04-15

    Automatic control of gene expression in living cells is paramount importance to characterize both endogenous gene regulatory networks and synthetic circuits. In addition, such a technology can be used to maintain the expression of synthetic circuit components in an optimal range in order to ensure reliable performance. Here we present a microfluidics-based method to automatically control gene expression from the tetracycline-inducible promoter in mammalian cells in real time. Our approach is based on the negative-feedback control engineering paradigm. We validated our method in a monoclonal population of cells constitutively expressing a fluorescent reporter protein (d2EYFP) downstream of a minimal CMV promoter with seven tet-responsive operator motifs (CMV-TET). These cells also constitutively express the tetracycline transactivator protein (tTA). In cells grown in standard growth medium, tTA is able to bind the CMV-TET promoter, causing d2EYFP to be maximally expressed. Upon addition of tetracycline to the culture medium, tTA detaches from the CMV-TET promoter, thus preventing d2EYFP expression. We tested two different model-independent control algorithms (relay and proportional-integral (PI)) to force a monoclonal population of cells to express an intermediate level of d2EYFP equal to 50% of its maximum expression level for up to 3500 min. The control input is either tetracycline-rich or standard growth medium. We demonstrated that both the relay and PI controllers can regulate gene expression at the desired level, despite oscillations (dampened in the case of the PI controller) around the chosen set point.

  17. Analysis of disease-associated protein expression using quantitative proteomics—fibulin-5 is expressed in association with hepatic fibrosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bracht, Thilo; Schweinsberg, Vincent; Trippler, Martin; Kohl, Michael; Ahrens, Maike; Padden, Juliet; Naboulsi, Wael; Barkovits, Katalin; Megger, Dominik A; Eisenacher, Martin; Borchers, Christoph H; Schlaak, Jörg F; Hoffmann, Andreas-Claudius; Weber, Frank; Baba, Hideo A; Meyer, Helmut E; Sitek, Barbara

    2015-05-01

    Hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis are major health problems worldwide. Until now, highly invasive biopsy remains the diagnostic gold standard despite many disadvantages. To develop noninvasive diagnostic assays for the assessment of liver fibrosis, it is urgently necessary to identify molecules that are robustly expressed in association with the disease. We analyzed biopsied tissue samples from 95 patients with HBV/HCV-associated hepatic fibrosis using three different quantification methods. We performed a label-free proteomics discovery study to identify novel disease-associated proteins using a subset of the cohort (n = 27). Subsequently, gene expression data from all available clinical samples were analyzed (n = 77). Finally, we performed a targeted proteomics approach, multiple reaction monitoring (MRM), to verify the disease-associated expression in samples independent from the discovery approach (n = 68). We identified fibulin-5 (FBLN5) as a novel protein expressed in relation to hepatic fibrosis. Furthermore, we confirmed the altered expression of microfibril-associated glycoprotein 4 (MFAP4), lumican (LUM), and collagen alpha-1(XIV) chain (COL14A1) in association to hepatic fibrosis. To our knowledge, no tissue-based quantitative proteomics study for hepatic fibrosis has been performed using a cohort of comparable size. By this means, we add substantial evidence for the disease-related expression of the proteins examined in this study.

  18. Regulation of MYCN expression in human neuroblastoma cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jacobs, Joannes FM; Bokhoven, Hans van; Leeuwen, Frank N van; Hulsbergen-van de Kaa, Christina A; Vries, I Jolanda M de; Adema, Gosse J; Hoogerbrugge, Peter M; Brouwer, Arjan PM de

    2009-01-01

    Amplification of the MYCN gene in neuroblastoma (NB) is associated with a poor prognosis. However, MYCN-amplification does not automatically result in higher expression of MYCN in children with NB. We hypothesized that the discrepancy between MYCN gene expression and prognosis in these children might be explained by the expression of either MYCN-opposite strand (MYCNOS) or the shortened MYCN-isoform (ΔMYCN) that was recently identified in fetal tissues. Both MYCNOS and ΔMYCN are potential inhibitors of MYCN either at the mRNA or at the protein level. Expression of MYCN, MYCNOS and ΔMYCN was measured in human NB tissues of different stages. Transcript levels were quantified using a real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assay (QPCR). In addition, relative expression of these three transcripts was compared to the number of MYCN copies, which was determined by genomic real-time PCR (gQPCR). Both ΔMYCN and MYCNOS are expressed in all NBs examined. In NBs with MYCN-amplification, these transcripts are significantly higher expressed. The ratio of MYCN:ΔMYCN expression was identical in all tested NBs. This indicates that ΔMYCN and MYCN are co-regulated, which suggests that ΔMYCN is not a regulator of MYCN in NB. However, the ratio of MYCNOS:MYCN expression is directly correlated with NB disease stage (p = 0.007). In the more advanced NB stages and NBs with MYCN-amplification, relatively more MYCNOS is present as compared to MYCN. Expression of the antisense gene MYCNOS might be relevant to the progression of NB, potentially by directly inhibiting MYCN transcription by transcriptional interference at the DNA level. The MYCNOS:MYCN-ratio in NBs is significantly correlated with both MYCN-amplification and NB-stage. Our data indicate that in NB, MYCN expression levels might be influenced by MYCNOS but not by ΔMYCN

  19. Exploring gene expression changes in the amphioxus gill after poly(I:C) challenge using digital expression profiling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Qi-Lin; Qiu, Han-Yue; Liang, Ming-Zhong; Luo, Bang; Wang, Xiu-Qiang; Chen, Jun-Yuan

    2017-11-01

    Amphioxus, a cephalochordate, is a key model animal for studying the evolution of vertebrate immunity. Recently, studies have revealed that microRNA (miRNA) expression profiles change significantly in the amphioxus gill after immune stimulation, but it remains largely unknown how gene expression responds to immune stress. Elucidating gene expression changes in the amphioxus gill will provide a deeper understanding of the evolution of gill immunity in vertebrates. Here, we used high-throughput RNA sequencing technology (RNA-seq) to conduct tag-based digital gene expression profiling (DGE) analyses of the gills of control Branchiostoma belcheri and of those exposed to the viral mimic, poly(I:C) (pIC). Six libraries were created for the control and treatment groups including three biological replicates per group. A total of 1999 differently expressed genes (DEGs) were obtained, with 571 and 1428 DEGs showing up- or down-regulation, respectively, in the treatment group. Enrichment analysis of gene ontology (GO) terms and pathways revealed that the DEGs were primarily related to immune and defense response, apoptosis, human disease, cancer, protein metabolism, enzyme activity, and regulatory processes. In addition, eight DEGs were randomly selected to validate the RNA-seq data using real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR), and the results confirmed the accuracy of the RNA-seq approach. Next, we screened eight key responding genes to examine the dynamic changes in expression levels at different time points in more detail. The results indicated that expressions of TRADD, MARCH, RNF31, NF-κb, CYP450, TNFRSF6B, IFI and LECT1 were induced to participate in the antiviral response against pIC. This study provides a valuable resource for understanding the role of the amphioxus gill in antiviral immunity and the evolution of gill immunity in vertebrates. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Construction and expression of eukaryotic expression vectors of full-length, amino-terminus and carboxyl-terminus Raf gene

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhuomin WANG

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available Background and objective Raf is a key molecule in the Ras-Raf-MEK-ERK signal transduction pathway and is highly activated in different human carcinomas. However, its biological functions and regulation mechanisms are still unclear. The aims of this study were to construct eukaryotic expression vectors with Raf full encoding region, truncated amino-terminus and carboxyl-terminus, respectively. Methods Eukaryotic expression vectors of pCMV-Tag2b-Raf-1, pCMV-Tag2b-N-Raf and pCMV-Tag2b-C-Raf were constructed by gene recombination technique and confirmed by restriction enzyme analysis and DNA sequencing. Furthermore, the expression of these fusion proteins was detected by western blot in transient transfected 293T cells. Results The sequences and open reading frames of these three vectors were completely consistent with experimental design. All target proteins can be detected in 293T cells. Conclusion Eukaryotic expression vectors of pCMV-Tag2b-Raf-1, pCMV-Tag2b-N-Raf and pCMV-Tag2b-C-Raf were successfully constructed and can be expressed in 293T cells.

  1. Increased parathyroid expression of klotho in uremic rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hofman-Bang, J.; Martuseviciene, G.; Santini, M.A.

    2010-01-01

    /6 nephrectomy rat model of secondary hyperparathyroidism. Parathyroid klotho gene expression and protein were significantly increased in severely uremic hyperphosphatemic rats, but not affected by moderate uremia and normal serum phosphorus. Calcitriol suppressed klotho gene and protein expression in severe...... secondary hyperparathyroidism, despite a further increase in plasma phosphate. Both FGFR1 IIIC and Na+/K+-ATPase gene expression were significantly elevated in severe secondary hyperparathyroidism. Parathyroid gland klotho expression and the plasma calcium ion concentration were inversely correlated. Thus......, our study suggests that klotho may act as a positive regulator of PTH expression and secretion in secondary hyperparathyroidism....

  2. Undervaluing Gratitude: Expressers Misunderstand the Consequences of Showing Appreciation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Amit; Epley, Nicholas

    2018-06-01

    Expressing gratitude improves well-being for both expressers and recipients, but we suggest that an egocentric bias may lead expressers to systematically undervalue its positive impact on recipients in a way that could keep people from expressing gratitude more often in everyday life. Participants in three experiments wrote gratitude letters and then predicted how surprised, happy, and awkward recipients would feel. Recipients then reported how receiving an expression of gratitude actually made them feel. Expressers significantly underestimated how surprised recipients would be about why expressers were grateful, overestimated how awkward recipients would feel, and underestimated how positive recipients would feel. Expected awkwardness and mood were both correlated with participants' willingness to express gratitude. Wise decisions are guided by an accurate assessment of the expected value of action. Underestimating the value of prosocial actions, such as expressing gratitude, may keep people from engaging in behavior that would maximize their own-and others'-well-being.

  3. Repressor-mediated tissue-specific gene expression in plants

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meagher, Richard B [Athens, GA; Balish, Rebecca S [Oxford, OH; Tehryung, Kim [Athens, GA; McKinney, Elizabeth C [Athens, GA

    2009-02-17

    Plant tissue specific gene expression by way of repressor-operator complexes, has enabled outcomes including, without limitation, male sterility and engineered plants having root-specific gene expression of relevant proteins to clean environmental pollutants from soil and water. A mercury hyperaccumulation strategy requires that mercuric ion reductase coding sequence is strongly expressed. The actin promoter vector, A2pot, engineered to contain bacterial lac operator sequences, directed strong expression in all plant vegetative organs and tissues. In contrast, the expression from the A2pot construct was restricted primarily to root tissues when a modified bacterial repressor (LacIn) was coexpressed from the light-regulated rubisco small subunit promoter in above-ground tissues. Also provided are analogous repressor operator complexes for selective expression in other plant tissues, for example, to produce male sterile plants.

  4. Erythropoetin receptor expression in the human diabetic retina

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tsang Stephen H

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Recent evidence suggests erythropoietin (EPO and the erythropoietin receptor (EPOR may play a direct role in the pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. Better characterization of the EPO-EPOR signaling system in the ischemic retina may offer a new therapeutic modality for ischemic ophthalmic diseases. This study was performed to identify EPOR mRNA expression in the human diabetic eye. Findings EPOR antisense RNA probes were validated on human pancreas tissue. In the normal eye, EPOR was expressed in the retinal ganglion cell layer. Minimal expression was observed in the inner and outer nuclear layer. Under conditions of diabetic retinopathy, EPOR expression shifted to photoreceptor cells. Increased expression was also observed in the peripheral retina. Conclusion EPOR expression may be a biomarker or contribute to disease mechanisms in diabetic retinopathy.

  5. Pericentrin expression in Down's syndrome.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salemi, Michele; Barone, Concetta; Romano, Carmelo; Salluzzo, Roberto; Caraci, Filippo; Cantarella, Rita Anna; Salluzzo, Maria Grazia; Drago, Filippo; Romano, Corrado; Bosco, Paolo

    2013-11-01

    Down's syndrome (DS) is the most frequent genetic cause of intellectual disability and is a chromosomal abnormality of chromosome 21 trisomy. The pericentrin gene (PCNT) has sequenced in 21q22.3 inside of the minimal critical region for Down's syndrome. Alterations of PCNT gene are associated with dwarfism, cardiomyopathy and other pathologies. In this study, we have evaluated the possible differential expression of PCNT mRNA, by qRT-PCR, in peripheral blood leukocytes of DS subjects compared with the normal population. In the present case-control study, PCNT gene expression was increased by 72.72% in 16 out 22 DS samples compared with normal subjects. Our data suggest that changes in the expression levels of PCNT in DS subjects may be involved into the molecular mechanism of Down's syndrome.

  6. [A comparison of proteomic analysis of Helicobacter pylori in patients with gastritis and gastric cancer between areas of high and low incidence of gastric cancer].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Lin-na; Zhang, Jing; Ding, Shi-gang; Zhong, Li Jun; Li, Guang-chuan; Shi, Yan-yan; Wang, Ye

    2011-12-18

    To identify the differentially expressed proteins of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) in patients with gastritis and gastric cancer from areas of high and low incidence of gastric cancer by 2-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE), and to discuss the role of bacterial factor in pathogenesis. Hp in the endoscopic biopsy specimens of gastric mucosa of patients with gastritis and gastric cancer from areas of high (Xining) and low (Beijing) incidence of gastric cancer, were separated, cultured and saved at -80°C. The bacteria were recovered. Then the whole-cell protein of the Hp were extracted and characterized by 2-DE. The different protein spots were analyzed by PDQuest analysis software and identified by electrospray ionization quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ESI-Q-TOF-MS), and searched by the Mascot database. Nine differentially expressed proteins were identified, and four protein spots were over expressed in the protein maps from gastric cancer in both areas, which were: Urease subunit alpha, chaperone protein dnaK, superoxide dismutase, DNA-directed RNA polymerase subunit alpha; two protein spots were over expressed in the protein maps from gastritis in both areas, which were: Probablethiol peroxidase, nucleoside diphosphate kinase; 60×10(3) chaperonin, and inorganic pyrophosphatase were over expressed only in the protein map from gastric cancer in Xining; S-ribosyl homocysteinelyase was over expressed only in the protein map from gastric cancer in Beijing. There are differences between proteomic analyses of Hp in patients with gastritis and gastric cancer in areas of high and low incidents of gastric cancer, but 2/3 of the protein spots over expressed in the areas are consistent. The protein spots over expressed from gastric cancer in the area with high incidence of gastric cancer are more than in the area with low incidence of gastric cancer. For the Hp extracted from patients with gastric cancer, the mechanism of gastric cancer may be similar, but the role

  7. Reconstructing 3D Face Model with Associated Expression Deformation from a Single Face Image via Constructing a Low-Dimensional Expression Deformation Manifold.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Shu-Fan; Lai, Shang-Hong

    2011-10-01

    Facial expression modeling is central to facial expression recognition and expression synthesis for facial animation. In this work, we propose a manifold-based 3D face reconstruction approach to estimating the 3D face model and the associated expression deformation from a single face image. With the proposed robust weighted feature map (RWF), we can obtain the dense correspondences between 3D face models and build a nonlinear 3D expression manifold from a large set of 3D facial expression models. Then a Gaussian mixture model in this manifold is learned to represent the distribution of expression deformation. By combining the merits of morphable neutral face model and the low-dimensional expression manifold, a novel algorithm is developed to reconstruct the 3D face geometry as well as the facial deformation from a single face image in an energy minimization framework. Experimental results on simulated and real images are shown to validate the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed algorithm.

  8. Dielectric effect on electric fields in the vicinity of the metal–vacuum–dielectric junction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chung, M.S.; Mayer, A.; Miskovsky, N.M.; Weiss, B.L.; Cutler, P.H.

    2013-01-01

    The dielectric effect was theoretically investigated in order to describe the electric field in the vicinity of a junction of a metal, dielectric, and vacuum. The assumption of two-dimensional symmetry of the junction leads to a simple analytic form and to a systematic numerical calculation for the field. The electric field obtained for the triple junction was found to be enhanced or reduced according to a certain criterion determined by the contact angles and dielectric constant. Further numerical calculations of the dielectric effect show that an electric field can experience a larger enhancement or reduction for a quadruple junction than that achieved for the triple junction. It was also found that even though it changes slowly in comparison with the shape effect, the dielectric effect was noticeably large over the entire range of the shape change. - Highlights: ► This work explains how a very strong electric field can be produced due to the dielectric in the vicinity of metal–dielectric contact. ► This work deals with configurations which enhance electric fields using the dielectric effect. The configuration is a type of junction at which metal, vacuum and dielectric meet. ► This work suggests the criterion to determine whether field enhancement occurs or not in the triple junction of metal, vacuum and dielectric. ► This work suggests that a quadruple junction is more effective in enhancing the electric field than a triple junction. The quadruple junction is formed by an additional vacuum portion to the triple junction. ► This work suggests that a triple junction can be a breakthrough candidate for a cold electron source

  9. RF rectifiers for EM power harvesting in a Deep Brain Stimulating device.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosain, Md Kamal; Kouzani, Abbas Z; Tye, Susannah; Kaynak, Akif; Berk, Michael

    2015-03-01

    A passive deep brain stimulation (DBS) device can be equipped with a rectenna, consisting of an antenna and a rectifier, to harvest energy from electromagnetic fields for its operation. This paper presents optimization of radio frequency rectifier circuits for wireless energy harvesting in a passive head-mountable DBS device. The aim is to achieve a compact size, high conversion efficiency, and high output voltage rectifier. Four different rectifiers based on the Delon doubler, Greinacher voltage tripler, Delon voltage quadrupler, and 2-stage charge pumped architectures are designed, simulated, fabricated, and evaluated. The design and simulation are conducted using Agilent Genesys at operating frequency of 915 MHz. A dielectric substrate of FR-4 with thickness of 1.6 mm, and surface mount devices (SMD) components are used to fabricate the designed rectifiers. The performance of the fabricated rectifiers is evaluated using a 915 MHz radio frequency (RF) energy source. The maximum measured conversion efficiency of the Delon doubler, Greinacher tripler, Delon quadrupler, and 2-stage charge pumped rectifiers are 78, 75, 73, and 76 % at -5 dBm input power and for load resistances of 5-15 kΩ. The conversion efficiency of the rectifiers decreases significantly with the increase in the input power level. The Delon doubler rectifier provides the highest efficiency at both -5 and 5 dBm input power levels, whereas the Delon quadrupler rectifier gives the lowest efficiency for the same inputs. By considering both efficiency and DC output voltage, the charge pump rectifier outperforms the other three rectifiers. Accordingly, the optimised 2-stage charge pumped rectifier is used together with an antenna to harvest energy in our DBS device.

  10. Identification of differentially expressed genes in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma by microarray expression profiling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sterry Wolfram

    2006-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Carcinogenesis is a multi-step process indicated by several genes up- or down-regulated during tumor progression. This study examined and identified differentially expressed genes in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC. Results Three different biopsies of 5 immunosuppressed organ-transplanted recipients each normal skin (all were pooled, actinic keratosis (AK (two were pooled, and invasive SCC and additionally 5 normal skin tissues from immunocompetent patients were analyzed. Thus, total RNA of 15 specimens were used for hybridization with Affymetrix HG-U133A microarray technology containing 22,283 genes. Data analyses were performed by prediction analysis of microarrays using nearest shrunken centroids with the threshold 3.5 and ANOVA analysis was independently performed in order to identify differentially expressed genes (p vs. AK and SCC were observed for 118 genes. Conclusion The majority of identified differentially expressed genes in cutaneous SCC were previously not described.

  11. Express.js blueprints

    CERN Document Server

    Augarten, Ben; Lin, Eric; Shaikh, Aidha; Soriani, Fabiano Pereira; Tisserand, Geoffrey; Zhang, Chiqing; Zhang, Kan

    2015-01-01

    This book is for beginners to Node.js and also for those who are technically advanced. By the end of this book, every competent developer will have achieved expertise in building web applications with Express.js.

  12. Enhanced green fluorescent protein is a nearly ideal long-term expression tracer for hematopoietic stem cells, whereas DsRed-express fluorescent protein is not.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tao, Wen; Evans, Barbara-Graham; Yao, Jing; Cooper, Scott; Cornetta, Kenneth; Ballas, Christopher B; Hangoc, Giao; Broxmeyer, Hal E

    2007-03-01

    Validated gene transfer and expression tracers are essential for elucidating functions of mammalian genes. Here, we have determined the suitability and unintended side effects of enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) and DsRed-Express fluorescent protein as expression tracers in long-term hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Retrovirally transduced mouse bone marrow cells expressing either EGFP or DsRed-Express in single or mixed dual-color cell populations were clearly discerned by flow cytometry and fluorescence microscopy. The results from in vivo competitive repopulation assays demonstrated that EGFP-expressing HSCs were maintained nearly throughout the lifespan of the transplanted mice and retained long-term multilineage repopulating potential. All mice assessed at 15 months post-transplantation were EGFP positive, and, on average, 24% total peripheral white blood cells expressed EGFP. Most EGFP-expressing recipient mice lived at least 22 months. In contrast, Discosoma sp. red fluorescent protein (DsRed)-expressing donor cells dramatically declined in transplant-recipient mice over time, particularly in the competitive setting, in which mixed EGFP- and DsRed-expressing cells were cotransplanted. Moreover, under in vitro culture condition favoring preservation of HSCs, purified EGFP-expressing cells grew robustly, whereas DsRed-expressing cells did not. Therefore, EGFP has no detectable deteriorative effects on HSCs, and is nearly an ideal long-term expression tracer for hematopoietic cells; however, DsRed-Express fluorescent protein is not suitable for these cells.

  13. Cyclin d1 expression in odontogenic cysts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taghavi, Nasim; Modabbernia, Shirin; Akbarzadeh, Alireza; Sajjadi, Samad

    2013-01-01

    In the present study expression of cyclin D1 in the epithelial lining of odontogenic keratocyst, radicular cyst, dentigerous cyst and glandular odontogenic cyst was investigated to compare proliferative activity in these lesions. Immunohistochemical staining of cyclin D1 on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections of odontogenic keratocysts (n=23), dentigerous cysts (n=20), radicular cysts (n=20) and glandular odontogenic cysts (n=5) was performed by standard EnVision method. Then, slides were studied to evaluate the following parameters in epithelial lining of cysts: expression, expression pattern, staining intensity and localization of expression. The data analysis showed statistically significant difference in cyclin D1 expression in studied groups (p keratocysts, but difference was not statistically significant among groups respectively (p=0.204, 0.469). Considering expression localization, cyclin D1 positive cells in odontogenic keratocysts and dentigerous cysts were frequently confined in parabasal layer, different from radicular cysts and glandular odontogenic cysts. The difference was statistically significant (p keratocyst and the entire cystic epithelium of glandular odontogenic cysts comparing to dentigerous cysts and radicular cysts, implying the possible role of G1-S cell cycle phase disturbances in the aggressiveness of odontogenic keratocyst and glandular odontogenic cyst.

  14. Hyperbaric environment up-regulates CD15s expression on leukocytes, down-regulates CD77 expression on renal cells and up-regulates CD34 expression on pulmonary and cardiac cells in rat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danka Đevenica

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Objective(s: The aim of this study was to estimate effects of hyperbaric (HB treatment by determination of CD15s and CD11b leukocyte proinflammatory markers expression.  In addition, this study describes changes in CD77 and CD34 expression on rat endothelial cells in renal, pulmonary and cardiac tissue following exposure to hyperbaric pressure. Materials and Methods:Expression of CD11b and CD15s on leukocytes, as well as CD77 and CD34 expression on endothelial cells in cell suspensions of renal, pulmonary and cardiac tissue in rats after hyperbaric treatment and in control rats were determined by flow cytometry. Results: Hyperbaric treatment significantly increased percentage of leukocytes expressing CD15s+CD11b- (from 1.71±1.11 to 23.42±2.85, P

  15. FACTOR-ANALYSIS OF THE LEVEL OF EXPRESSED EMOTION SCALE, A QUESTIONNAIRE INTENDED TO MEASURE PERCEIVED EXPRESSED EMOTION

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    GERLSMA, C; VANDERLUBBE, PM; VANNIEUWENHUIZEN, C

    When the factor structure and psychometric qualities of the Level of Expressed Emotion scale, an instrument intended to assess patient's perceptions of expressed emotion, were evaluated, three moderately intercorrelated factors emerged, with good internal consistency; these were lack of emotional

  16. Population-expression models of immune response

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stromberg, Sean P; Antia, Rustom; Nemenman, Ilya

    2013-01-01

    The immune response to a pathogen has two basic features. The first is the expansion of a few pathogen-specific cells to form a population large enough to control the pathogen. The second is the process of differentiation of cells from an initial naive phenotype to an effector phenotype which controls the pathogen, and subsequently to a memory phenotype that is maintained and responsible for long-term protection. The expansion and the differentiation have been considered largely independently. Changes in cell populations are typically described using ecologically based ordinary differential equation models. In contrast, differentiation of single cells is studied within systems biology and is frequently modeled by considering changes in gene and protein expression in individual cells. Recent advances in experimental systems biology make available for the first time data to allow the coupling of population and high dimensional expression data of immune cells during infections. Here we describe and develop population-expression models which integrate these two processes into systems biology on the multicellular level. When translated into mathematical equations, these models result in non-conservative, non-local advection-diffusion equations. We describe situations where the population-expression approach can make correct inference from data while previous modeling approaches based on common simplifying assumptions would fail. We also explore how model reduction techniques can be used to build population-expression models, minimizing the complexity of the model while keeping the essential features of the system. While we consider problems in immunology in this paper, we expect population-expression models to be more broadly applicable. (paper)

  17. Regulation of eucaryotic gene expression

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brent, R.; Ptashne, M.S

    1989-05-23

    This patent describes a method of regulating the expression of a gene in a eucaryotic cell. The method consists of: providing in the eucaryotic cell, a peptide, derived from or substantially similar to a peptide of a procaryotic cell able to bind to DNA upstream from or within the gene, the amount of the peptide being sufficient to bind to the gene and thereby control expression of the gene.

  18. Somatostatin receptor subtype expression in human thyroid tumours.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klagge, A; Krause, K; Schierle, K; Steinert, F; Dralle, H; Fuhrer, D

    2010-04-01

    Somatostatin receptors (SSTR) are expressed in various endocrine tumours. The expression of SSTR at the tumour cell surface confers the possibility for diagnostic imaging and therapy of tumours using radiolabeled somatostatin analogues. The majority of currently available somatostatin analogues show a higher binding affinity for the SSTR2 subtype. To date, the precise expression pattern of the SSTR subtypes 1-5 in thyroid epithelial tumours remains to be determined. We investigated the mRNA expression of SSTR1-5 in benign and malignant epithelial thyroid tumours [20 cold thyroid nodules (CTNs), 20 toxic thyroid nodules (TTNs), 20 papillary, 20 follicular, and 5 anaplastic carcinomas (PTCs, FTCs, ATCs, respectively)] and compared them to normal surrounding thyroid tissues. Four out of five SSTR subtypes were detected in malignant thyroid tumours, benign neoplasia, and normal surrounding tissue with a predominant expression of SSTR2 and SSTR5, and a weak expression of SSTR1 and SSTR3. Weak SSTR4 mRNA expression was detected in some PTCs. Compared to normal thyroid tissue, SSTR2 was significantly upregulated in PTC and ATC. In addition significant upregulation of SSTR3 was found in PTC. SSTR5 mRNA expression was increased in PTC and FTC and significantly decreased in CTN and TTN compared to normal thyroid tissue. SSTR2 is the predominant subtype in thyroid epithelial tumours with a high expression pattern, in particular, in PTC . Perspectively, the expression of distinct SSTR in thyroid epithelial tumours might represent a promising avenue for diagnostics and therapy of advanced thyroid cancer with somatostatin analogues. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart New York.

  19. Processing of emotional facial expressions in Korsakoff's syndrome.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Montagne, B.; Kessels, R.P.C.; Wester, A.J.; Haan, E.H.F. de

    2006-01-01

    Interpersonal contacts depend to a large extent on understanding emotional facial expressions of others. Several neurological conditions may affect proficiency in emotional expression recognition. It has been shown that chronic alcoholics are impaired in labelling emotional expressions. More

  20. Processing emotional body expressions: state-of-the-art.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Enea, Violeta; Iancu, Sorina

    2016-10-01

    Processing emotional body expressions has become recently an important topic in affective and social neuroscience along with the investigation of facial expressions. The objective of the study is to review the literature on emotional body expressions in order to discuss the current state of knowledge on this topic and identify directions for future research. The following electronic databases were searched: PsychINFO, Ebsco, ERIC, ProQuest, Sagepub, and SCOPUS using terms such as "body," "bodily expression," "body perception," "emotions," "posture," "body recognition" and combinations of them. The synthesis revealed several research questions that were addressed in neuroimaging, electrophysiological and behavioral studies. Among them, one important question targeted the neural mechanisms of emotional processing of body expressions to specific subsections regarding the time course for the integration of emotional signals from face and body, as well as the role of context in the perception of emotional signals. Processing bodily expression of emotion is similar to processing facial expressions, and the holistic processing is extended to the whole person. The current state-of-the-art in processing emotional body expressions may lead to a better understanding of the underlying neural mechanisms of social behavior. At the end of the review, suggestions for future research directions are presented.

  1. Macaques can predict social outcomes from facial expressions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waller, Bridget M; Whitehouse, Jamie; Micheletta, Jérôme

    2016-09-01

    There is widespread acceptance that facial expressions are useful in social interactions, but empirical demonstration of their adaptive function has remained elusive. Here, we investigated whether macaques can use the facial expressions of others to predict the future outcomes of social interaction. Crested macaques (Macaca nigra) were shown an approach between two unknown individuals on a touchscreen and were required to choose between one of two potential social outcomes. The facial expressions of the actors were manipulated in the last frame of the video. One subject reached the experimental stage and accurately predicted different social outcomes depending on which facial expressions the actors displayed. The bared-teeth display (homologue of the human smile) was most strongly associated with predicted friendly outcomes. Contrary to our predictions, screams and threat faces were not associated more with conflict outcomes. Overall, therefore, the presence of any facial expression (compared to neutral) caused the subject to choose friendly outcomes more than negative outcomes. Facial expression in general, therefore, indicated a reduced likelihood of social conflict. The findings dispute traditional theories that view expressions only as indicators of present emotion and instead suggest that expressions form part of complex social interactions where individuals think beyond the present.

  2. Logistics of International Express Shipping and Air Traffic

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jasmina Pašagić Škrinjar

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The paper studies the relations between logistics of international express shipments and air traffic analysing the basic characteristics of international express shipments that are carried by combined transport, usually road vehicles and aircraft. The paper indicates the possibility of optimising individual technological processes in the logistic chain of express shipments distribution. It analyses the forms for the calculation of time slots in single logistic chain hubs of collecting and delivery of express shipments. It has been shown that the international distribution chains in the air express sector, related to the globalisation process, change the traditional functions of combined ground-air transport. Here, the increased investment into automation plays the crucial role in the development strategies of companies and in the operationalization of the quality policy of numerous carriers of express shipments by air.

  3. Extreme Facial Expressions Classification Based on Reality Parameters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahim, Mohd Shafry Mohd; Rad, Abdolvahab Ehsani; Rehman, Amjad; Altameem, Ayman

    2014-09-01

    Extreme expressions are really type of emotional expressions that are basically stimulated through the strong emotion. An example of those extreme expression is satisfied through tears. So to be able to provide these types of features; additional elements like fluid mechanism (particle system) plus some of physics techniques like (SPH) are introduced. The fusion of facile animation with SPH exhibits promising results. Accordingly, proposed fluid technique using facial animation is the real tenor for this research to get the complex expression, like laugh, smile, cry (tears emergence) or the sadness until cry strongly, as an extreme expression classification that's happens on the human face in some cases.

  4. Expression of multidrug resistance proteins in retinoblastoma

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Swati Shukla

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available AIM: To elucidate the mechanism of multidrug resistance in retinoblastoma, and to acquire more insights into in vivo drug resistance. METHODS: Three anticancer drug resistant Y79 human RB cells were generated against vincristine, etoposide or carboplatin, which are used for conventional chemotherapy in RB. Primary cultures from enucleated eyes after chemotherapy (PCNC were also prepared. Their chemosensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents (vincristine, etoposide and carboplatin were measured using MTT assay. Western blot analysis was performed to evaluate the expression of p53, Bcl-2 and various multidrug resistant proteins in retinoblastoma cells. RESULTS: Following exposure to chemotherapeutic drugs, PCNC showed less sensitivity to drugs. No significant changes observed in the p53 expression, whereas Bcl-2 expression was found to be increased in the drug resistant cells as well as in PCNC. Increased expression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp was observed in drug resistant Y79 cells; however there was no significant change in the expression of P-gp found between primary cultures of primarily enucleated eyes and PCNC. Multidrug resistance protein 1 (Mrp-1 expression was found to be elevated in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. No significant change in the expression of lung resistance associated protein (Lrp was observed in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that multidrug resistant proteins are intrinsically present in retinoblastoma which causes treatment failure in managing retinoblastoma with chemotherapy.

  5. Expression of multidrug resistance proteins in retinoblastoma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shukla, Swati; Srivastava, Arpna; Kumar, Sunil; Singh, Usha; Goswami, Sandeep; Chawla, Bhavna; Bajaj, Mandeep Singh; Kashyap, Seema; Kaur, Jasbir

    2017-01-01

    To elucidate the mechanism of multidrug resistance in retinoblastoma, and to acquire more insights into in vivo drug resistance. Three anticancer drug resistant Y79 human RB cells were generated against vincristine, etoposide or carboplatin, which are used for conventional chemotherapy in RB. Primary cultures from enucleated eyes after chemotherapy (PCNC) were also prepared. Their chemosensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents (vincristine, etoposide and carboplatin) were measured using MTT assay. Western blot analysis was performed to evaluate the expression of p53, Bcl-2 and various multidrug resistant proteins in retinoblastoma cells. Following exposure to chemotherapeutic drugs, PCNC showed less sensitivity to drugs. No significant changes observed in the p53 expression, whereas Bcl-2 expression was found to be increased in the drug resistant cells as well as in PCNC. Increased expression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) was observed in drug resistant Y79 cells; however there was no significant change in the expression of P-gp found between primary cultures of primarily enucleated eyes and PCNC. Multidrug resistance protein 1 (Mrp-1) expression was found to be elevated in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. No significant change in the expression of lung resistance associated protein (Lrp) was observed in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. Our results suggest that multidrug resistant proteins are intrinsically present in retinoblastoma which causes treatment failure in managing retinoblastoma with chemotherapy.

  6. Expression of multidrug resistance proteins in retinoblastoma

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shukla, Swati; Srivastava, Arpna; Kumar, Sunil; Singh, Usha; Goswami, Sandeep; Chawla, Bhavna; Bajaj, Mandeep Singh; Kashyap, Seema; Kaur, Jasbir

    2017-01-01

    AIM To elucidate the mechanism of multidrug resistance in retinoblastoma, and to acquire more insights into in vivo drug resistance. METHODS Three anticancer drug resistant Y79 human RB cells were generated against vincristine, etoposide or carboplatin, which are used for conventional chemotherapy in RB. Primary cultures from enucleated eyes after chemotherapy (PCNC) were also prepared. Their chemosensitivity to chemotherapeutic agents (vincristine, etoposide and carboplatin) were measured using MTT assay. Western blot analysis was performed to evaluate the expression of p53, Bcl-2 and various multidrug resistant proteins in retinoblastoma cells. RESULTS Following exposure to chemotherapeutic drugs, PCNC showed less sensitivity to drugs. No significant changes observed in the p53 expression, whereas Bcl-2 expression was found to be increased in the drug resistant cells as well as in PCNC. Increased expression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) was observed in drug resistant Y79 cells; however there was no significant change in the expression of P-gp found between primary cultures of primarily enucleated eyes and PCNC. Multidrug resistance protein 1 (Mrp-1) expression was found to be elevated in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. No significant change in the expression of lung resistance associated protein (Lrp) was observed in the drug resistant Y79 cells as well as in PCNC. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that multidrug resistant proteins are intrinsically present in retinoblastoma which causes treatment failure in managing retinoblastoma with chemotherapy. PMID:29181307

  7. Opsin expression in Limulus eyes: a UV opsin is expressed in each eye type and co-expressed with a visible light-sensitive opsin in ventral larval eyes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Battelle, Barbara-Anne; Kempler, Karen E; Harrison, Alexandra; Dugger, Donald R; Payne, Richard

    2014-09-01

    The eyes of the horseshoe crab, Limulus polyphemus, are a model for studies of visual function and the visual systems of euarthropods. Much is known about the structure and function of L. polyphemus photoreceptors, much less about their photopigments. Three visible-light-sensitive L. polyphemus opsins were characterized previously (LpOps1, 2 and 5). Here we characterize a UV opsin (LpUVOps1) that is expressed in all three types of L. polyphemus eyes. It is expressed in most photoreceptors in median ocelli, the only L. polyphemus eyes in which UV sensitivity was previously detected, and in the dendrite of eccentric cells in lateral compound eyes. Therefore, eccentric cells, previously thought to be non-photosensitive second-order neurons, may actually be UV-sensitive photoreceptors. LpUVOps1 is also expressed in small photoreceptors in L. polyphemus ventral larval eyes, and intracellular recordings from these photoreceptors confirm that LpUVOps1 is an active, UV-sensitive photopigment. These photoreceptors also express LpOps5, which we demonstrate is an active, long-wavelength-sensitive photopigment. Thus small photoreceptors in ventral larval eyes, and probably those of the other larval eyes, have dual sensitivity to UV and visible light. Interestingly, the spectral tuning of small ventral photoreceptors may change day to night, because the level of LpOps5 in their rhabdoms is lower during the day than during the night, whereas LpUVOps1 levels show no diurnal change. These and previous findings show that opsin co-expression and the differential regulation of co-expressed opsins in rhabdoms is a common feature of L. polyphemus photoreceptors. © 2014. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  8. Preventing, detecting & revising flaws in object property expressions

    CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

    Keet, CM

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available The OWL 2 DL ontology language is very expressive and has many features for declaring complex object property expressions. Standard reasoning services for OWL ontologies take these expressions as correct and according to the ontologist's intention...

  9. Computerized measurement of facial expression of emotions in schizophrenia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alvino, Christopher; Kohler, Christian; Barrett, Frederick; Gur, Raquel E; Gur, Ruben C; Verma, Ragini

    2007-07-30

    Deficits in the ability to express emotions characterize several neuropsychiatric disorders and are a hallmark of schizophrenia, and there is need for a method of quantifying expression, which is currently done by clinical ratings. This paper presents the development and validation of a computational framework for quantifying emotional expression differences between patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls. Each face is modeled as a combination of elastic regions, and expression changes are modeled as a deformation between a neutral face and an expressive face. Functions of these deformations, known as the regional volumetric difference (RVD) functions, form distinctive quantitative profiles of expressions. Employing pattern classification techniques, we have designed expression classifiers for the four universal emotions of happiness, sadness, anger and fear by training on RVD functions of expression changes. The classifiers were cross-validated and then applied to facial expression images of patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls. The classification score for each image reflects the extent to which the expressed emotion matches the intended emotion. Group-wise statistical analysis revealed this score to be significantly different between healthy controls and patients, especially in the case of anger. This score correlated with clinical severity of flat affect. These results encourage the use of such deformation based expression quantification measures for research in clinical applications that require the automated measurement of facial affect.

  10. Modelling multimodal expression of emotion in a virtual agent.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pelachaud, Catherine

    2009-12-12

    Over the past few years we have been developing an expressive embodied conversational agent system. In particular, we have developed a model of multimodal behaviours that includes dynamism and complex facial expressions. The first feature refers to the qualitative execution of behaviours. Our model is based on perceptual studies and encompasses several parameters that modulate multimodal behaviours. The second feature, the model of complex expressions, follows a componential approach where a new expression is obtained by combining facial areas of other expressions. Lately we have been working on adding temporal dynamism to expressions. So far they have been designed statically, typically at their apex. Only full-blown expressions could be modelled. To overcome this limitation, we have defined a representation scheme that describes the temporal evolution of the expression of an emotion. It is no longer represented by a static definition but by a temporally ordered sequence of multimodal signals.

  11. Representational momentum in dynamic facial expressions is modulated by the level of expressed pain: Amplitude and direction effects.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prigent, Elise; Amorim, Michel-Ange; de Oliveira, Armando Mónica

    2018-01-01

    Humans have developed a specific capacity to rapidly perceive and anticipate other people's facial expressions so as to get an immediate impression of their emotional state of mind. We carried out two experiments to examine the perceptual and memory dynamics of facial expressions of pain. In the first experiment, we investigated how people estimate other people's levels of pain based on the perception of various dynamic facial expressions; these differ both in terms of the amount and intensity of activated action units. A second experiment used a representational momentum (RM) paradigm to study the emotional anticipation (memory bias) elicited by the same facial expressions of pain studied in Experiment 1. Our results highlighted the relationship between the level of perceived pain (in Experiment 1) and the direction and magnitude of memory bias (in Experiment 2): When perceived pain increases, the memory bias tends to be reduced (if positive) and ultimately becomes negative. Dynamic facial expressions of pain may reenact an "immediate perceptual history" in the perceiver before leading to an emotional anticipation of the agent's upcoming state. Thus, a subtle facial expression of pain (i.e., a low contraction around the eyes) that leads to a significant positive anticipation can be considered an adaptive process-one through which we can swiftly and involuntarily detect other people's pain.

  12. Mothers' pupillary responses to infant facial expressions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yrttiaho, Santeri; Niehaus, Dana; Thomas, Eileen; Leppänen, Jukka M

    2017-02-06

    Human parental care relies heavily on the ability to monitor and respond to a child's affective states. The current study examined pupil diameter as a potential physiological index of mothers' affective response to infant facial expressions. Pupillary time-series were measured from 86 mothers of young infants in response to an array of photographic infant faces falling into four emotive categories based on valence (positive vs. negative) and arousal (mild vs. strong). Pupil dilation was highly sensitive to the valence of facial expressions, being larger for negative vs. positive facial expressions. A separate control experiment with luminance-matched non-face stimuli indicated that the valence effect was specific to facial expressions and cannot be explained by luminance confounds. Pupil response was not sensitive to the arousal level of facial expressions. The results show the feasibility of using pupil diameter as a marker of mothers' affective responses to ecologically valid infant stimuli and point to a particularly prompt maternal response to infant distress cues.

  13. Emotion expression in human punishment behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiao, Erte; Houser, Daniel

    2005-05-17

    Evolutionary theory reveals that punishment is effective in promoting cooperation and maintaining social norms. Although it is accepted that emotions are connected to punishment decisions, there remains substantial debate over why humans use costly punishment. Here we show experimentally that constraints on emotion expression can increase the use of costly punishment. We report data from ultimatum games, where a proposer offers a division of a sum of money and a responder decides whether to accept the split, or reject and leave both players with nothing. Compared with the treatment in which expressing emotions directly to proposers is prohibited, rejection of unfair offers is significantly less frequent when responders can convey their feelings to the proposer concurrently with their decisions. These data support the view that costly punishment might itself be used to express negative emotions and suggest that future studies will benefit by recognizing that human demand for emotion expression can have significant behavioral consequences in social environments, including families, courts, companies, and markets.

  14. Globo H expression is associated with driver mutations and PD-L1 expressions in stage I non-small cell lung cancer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Ching-Yao; Lin, Mong-Wei; Chang, Yih-Leong; Wu, Chen-Tu

    2017-12-12

    Globo H is a tumor-associated carbohydrate antigen exclusively expressed in cancer cells rather than normal tissue. Globo H has been found on many cancers of epithelial origins, and become an attractive target for cancer vaccine. We aimed to study the expression of Globo H in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, and correlated its expression with common driver mutations, clinical outcomes, and status of immune checkpoint, programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1). The study enrolled 228 patients with surgically resected stage I NSCLC, including 139 patients with adenocarcinoma (ADC) and 89 patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC). Using immunohistochemistry, tumors with moderate to strong membranous staining in ⩾ 1% tumor cells per section were scored as positive Globo H expression. Driver mutations including EGFR, KRAS, BRAF were detected by direct sequencing, while ALK, PI3KCA, FGFR1 and PD-L1 expression was detected by immunohistochemical (IHC) staining. Positive Globo H expression was detected in 88 of the 228 (38.6%) patients. These included 51 of 139 (36.7%) patients with ADC and 37 of 89 (41.6%) patients with SqCC. Positive Globo H expression was significantly associated with EGFR mutation and PD-L1 expression in the ADC group, and PI3KCA overexpression in the SqCC group. The survival analysis showed that Globo H expression was not an independent prognostic factor in stage I NSCLC. Globo H expression was correlated with specific driver mutations in ADC and SqCC NSCLC tumors, as well as PD-L1 status. Immunotherapy targeting Globo H may have potential application in lung cancer treatment.

  15. A novel bidirectional expression system for simultaneous expression of both the protein-coding genes and short hairpin RNAs in mammalian cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hung, C.-F.; Cheng, T.-L.; Wu, R.-H.; Teng, C.-F.; Chang, W.-T.

    2006-01-01

    RNA interference (RNAi) is an extremely powerful and widely used gene silencing approach for reverse functional genomics and molecular therapeutics. In mammals, the conserved poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 2 (PARP-2)/RNase P bidirectional control promoter simultaneously expresses both the PARP-2 protein and RNase P RNA by RNA polymerase II- and III-dependent mechanisms, respectively. To explore this unique bidirectional control system in RNAi-mediated gene silencing strategy, we have constructed two novel bidirectional expression vectors, pbiHsH1 and pbiMmH1, which contained the PARP-2/RNase P bidirectional control promoters from human and mouse, for simultaneous expression of both the protein-coding genes and short hairpin RNAs. Analyses of the dual transcriptional activities indicated that these two bidirectional expression vectors could not only express enhanced green fluorescent protein as a functional reporter but also simultaneously transcribe shLuc for inhibiting the firefly luciferase expression. In addition, to extend its utility for the establishment of inherited stable clones, we have also reconstructed this bidirectional expression system with the blasticidin S deaminase gene, an effective dominant drug resistance selectable marker, and examined both the selection and inhibition efficiencies in drug resistance and gene expression. Moreover, we have further demonstrated that this bidirectional expression system could efficiently co-regulate the functionally important genes, such as overexpression of tumor suppressor protein p53 and inhibition of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 at the same time. In summary, the bidirectional expression vectors, pbiHsH1 and pbiMmH1, should provide a simple, convenient, and efficient novel tool for manipulating the gene function in mammalian cells

  16. Willingness to Express Emotions to Caregiving Spouses

    OpenAIRE

    Monin, Joan K.; Martire, Lynn M.; Schulz, Richard; Clark, Margaret S.

    2009-01-01

    This study examined the association between care-recipients’ willingness to express emotions to spousal caregivers and caregiver’s well-being and support behaviors. Using self-report measures in the context of a larger study, 262 care-recipients with osteoarthritis reported on their willingness to express emotions to caregivers, and caregivers reported on their stress and insensitive responding to care-recipients. Results revealed that care-recipients’ willingness to express happiness was ass...

  17. Hepatocyte specific expression of human cloned genes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cortese, R

    1986-01-01

    A large number of proteins are specifically synthesized in the hepatocyte. Only the adult liver expresses the complete repertoire of functions which are required at various stages during development. There is therefore a complex series of regulatory mechanisms responsible for the maintenance of the differentiated state and for the developmental and physiological variations in the pattern of gene expression. Human hepatoma cell lines HepG2 and Hep3B display a pattern of gene expression similar to adult and fetal liver, respectively; in contrast, cultured fibroblasts or HeLa cells do not express most of the liver specific genes. They have used these cell lines for transfection experiments with cloned human liver specific genes. DNA segments coding for alpha1-antitrypsin and retinol binding protein (two proteins synthesized both in fetal and adult liver) are expressed in the hepatoma cell lines HepG2 and Hep3B, but not in HeLa cells or fibroblasts. A DNA segment coding for haptoglobin (a protein synthesized only after birth) is only expressed in the hepatoma cell line HepG2 but not in Hep3B nor in non hepatic cell lines. The information for tissue specific expression is located in the 5' flanking region of all three genes. In vivo competition experiments show that these DNA segments bind to a common, apparently limiting, transacting factor. Conventional techniques (Bal deletions, site directed mutagenesis, etc.) have been used to precisely identify the DNA sequences responsible for these effects. The emerging picture is complex: they have identified multiple, separate transcriptional signals, essential for maximal promoter activation and tissue specific expression. Some of these signals show a negative effect on transcription in fibroblast cell lines.

  18. Oncomirs Expression Profiling in Uterine Leiomyosarcoma Cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruna Cristine de Almeida

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available MicroRNAs (miRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that act as regulators of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. They play a key role in several biological processes. Their abnormal expression may lead to malignant cell transformation. This study aimed to evaluate the expression profile of 84 miRNAs involved in tumorigenesis in immortalized cells of myometrium (MM, uterine leiomyoma (ULM, and uterine leiomyosarcoma (ULMS. Specific cell lines were cultured and qRT-PCR was performed. Thirteen miRNAs presented different expression profiles in ULM and the same thirteen in ULMS compared to MM. Eight miRNAs were overexpressed, and five were underexpressed in ULM. In ULMS cells, five miRNAs exhibited an overexpression and eight were down-regulated. Six miRNAs (miR-1-3p, miR-130b-3p, miR-140-5p, miR-202-3p, miR-205-5p, and miR-7-5p presented a similar expression pattern in cell lines compared to patient samples. Of these, only three miRNAs showed significant expression in ULM (miR-1-3p, miR-140-5p, and miR-7-5p and ULMS (miR-1-3p, miR-202-3p, and miR-7-5p. Our preliminary approach identified 24 oncomirs with an altered expression profile in ULM and ULMS cells. We identified four differentially expressed miRNAs with the same profile when compared with patients’ samples, which strongly interacted with relevant genes, including apoptosis regulator (BCL2, epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR, vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA, insulin like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R,serine/threonine kinase (RAF1, receptor tyrosine kinase (MET, and bHLH transcription factor (MYCN. This led to alterations in their mRNA-target.

  19. Drumming: An Innovative Alternative for Drug Addicted Individuals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, John C.; Hains, Bryan; Ricketts, Kristina

    2017-01-01

    Drug abuse has been a persistent problem within the United States. Among the nation, Kentucky ranks third in drug overdose and drug mortality rates, with numbers quadrupling from 1999 to 2010. Recent statistics indicate drug offenders account or a significant portion of individuals within the criminal justice system, directly affecting the…

  20. Induction of triploidy and erythrocyte cell size analysis of triploid ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    In this study, genetic manipulation technique was employed to produce triploid African catfish Clarias gariepinus. Artificial fertilization was carried out using synthetic hormone (Ovaprim®) at 0.5 ml/kg body weight. Eggs numbering 100 ± 10 in quadruplicates from C. gariepinus were fertilized by milt from the male species.