Longevity and relationships with children: the importance of the parental role

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sanchez Maria-Teresa

2009-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Social networks predict longevity across societies but specific mechanisms are largely unknown. The aim of this work was to examine the role of children in the longevity of elderly men and women in a cohort of community dwelling elderly people in Spain. Methods The data were taken from the "Aging in Leganes" cohort study with 15 years of follow-up. The baseline population was an age- and sex-stratified random sample of community dwelling people over 65 living in Leganés (Madrid in 1993. Poor relationship with at least one child, emotional support and the perceived roles elders play in the lives of their children, extended family, spouse and friends were assessed at baseline. Cox proportional hazards models were fit to investigate the effects of social roles variables on longevity, adjusting for a wide range of socioeconomic, behavioural and health covariates. Results In the fully adjusted model, having a poor relationship with at least one child increased mortality by 30%. Elderly persons who felt their role in their children's lives was important (HR = 0.70; 95% CI 0.54; 0.91 had a lower mortality risk than those who felt they played a small role. Feeling loved and listened to by one's children did not have an effect on survival. Maintaining an important role in the extended family was also significantly associated with survival. Conclusion In this Mediterranean population, maintaining an important role in the lives of one's children is associated with survival. Functions of social networks related to meaning of life and different forms of social support may have important effects on mortality, and these functions may vary across cultures according to family norms and values.

Roles and Importance of Microbes in the Radioactive Waste Disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baik, Min Hoon; Lee, Seung Yeop; Roh, Yeol

2009-01-01

Recently the importance and interest for the microbes has been increased because several important results for the effects of microbes on the radioactive waste disposal have been published continuously. In this study, research status and major results on the various roles and effects of microbes in the radioactive waste disposal have been investigated. We investigated and summarized the roles and major results of microbes in a multi-barrier system consisting of an engineered barrier and a natural barrier which is considered in radioactive waste disposal systems. For the engineered barrier, we discussed about the effects of microbes on the corrosion of a waste container and investigated the survival possibility and roles of microbes in a compacted bentonite buffer. For the natural barrier, the roles of microbes present in groundwaters and rocks were discussed and summarized with major results from natural analogue studies. Furthermore, we investigated and summarized the roles and various interactions processes of microbes and their effects on the radionuclide migration and retardation including recent research status. Therefore, it is expected that the effects and roles of microbes on the radioactive waste disposal can be rigorously evaluated if further researches are carried out for a long-term behavior of the disposal system in the deep geological environments and for the effects of microbes on the radionuclide migration through geological media.

STAT2 Knockout Syrian Hamsters Support Enhanced Replication and Pathogenicity of Human Adenovirus, Revealing an Important Role of Type I Interferon Response in Viral Control.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karoly Toth

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Human adenoviruses have been studied extensively in cell culture and have been a model for studies in molecular, cellular, and medical biology. However, much less is known about adenovirus replication and pathogenesis in vivo in a permissive host because of the lack of an adequate animal model. Presently, the most frequently used permissive immunocompetent animal model for human adenovirus infection is the Syrian hamster. Species C human adenoviruses replicate in these animals and cause pathology that is similar to that seen with humans. Here, we report findings with a new Syrian hamster strain in which the STAT2 gene was functionally knocked out by site-specific gene targeting. Adenovirus-infected STAT2 knockout hamsters demonstrated an accentuated pathology compared to the wild-type control animals, and the virus load in the organs of STAT2 knockout animals was 100- to 1000-fold higher than that in wild-type hamsters. Notably, the adaptive immune response to adenovirus is not adversely affected in STAT2 knockout hamsters, and surviving hamsters cleared the infection by 7 to 10 days post challenge. We show that the Type I interferon pathway is disrupted in these hamsters, revealing the critical role of interferon-stimulated genes in controlling adenovirus infection. This is the first study to report findings with a genetically modified Syrian hamster infected with a virus. Further, this is the first study to show that the Type I interferon pathway plays a role in inhibiting human adenovirus replication in a permissive animal model. Besides providing an insight into adenovirus infection in humans, our results are also interesting from the perspective of the animal model: STAT2 knockout Syrian hamster may also be an important animal model for studying other viral infections, including Ebola-, hanta-, and dengue viruses, where Type I interferon-mediated innate immunity prevents wild type hamsters from being effectively infected to be used as

Import-push or Export-pull?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jäkel, Ina Charlotte

2014-01-01

predictions regarding the export market and the role of product differentiation. Empirical results for a sample of Danish manufacturing industries confirm the import- "push" hypothesis as well as the export- "pull" hypothesis, but also reveal differences across industries. The selection effect of trade...... is mainly driven by the "import-push" if product differentiation is high, whereas it is driven by the "export-pull" if goods are homogeneous....

Import-push or Export-pull?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jäkel, Ina Charlotte

predictions regarding the export market and the role of product differentiation. Empirical results for a sample of Danish manufacturing industries confirm the import-"push" hypothesis as well as the export-"pull" hypothesis, but also reveal differences across industries. The selection effect of trade...... is mainly driven by the "import-push" if product differentiation is high, whereas it is driven by the "export-pull" if goods are homogeneous....

ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

OpenAIRE

Gurneet Kaur

2017-01-01

Search Engines are an indispensible platform for users all over the globe to search for relevant information online. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the exercise of improving the position of a website in search engine rankings, for a chosen set of keywords. SEO is divided into two parts: On-Page and Off-Page SEO. In order to be successful, both the areas require equal attention. This paper aims to explain the functioning of the search engines along with the role and importance of search e...

77 FR 34121 - Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: “Revealing the African...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-06-08

... exhibition ``Revealing the African Presence in Renaissance Europe'' imported from abroad for temporary... exhibit objects at The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD, from on or about October 14, 2012, until on or about January 21, 2013; at the Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton, NJ, from on or about February...

Scientist Role Models in the Classroom: How Important Is Gender Matching?

Science.gov (United States)

Conner, Laura D. Carsten; Danielson, Jennifer

2016-01-01

Gender-matched role models are often proposed as a mechanism to increase identification with science among girls, with the ultimate aim of broadening participation in science. While there is a great deal of evidence suggesting that role models can be effective, there is mixed support in the literature for the importance of gender matching. We used…

A genomewide screen for suppressors of Alu-mediated rearrangements reveals a role for PIF1.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Karen M Chisholm

Full Text Available Alu-mediated rearrangement of tumor suppressor genes occurs frequently during carcinogenesis. In breast cancer, this mechanism contributes to loss of the wild-type BRCA1 allele in inherited disease and to loss of heterozygosity in sporadic cancer. To identify genes required for suppression of Alu-mediated recombination we performed a genomewide screen of a collection of 4672 yeast gene deletion mutants using a direct repeat recombination assay. The primary screen and subsequent analysis identified 12 candidate genes including TSA, ELG1, and RRM3, which are known to play a significant role in maintaining genomic stability. Genetic analysis of the corresponding human homologs was performed in sporadic breast tumors and in inherited BRCA1-associated carcinomas. Sequencing of these genes in high risk breast cancer families revealed a potential role for the helicase PIF1 in cancer predisposition. PIF1 variant L319P was identified in three breast cancer families; importantly, this variant, which is predicted to be functionally damaging, was not identified in a large series of controls nor has it been reported in either dbSNP or the 1000 Genomes Project. In Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Pfh1 is required to maintain both mitochondrial and nuclear genomic integrity. Functional studies in yeast of human PIF1 L319P revealed that this variant cannot complement the essential functions of Pfh1 in either the nucleus or mitochondria. Our results provide a global view of nonessential genes involved in suppressing Alu-mediated recombination and implicate variation in PIF1 in breast cancer predisposition.

Role and Importance of Evaluation in Management Enterprise

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mihaela NICOARA

2012-11-01

Full Text Available In determining the enterprise value is assessed, are taken into account all areas that help to generate future profits in the întreprindrii evaluated, respectively. In this respect, a special role is managerial decision.This is the main tool to achieve business objectives, which should be based on past actual situation of the enterprise, the current existing ralitatile on forecasting ability, but also work with other specialisti.Rezultatele assessment is an important source of decision management.

The Role of Goal Importance in Predicting University Students' High Academic Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Kyle, Vanessa A.; White, Katherine M.; Hyde, Melissa K.; Occhipinti, Stefano

2014-01-01

We examined goal importance, focusing on high, but not exclusive priority goals, in the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to predict students' academic performance. At the beginning of semester, students in a psychology subject (N = 197) completed TPB and goal importance items for achieving a high grade. Regression analyses revealed partial…

A novel immunotoxin reveals a new role for CD321 in endothelial cells.

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Takeshi Fukuhara

Full Text Available There are currently several antibody therapies that directly target tumors, and antibody-drug conjugates represent a novel moiety as next generation therapeutics. Here, we used a unique screening probe, DT3C, to identify functional antibodies that recognized surface molecules and functional epitopes, and which provided toxin delivery capability. Accordingly, we generated the 90G4 antibody, which induced DT3C-dependent cytotoxicity in endothelial cells. Molecular analysis revealed that 90G4 recognized CD321, a protein localized at tight junctions. Although CD321 plays a pivotal role in inflammation and lymphocyte trans-endothelial migration, little is known about its mechanism of action in endothelial cells. Targeting of CD321 by the 90G4 immunotoxin induced cell death. Moreover, 90G4 immunotoxin caused cytotoxicity primarily in migratory endothelial cells, but not in those forming sheets, suggesting a critical role for CD321 in tumor angiogenesis. We also found that hypoxia triggered redistribution of CD321 to a punctate localization on the basal side of cells, resulting in functional impairment of tight junctions and increased motility. Thus, our findings raise the intriguing possibility that endothelial CD321 presented cellular localization in tight junction as well as multifunctional dynamics in several conditions, leading to illuminate the importance of widely-expressed CD321 as a potential target for antitumor therapy.

Gender, life role importance, and work-family conflict in Indonesia: A non-western perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kuntari, I.S.R.; Janssens, J.M.A.M.; Ginting, H.

2017-01-01

This study examined gender differences among profiles based on life role importance on work-family conflict. The sample consisted of 404 Indonesia working couples with children. We found four profiles based on their work and family role importance that is a Family, Work, Dual and a Low profile. More

ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES IN RESTAURANT BUSINESS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivica Batinić

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Modern restaurant business, as part of a catering business, offers a variety of meals and beverages in restaurants and various related facilities. Promotional activities play a very important role in managing a restaurant and related facilities, because any serious restaurant facility must take all the necessary and effective measures in order to maintain regular guests and approach potential new guests. In this paper, I will write about conceptualizing restaurant business and elementary business systems in restaurant business. In a separate part, I will write about conceptualizing promotions and promotional activities as important factors in achieving better and more efficient communication of restaurants with regular and potential guests.

The role of imported cases and favorable meteorological conditions in the onset of dengue epidemics.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chuin-Shee Shang

2010-08-01

Full Text Available Travelers who acquire dengue infection are often routes for virus transmission to other regions. Nevertheless, the interplay between infected travelers, climate, vectors, and indigenous dengue incidence remains unclear. The role of foreign-origin cases on local dengue epidemics thus has been largely neglected by research. This study investigated the effect of both imported dengue and local meteorological factors on the occurrence of indigenous dengue in Taiwan.Using logistic and Poisson regression models, we analyzed bi-weekly, laboratory-confirmed dengue cases at their onset dates of illness from 1998 to 2007 to identify correlations between indigenous dengue and imported dengue cases (in the context of local meteorological factors across different time lags. Our results revealed that the occurrence of indigenous dengue was significantly correlated with temporally-lagged cases of imported dengue (2-14 weeks, higher temperatures (6-14 weeks, and lower relative humidity (6-20 weeks. In addition, imported and indigenous dengue cases had a significant quantitative relationship in the onset of local epidemics. However, this relationship became less significant once indigenous epidemics progressed past the initial stage.These findings imply that imported dengue cases are able to initiate indigenous epidemics when appropriate weather conditions are present. Early detection and case management of imported cases through rapid diagnosis may avert large-scale epidemics of dengue/dengue hemorrhagic fever. The deployment of an early-warning surveillance system, with the capacity to integrate meteorological data, will be an invaluable tool for successful prevention and control of dengue, particularly in non-endemic countries.

Important role for Toll-like receptor 9 in host defense against meningococcal sepsis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sjölinder, Hong; Mogensen, Trine; Kilian, Mogens

2008-01-01

have been reported to be involved in the host response to N. meningitidis. While TLR4 has been suggested to play an important role in early containment of infection, the roles of TLR2 and TLR9 in meningococcal disease are not well described. Using a model for meningococcal sepsis, we report that TLR9...... and induction of cytokine gene expression were independent of TLR2 or TLR9 in macrophages and conventional dendritic cells. In contrast, plasmacytoid dendritic cells relied entirely on TLR9 to induce these activities. Thus, our data demonstrate an important role for TLR9 in host defense against N. meningitidis....

The imidazopyridine derivative JK184 reveals dual roles for microtubules in Hedgehog signaling.

Science.gov (United States)

Cupido, Tommaso; Rack, Paul G; Firestone, Ari J; Hyman, Joel M; Han, Kyuho; Sinha, Surajit; Ocasio, Cory A; Chen, James K

2009-01-01

Eradicating hedgehogs: The title molecule has been previously identified as a potent inhibitor of the Hedgehog signaling pathway, which gives embryonic cells information needed to develop properly. This molecule is shown to modulate Hedgehog target gene expression by depolymerizing microtubules, thus revealing dual roles of the cytoskeleton in pathway regulation (see figure).

Dimer monomer transition and dimer re-formation play important role for ATM cellular function during DNA repair

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Du, Fengxia; Zhang, Minjie; Li, Xiaohua; Yang, Caiyun; Meng, Hao; Wang, Dong; Chang, Shuang; Xu, Ye; Price, Brendan; Sun, Yingli

2014-01-01

Highlights: • ATM phosphorylates the opposite strand of the dimer in response to DNA damage. • The PETPVFRLT box of ATM plays a key role in its dimer dissociation in DNA repair. • The dephosphorylation of ATM is critical for dimer re-formation after DNA repair. - Abstract: The ATM protein kinase, is a serine/threonine protein kinase that is recruited and activated by DNA double-strand breaks, mediates responses to ionizing radiation in mammalian cells. Here we show that ATM is held inactive in unirradiated cells as a dimer and phosphorylates the opposite strand of the dimer in response to DNA damage. Cellular irradiation induces rapid intermolecular autophosphorylation of serine 1981 that causes dimer dissociation and initiates cellular ATM kinase activity. ATM cannot phosphorylate the substrates when it could not undergo dimer monomer transition. After DNA repair, the active monomer will undergo dephosphorylation to form dimer again and dephosphorylation is critical for dimer re-formation. Our work reveals novel function of ATM dimer monomer transition and explains why ATM dimer monomer transition plays such important role for ATM cellular activity during DNA repair

The important role of stratum corneum lipids for the cutaneous barrier function.

Science.gov (United States)

van Smeden, J; Janssens, M; Gooris, G S; Bouwstra, J A

2014-03-01

The skin protects the body from unwanted influences from the environment as well as excessive water loss. The barrier function of the skin is located in the stratum corneum (SC). The SC consists of corneocytes embedded in a lipid matrix. This lipid matrix is crucial for the lipid skin barrier function. This paper provides an overview of the reported SC lipid composition and organization mainly focusing on healthy and diseased human skin. In addition, an overview is provided on the data describing the relation between lipid modulations and the impaired skin barrier function. Finally, the use of in vitro lipid models for a better understanding of the relation between the lipid composition, lipid organization and skin lipid barrier is discussed. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled The Important Role of Lipids in the Epidermis and their Role in the Formation and Maintenance of the Cutaneous Barrier. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled The Important Role of Lipids in the Epidermis and their Role in the Formation and Maintenance of the Cutaneous Barrier. Guest Editors: Kenneth R. Feingold and Peter Elias. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Role and Importance of Spa and Wellness Tourism in Hungary's Tourism Industry

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Csapó János

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This paper presents and highlights the role and importance of spa and wellness tourism in Hungary. Ever since tourism has played an important role in the social-economic processes of the country the leading tourism product proved to be health tourism (spa and wellness thanks to the advantageous physical geographical and social-political background. After the presentation of the country-specific theoretical system of spa and wellness, the paper examines the supply and the demand side together with competitor analysis and recent trends in spa and wellness in Hungary.

Comparative genome analysis of Megasphaera sp. reveals niche specialization and its potential role in the human gut.

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Sudarshan Anand Shetty

Full Text Available With increasing number of novel bacteria being isolated from the human gut ecosystem, there is a greater need to study their role in the gut ecosystem and their effect on the host health. In the present study, we carried out in silico genome-wide analysis of two novel Megasphaera sp. isolates NM10 (DSM25563 and BL7 (DSM25562, isolated from feces of two healthy individuals and validated the key features by in vitro studies. The analysis revealed the general metabolic potential, adaptive features and the potential effects of these isolates on the host. The comparative genome analysis of the two human gut isolates NM10 and BL7 with ruminal isolate Megasphaera elsdenii (DSM20460 highlighted the differential adaptive features for their survival in human gut. The key findings include features like bile resistance, presence of various sensory and regulatory systems, stress response systems, membrane transporters and resistance to antibiotics. Comparison of the "glycobiome" based on the genomes of the ruminal isolate with the human gut isolates NM10 and BL revealed the presence of diverse and unique sets of Carbohydrate-Active enzymes (CAZymes amongst these isolates, with a higher collection of CAZymes in the human gut isolates. This could be attributed to the difference in host diet and thereby the environment, consequently suggesting host specific adaptation in these isolates. In silico analysis of metabolic potential predicted the ability of these isolates to produce important metabolites like short chain fatty acids (butyrate, acetate, formate, and caproate, vitamins and essential amino acids, which was further validated by in vitro experiments. The ability of these isolates to produce important metabolites advocates for a potential healthy influence on the host. Further in vivo studies including transcriptomic and proteomic analysis will be required for better understanding the role and impact of these Megasphaera sp. isolates NM10 and BL7 on the

An Na+/H+ antiporter gene from wheat plays an important role

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

PRAKASH KUMAR

might play an important role in salt and osmotic stress tolerance in plant cells. [Yu J N, Huang J, ..... of TaNHX2 might be related to salt tolerance in wheat. TaNHX2 might also ... This work was supported by National Basic Research Project.

Quantitative phosphoproteomics reveals new roles for the protein phosphatase PP6 in mitotic cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Rusin, Scott F; Schlosser, Kate A; Adamo, Mark E; Kettenbach, Arminja N

2015-10-13

Protein phosphorylation is an important regulatory mechanism controlling mitotic progression. Protein phosphatase 6 (PP6) is an essential enzyme with conserved roles in chromosome segregation and spindle assembly from yeast to humans. We applied a baculovirus-mediated gene silencing approach to deplete HeLa cells of the catalytic subunit of PP6 (PP6c) and analyzed changes in the phosphoproteome and proteome in mitotic cells by quantitative mass spectrometry-based proteomics. We identified 408 phosphopeptides on 272 proteins that increased and 298 phosphopeptides on 220 proteins that decreased in phosphorylation upon PP6c depletion in mitotic cells. Motif analysis of the phosphorylated sites combined with bioinformatics pathway analysis revealed previously unknown PP6c-dependent regulatory pathways. Biochemical assays demonstrated that PP6c opposed casein kinase 2-dependent phosphorylation of the condensin I subunit NCAP-G, and cellular analysis showed that depletion of PP6c resulted in defects in chromosome condensation and segregation in anaphase, consistent with dysregulation of condensin I function in the absence of PP6 activity. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Elucidation of the regulatory role of the fructose operon reveals a novel target for enhancing the NADPH supply in Corynebacterium glutamicum

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Zhihao; Chan, Siu Hung Joshua; Sudarsan, Suresh

2016-01-01

is linked to redox and to the general metabolism. We here provide new insights into the regulation of the metabolism of this important platform organism by systematically characterizing mutants carrying various lesions in the fructose operon. Initially, we found that a strain where the dedicated fructose...... uptake system had been inactivated (KO-ptsF) was hampered in growth on sucrose minimal medium, and suppressor mutants appeared readily. Comparative genomic analysis in conjunction with enzymatic assays revealed that suppression was linked to inactivation of the pfkB gene, encoding a fructose-1-phosphate...... kinase. Detailed characterization of KO-ptsF, KO-pfkB and double knock-out (DKO) derivatives revealed a strong role for sugar-phosphates, especially fructose-1-phosphate (F1P), in governing sugar as well as redox metabolism due to effects on transcriptional regulation of key genes. These findings allowed...

Ecological roles of dominant and rare prokaryotes in acid mine drainage revealed by metagenomics and metatranscriptomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, Zheng-Shuang; Han, Yu-Jiao; Chen, Lin-Xing; Liu, Jun; Hu, Min; Li, Sheng-Jin; Kuang, Jia-Liang; Chain, Patrick S G; Huang, Li-Nan; Shu, Wen-Sheng

2015-06-01

High-throughput sequencing is expanding our knowledge of microbial diversity in the environment. Still, understanding the metabolic potentials and ecological roles of rare and uncultured microbes in natural communities remains a major challenge. To this end, we applied a 'divide and conquer' strategy that partitioned a massive metagenomic data set (>100 Gbp) into subsets based on K-mer frequency in sequence assembly to a low-diversity acid mine drainage (AMD) microbial community and, by integrating with an additional metatranscriptomic assembly, successfully obtained 11 draft genomes most of which represent yet uncultured and/or rare taxa (relative abundance 90%) and its metabolic potentials and gene expression profile, providing initial molecular insights into the ecological role of these lesser known, but potentially important, microorganisms in the AMD environment. Gene transcriptional analysis of the active taxa revealed major metabolic capabilities executed in situ, including carbon- and nitrogen-related metabolisms associated with syntrophic interactions, iron and sulfur oxidation, which are key in energy conservation and AMD generation, and the mechanisms of adaptation and response to the environmental stresses (heavy metals, low pH and oxidative stress). Remarkably, nitrogen fixation and sulfur oxidation were performed by the rare taxa, indicating their critical roles in the overall functioning and assembly of the AMD community. Our study demonstrates the potential of the 'divide and conquer' strategy in high-throughput sequencing data assembly for genome reconstruction and functional partitioning analysis of both dominant and rare species in natural microbial assemblages.

NHE8 plays important roles in gastric mucosal protection

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Hua; Li, Jing; Chen, Huacong; Wang, Chunhui

2013-01-01

Sodium/hydrogen exchanger (NHE) 8 is an apically expressed membrane protein in the intestinal epithelial cells. It plays important roles in sodium absorption and bicarbonate secretion in the intestine. Although NHE8 mRNA has been detected in the stomach, the precise location and physiological role of NHE8 in the gastric glands remain unclear. In the current study, we successfully detected the expression of NHE8 in the glandular region of the stomach by Western blotting and located NHE8 protein at the apical membrane in the surface mucous cells by a confocal microscopic method. We also identified the expression of downregulated-in-adenoma (DRA) in the surface mucous cells in the stomach. Using NHE8−/− mice, we found that NHE8 plays little or no role in basal gastric acid production, yet NHE8−/− mice have reduced gastric mucosal surface pH and higher incidence of developing gastric ulcer. DRA expression was reduced significantly in the stomach in NHE8−/− mice. The propensity for gastric ulcer, reduced mucosal surface pH, and low DRA expression suggest that NHE8 is indirectly involved in gastric bicarbonate secretion and gastric mucosal protection. PMID:23220221

A longitudinal investigation of the mediating role of self-esteem and body importance in the relationship between stress and body dissatisfaction in adolescent females and males.

Science.gov (United States)

Murray, Kristen; Rieger, Elizabeth; Byrne, Don

2013-09-01

Body dissatisfaction is particularly prevalent during adolescence and has recently been linked to stress in females and males. However, prospective studies are needed to better understand the relationship between stress and body dissatisfaction. The present study investigates the direction of this association and the mediating role of self-esteem and body image importance. A sample of 298 adolescent females and males in Grades 7 to 10 (ages 12 to 17 years) were surveyed at two time points over a one-year period. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that stress significantly predicted body dissatisfaction one year later. Furthermore, a multiple mediation analysis controlling for gender revealed a significant indirect effect in both cross-sectional and longitudinal models, indicating that stress predicts reductions in self-esteem and increases in body importance, which in turn predict body dissatisfaction. These findings suggest that stress, self-esteem, and body importance should be included in programmes aimed at improving body dissatisfaction. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Role and importance of workshops in the development of heritage protection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Živa Deu

2013-07-01

Full Text Available This contribution presents a detailed account of the role and importance of urbanist-architecture and architecture workshops. The analysis of the chosen sample of twenty-five workshops tied to the developmental protection of the heritage of built structures and the preservation of immobile cultural heritage as a whole illuminates the pedagogic importance and examines the transmission of workshop products into practice. It has been established that in addition to raising new architects the workshops posses a wider educational importance. Apart from the client the workshop process includes the local inhabitants who, through the process, familiarize themselves with less well known expert and practical knowledge. Without it any expectation of a quality settlement of vital building heritage would not be merited. An overview of the results stemming from the workshops demonstrates that practical applications do not achieve desired results. Many products remained locked in the clients’ desk drawers with less than half ever put into practice. All the workshops, including the ones not, or not yet realised in their intended form, produced material of lasting value, specifically in the work of the regional Institutes for the Protection of Cultural Heritage. The materials handed over to institutes playing an important role in the productive efforts of the high grade of protection and development of heritage include multi-layered analyses of valuable built structures and architectural recordings. From the point of view of developmental protection of Slovenian cultural heritage and due to the demonstrated use of important analytic material and especially due to their proven educational value the exercise of workshops in various settlements of Slovenian space is indispensable.

THE ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF COMPANY CRISIS DIAGNOSIS IN ANTI-CRISIS MANAGEMENT

OpenAIRE

Klodane, Alona

2016-01-01

Nowadays, under a free market, crises at companies are a frequent phenomenon; however, anti-crisis management and related aspects are currently a little researched problem in Latvia. The research aim is to examine the nature of company crisis diagnosis and its role and importance in the anti-crisis management system. The research general tasks are: to describe the nature of company crisis diagnosis and review the scope, purpose and tasks of performing a diagnosis; to examine the role and impo...

Profiles of Attribution of Importance to Life Roles and Their Implications for the Work-Family Conflict

Science.gov (United States)

Cinamon, Rachel Gali; Rich, Yisrael

2002-01-01

Cluster analysis identified 3 groups of individuals who differed systematically on attributions of relative importance to work and to family roles. Participants were 213 married computer workers and lawyers, 126 men and 87 women. Questionnaires gathered data on attributions of importance to life roles, work-family conflict, spousal and managerial…

LEADERSHIP IMPORTANCE AND ROLE IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR - FEATURES IN THE CONTEMPORARY CONTEXT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MAGDALENA IORDACHE-PLATIS

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Nowadays leadership is considered a managerial and organizational process that influences and guides the activities of the companies. As a management process, leadership can systematically influence the relationships that occur between managers and employees as a result of applying the management functions application. This study aims to highlight the main elements that designate the modern and revolutionary concept named”leadership”. The main objectives of the study are: 1. explaining the importance of leadership in the contemporary context; 2. analyzing the similarities and differences between two seemingly similar concepts - “leadership” and “management”; 3. description of the main management styles; 4. analyzing the correlation between leadership and emotional intelligence; 5. explaining leadership role in the public sector in Romania. In every company leadership has a very important role in achieving performance. The leader also plays an important role in a company, because a leader is the person who influences the behavior, actions, positive or negative attitude of others who are determined to act and take decisions voluntarily without fear of being punished if they do not follow the leader. Emotional self-awareness, trust, adaptability, initiative, optimism and team spirit are the ingredients of modern management style which determines the competitiveness of an organization.

Cell Competition: Roles and Importance as a Central Phenomenon.

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, Manish; Antala, Bhavesh; Shrivastava, Neeta

2015-01-01

Cell competition is a type of short-range cell-cell interaction first observed in Drosophila melanogaster. In two heterogeneous cell populations, cells that have a higher fitness level would have a competitive advantage and grow at the cost of neighbor cells that have comparatively lower fitness. This interaction is due to differences in expression levels of a specific protein in the two cell populations, and it is known as cell competition. In this review, we have studied recent findings of cell competition in different biological processes in Drosophila as well as mammalian systems. The purpose of this review is to collate important studies of competitive cell interactions, and to understand its roles and importance as a central phenomenon. This review provides evidence of the relevance of cell competition in various physiological and pathological conditions, such as size control in organ development, stem cell maintenance, tissue repair, organ regeneration, aging, formation of memory, and cancer.

Genome-wide analyses reveal a role for peptide hormones in planarian germline development.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

James J Collins

Full Text Available Bioactive peptides (i.e., neuropeptides or peptide hormones represent the largest class of cell-cell signaling molecules in metazoans and are potent regulators of neural and physiological function. In vertebrates, peptide hormones play an integral role in endocrine signaling between the brain and the gonads that controls reproductive development, yet few of these molecules have been shown to influence reproductive development in invertebrates. Here, we define a role for peptide hormones in controlling reproductive physiology of the model flatworm, the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea. Based on our observation that defective neuropeptide processing results in defects in reproductive system development, we employed peptidomic and functional genomic approaches to characterize the planarian peptide hormone complement, identifying 51 prohormone genes and validating 142 peptides biochemically. Comprehensive in situ hybridization analyses of prohormone gene expression revealed the unanticipated complexity of the flatworm nervous system and identified a prohormone specifically expressed in the nervous system of sexually reproducing planarians. We show that this member of the neuropeptide Y superfamily is required for the maintenance of mature reproductive organs and differentiated germ cells in the testes. Additionally, comparative analyses of our biochemically validated prohormones with the genomes of the parasitic flatworms Schistosoma mansoni and Schistosoma japonicum identified new schistosome prohormones and validated half of all predicted peptide-encoding genes in these parasites. These studies describe the peptide hormone complement of a flatworm on a genome-wide scale and reveal a previously uncharacterized role for peptide hormones in flatworm reproduction. Furthermore, they suggest new opportunities for using planarians as free-living models for understanding the reproductive biology of flatworm parasites.

Hypomorphic conditional deletion of E11/Podoplanin reveals a role in osteocyte dendrite elongation.

Science.gov (United States)

Staines, Katherine A; Javaheri, Behzad; Hohenstein, Peter; Fleming, Robert; Ikpegbu, Ekele; Unger, Erin; Hopkinson, Mark; Buttle, David J; Pitsillides, Andrew A; Farquharson, Colin

2017-11-01

The transmembrane glycoprotein E11/Podoplanin (Pdpn) has been implicated in the initial stages of osteocyte differentiation. However, its precise function and regulatory mechanisms are still unknown. Due to the known embryonic lethality induced by global Pdpn deletion, we have herein explored the effect of bone-specific Pdpn knockdown on osteocyte form and function in the post-natal mouse. Extensive skeletal phenotyping of male and female 6-week-old Oc-cre;Pdpn flox/flox (cKO) mice and their Pdpn flox/flox controls (fl/fl) has revealed that Pdpn deletion significantly compromises tibial cortical bone microarchitecture in both sexes, albeit to different extents (p < 0.05). Consistent with this, we observed an increase in stiffness in female cKO mice in comparison to fl/fl mice (p < 0.01). Moreover, analysis of the osteocyte phenotype by phalloidin staining revealed a significant decrease in the dendrite volume (p < 0.001) and length (p < 0.001) in cKO mice in which deletion of Pdpn also modifies the bone anabolic loading response (p < 0.05) in comparison to age-matched fl/fl mice. Together, these data confirm a regulatory role for Pdpn in osteocyte dendrite formation and as such, in the control of osteocyte function. As the osteocyte dendritic network is known to play vital roles in regulating bone modeling/remodeling, this highlights an essential role for Pdpn in bone homeostasis. © 2017 The Authors. Journal of Cellular Physiology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cartilage link protein 1 (Crtl1), an extracellular matrix component playing an important role in heart development.

Science.gov (United States)

Wirrig, Elaine E; Snarr, Brian S; Chintalapudi, Mastan R; O'neal, Jessica L; Phelps, Aimee L; Barth, Jeremy L; Fresco, Victor M; Kern, Christine B; Mjaatvedt, Corey H; Toole, Bryan P; Hoffman, Stanley; Trusk, Thomas C; Argraves, W Scott; Wessels, Andy

2007-10-15

To expand our insight into cardiac development, a comparative DNA microarray analysis was performed using tissues from the atrioventricular junction (AVJ) and ventricular chambers of mouse hearts at embryonic day (ED) 10.5-11.0. This comparison revealed differential expression of approximately 200 genes, including cartilage link protein 1 (Crtl1). Crtl1 stabilizes the interaction between hyaluronan (HA) and versican, two extracellular matrix components essential for cardiac development. Immunohistochemical studies showed that, initially, Crtl1, versican, and HA are co-expressed in the endocardial lining of the heart, and in the endocardially derived mesenchyme of the AVJ and outflow tract (OFT). At later stages, this co-expression becomes restricted to discrete populations of endocardially derived mesenchyme. Histological analysis of the Crtl1-deficient mouse revealed a spectrum of cardiac malformations, including AV septal and myocardial defects, while expression studies showed a significant reduction in versican levels. Subsequent analysis of the hdf mouse, which carries an insertional mutation in the versican gene (CSPG2), demonstrated that haploinsufficient versican mice display septal defects resembling those seen in Crtl1(-/-) embryos, suggesting that reduced versican expression may contribute to a subset of the cardiac abnormalities observed in the Crtl1(-/-) mouse. Combined, these findings establish an important role for Crtl1 in heart development.

Targeted Disruption of ALK Reveals a Potential Role in Hypogonadotropic Hypogonadism.

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Barbara Witek

Full Text Available Mice lacking ALK activity have previously been reported to exhibit subtle behavioral phenotypes. In this study of ALK of loss of function mice we present data supporting a role for ALK in hypogonadotropic hypogonadism in male mice. We observed lower level of serum testosterone at P40 in ALK knock-out males, accompanied by mild disorganization of seminiferous tubules exhibiting decreased numbers of GATA4 expressing cells. These observations highlight a role for ALK in testis function and are further supported by experiments in which chemical inhibition of ALK activity with the ALK TKI crizotinib was employed. Oral administration of crizotinib resulted in a decrease of serum testosterone levels in adult wild type male mice, which reverted to normal levels after cessation of treatment. Analysis of GnRH expression in neurons of the hypothalamus revealed a significant decrease in the number of GnRH positive neurons in ALK knock-out mice at P40 when compared with control littermates. Thus, ALK appears to be involved in hypogonadotropic hypogonadism by regulating the timing of pubertal onset and testis function at the upper levels of the hypothalamic-pituitary gonadal axis.

Targeted Disruption of ALK Reveals a Potential Role in Hypogonadotropic Hypogonadism

Science.gov (United States)

Nord, Christoffer; Ahlgren, Ulf; Eriksson, Maria; Vernersson-Lindahl, Emma; Helland, Åslaug; Alexeyev, Oleg A.; Hallberg, Bengt; Palmer, Ruth H.

2015-01-01

Mice lacking ALK activity have previously been reported to exhibit subtle behavioral phenotypes. In this study of ALK of loss of function mice we present data supporting a role for ALK in hypogonadotropic hypogonadism in male mice. We observed lower level of serum testosterone at P40 in ALK knock-out males, accompanied by mild disorganization of seminiferous tubules exhibiting decreased numbers of GATA4 expressing cells. These observations highlight a role for ALK in testis function and are further supported by experiments in which chemical inhibition of ALK activity with the ALK TKI crizotinib was employed. Oral administration of crizotinib resulted in a decrease of serum testosterone levels in adult wild type male mice, which reverted to normal levels after cessation of treatment. Analysis of GnRH expression in neurons of the hypothalamus revealed a significant decrease in the number of GnRH positive neurons in ALK knock-out mice at P40 when compared with control littermates. Thus, ALK appears to be involved in hypogonadotropic hypogonadism by regulating the timing of pubertal onset and testis function at the upper levels of the hypothalamic-pituitary gonadal axis. PMID:25955180

Spheroid Culture of Head and Neck Cancer Cells Reveals an Important Role of EGFR Signalling in Anchorage Independent Survival.

Science.gov (United States)

Braunholz, Diana; Saki, Mohammad; Niehr, Franziska; Öztürk, Merve; Borràs Puértolas, Berta; Konschak, Robert; Budach, Volker; Tinhofer, Ingeborg

2016-01-01

In solid tumours millions of cells are shed into the blood circulation each day. Only a subset of these circulating tumour cells (CTCs) survive, many of them presumable because of their potential to form multi-cellular clusters also named spheroids. Tumour cells within these spheroids are protected from anoikis, which allows them to metastasize to distant organs or re-seed at the primary site. We used spheroid cultures of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) cell lines as a model for such CTC clusters for determining the role of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in cluster formation ability and cell survival after detachment from the extra-cellular matrix. The HNSCC cell lines FaDu, SCC-9 and UT-SCC-9 (UT-SCC-9P) as well as its cetuximab (CTX)-resistant sub-clone (UT-SCC-9R) were forced to grow in an anchorage-independent manner by coating culture dishes with the anti-adhesive polymer poly-2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate (poly-HEMA). The extent of apoptosis, clonogenic survival and EGFR signalling under such culture conditions was evaluated. The potential of spheroid formation in suspension culture was found to be positively correlated with the proliferation rate of HNSCC cell lines as well as their basal EGFR expression levels. CTX and gefitinib blocked, whereas the addition of EGFR ligands promoted anchorage-independent cell survival and spheroid formation. Increased spheroid formation and growth were associated with persistent activation of EGFR and its downstream signalling component (MAPK/ERK). Importantly, HNSCC cells derived from spheroid cultures retained their clonogenic potential in the absence of cell-matrix contact. Addition of CTX under these conditions strongly inhibited colony formation in CTX-sensitive cell lines but not their resistant subclones. Altogether, EGFR activation was identified as crucial factor for anchorage-independent survival of HNSCC cells. Targeting EGFR in CTC cluster formation might represent an attractive anti

Proteomic Analysis Revealed the Important Role of Vimentin in Human Cervical Carcinoma HeLa Cells Treated With Gambogic Acid*

Science.gov (United States)

Yue, Qingxi; Feng, Lixing; Cao, Biyin; Liu, Miao; Zhang, Dongmei; Wu, Wanying; Jiang, Baohong; Yang, Min; Liu, Xuan; Guo, Dean

2016-01-01

Gambogic acid (GA) is an anticancer agent in phase IIb clinical trial in China. In HeLa cells, GA inhibited cell proliferation, induced cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase and apoptosis, as showed by results of MTT assay and flow cytometric analysis. Possible target-related proteins of GA were searched using comparative proteomic analysis (2-DE) and nine proteins at early (3 h) stage together with nine proteins at late (24 h) stage were found. Vimentin was the only target-related protein found at both early and late stage. Results of both 2-DE analysis and Western blotting assay suggested cleavage of vimentin induced by GA. MS/MS analysis of cleaved vimentin peptides indicated possible cleavage sites of vimentin at or near ser51 and glu425. Results of targeted proteomic analysis showed that GA induced change in phosphorylation state of the vimentin head domain (aa51–64). Caspase inhibitors could not abrogate GA-induced cleavage of vimentin. Over-expression of vimentin ameliorated cytotoxicity of GA in HeLa cells. The GA-activated signal transduction, from p38 MAPK, heat shock protein 27 (HSP27), vimentin, dysfunction of cytoskeleton, to cell death, was predicted and then confirmed. Results of animal study showed that GA treatment inhibited tumor growth in HeLa tumor-bearing mice and cleavage of vimentin could be observed in tumor xenografts of GA-treated animals. Results of immunohistochemical staining also showed down-regulated vimentin level in tumor xenografts of GA-treated animals. Furthermore, compared with cytotoxicity of GA in HeLa cells, cytotoxicity of GA in MCF-7 cells with low level of vimentin was weaker whereas cytotoxicity of GA in MG-63 cells with high level of vimentin was stronger. These results indicated the important role of vimentin in the cytotoxicity of GA. The effects of GA on vimentin and other epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers provided suggestion for better usage of GA in clinic. PMID:26499837

Novel candidate genes important for asthma and hypertension comorbidity revealed from associative gene networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Saik, Olga V; Demenkov, Pavel S; Ivanisenko, Timofey V; Bragina, Elena Yu; Freidin, Maxim B; Goncharova, Irina A; Dosenko, Victor E; Zolotareva, Olga I; Hofestaedt, Ralf; Lavrik, Inna N; Rogaev, Evgeny I; Ivanisenko, Vladimir A

2018-02-13

Hypertension and bronchial asthma are a major issue for people's health. As of 2014, approximately one billion adults, or ~ 22% of the world population, have had hypertension. As of 2011, 235-330 million people globally have been affected by asthma and approximately 250,000-345,000 people have died each year from the disease. The development of the effective treatment therapies against these diseases is complicated by their comorbidity features. This is often a major problem in diagnosis and their treatment. Hence, in this study the bioinformatical methodology for the analysis of the comorbidity of these two diseases have been developed. As such, the search for candidate genes related to the comorbid conditions of asthma and hypertension can help in elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying the comorbid condition of these two diseases, and can also be useful for genotyping and identifying new drug targets. Using ANDSystem, the reconstruction and analysis of gene networks associated with asthma and hypertension was carried out. The gene network of asthma included 755 genes/proteins and 62,603 interactions, while the gene network of hypertension - 713 genes/proteins and 45,479 interactions. Two hundred and five genes/proteins and 9638 interactions were shared between asthma and hypertension. An approach for ranking genes implicated in the comorbid condition of two diseases was proposed. The approach is based on nine criteria for ranking genes by their importance, including standard methods of gene prioritization (Endeavor, ToppGene) as well as original criteria that take into account the characteristics of an associative gene network and the presence of known polymorphisms in the analysed genes. According to the proposed approach, the genes IL10, TLR4, and CAT had the highest priority in the development of comorbidity of these two diseases. Additionally, it was revealed that the list of top genes is enriched with apoptotic genes and genes involved in

Quantitative proteomics of the tonoplast reveals a role for glycolytic enzymes in salt tolerance.

Science.gov (United States)

Barkla, Bronwyn J; Vera-Estrella, Rosario; Hernández-Coronado, Marcela; Pantoja, Omar

2009-12-01

To examine the role of the tonoplast in plant salt tolerance and identify proteins involved in the regulation of transporters for vacuolar Na(+) sequestration, we exploited a targeted quantitative proteomics approach. Two-dimensional differential in-gel electrophoresis analysis of free flow zonal electrophoresis separated tonoplast fractions from control, and salt-treated Mesembryanthemum crystallinum plants revealed the membrane association of glycolytic enzymes aldolase and enolase, along with subunits of the vacuolar H(+)-ATPase V-ATPase. Protein blot analysis confirmed coordinated salt regulation of these proteins, and chaotrope treatment indicated a strong tonoplast association. Reciprocal coimmunoprecipitation studies revealed that the glycolytic enzymes interacted with the V-ATPase subunit B VHA-B, and aldolase was shown to stimulate V-ATPase activity in vitro by increasing the affinity for ATP. To investigate a physiological role for this association, the Arabidopsis thaliana cytoplasmic enolase mutant, los2, was characterized. These plants were salt sensitive, and there was a specific reduction in enolase abundance in the tonoplast from salt-treated plants. Moreover, tonoplast isolated from mutant plants showed an impaired ability for aldolase stimulation of V-ATPase hydrolytic activity. The association of glycolytic proteins with the tonoplast may not only channel ATP to the V-ATPase, but also directly upregulate H(+)-pump activity.

Microbial functional diversity plays an important role in the degradation of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) in soil.

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Dey, Samrat; Tribedi, Prosun

2018-03-01

Towards bioremediation of recalcitrant materials like synthetic polymer, soil has been recognized as a traditional site for disposal and subsequent degradation as some microorganisms in soil can degrade the polymer in a non-toxic, cost-effective, and environment friendly way. Microbial functional diversity is a constituent of biodiversity that includes wide range of metabolic activities that can influence numerous aspects of ecosystem functioning like ecosystem stability, nutrient availability, ecosystem dynamics, etc. Thus, in the current study, we assumed that microbial functional diversity could play an important role in polymer degradation in soil. To verify this hypothesis, we isolated soil from five different sites of landfill and examined several microbiological parameters wherein we observed a significant variation in heterotrophic microbial count as well as microbial activities among the soil microcosms tested. Multivariate analysis (principle component analysis) based on the carbon sources utilization pattern revealed that soil microcosms showed different metabolic patterns suggesting the variable distribution of microorganisms among the soil microcosms tested. Since microbial functional diversity depends on both microbial richness and evenness, Shannon diversity index was determined to measure microbial richness and Gini coefficient was determined to measure microbial evenness. The tested soil microcosms exhibited variation in both microbial richness and evenness suggesting the considerable difference in microbial functional diversity among the tested microcosms. We then measured polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) degradation in soil microcosms after desired period of incubation of PHB in soil wherein we found that soil microcosms having higher functional diversity showed enhanced PHB degradation and soil microcosms having lower functional diversity showed reduced PHB degradation. We also noticed that all the tested soil microcosms showed similar pattern in both

The role and importance of leadership in business development in Kosovo

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamdi Hoti

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Leadership in Kosovo today is one of the questions of exceptional importance. This institution has not yet been analyzed properly based on: quality, efficiency and responsibility, legal-, material- and moral leadership. Kosovo is faced with many challenges consisting of the needed steps towards the business development of the enterprise in Kosovo and in the international arena. Leaders cannot be created only by giving orders to others but the main problem is to identify the principles of cooperation and co-financing that identify people who can and should be able to mobilize forces to create economic advantages to the society. In this sense the most important thing is the determination of the exact diagnosis of the current situation before promoting economic growth. Main purpose of this article is the analysis of the role and importance of leadership in the business development in Kosovo.

The Perceived Importance of Role-Specific Competencies for Health Care Leaders Establishes the Need to Expand Role Theory.

Science.gov (United States)

Babinski, Paul J

2016-01-01

This cross-sectional quantitative study was undertaken to determine the extent to which individuals who have differing health care leadership roles perceived the importance of selected leadership competencies in their specific roles based on their experience. A total of 313 participants responded to the health care questionnaire. Principal component analysis identified factor structure and Cronbach α at .96 supported the reliability of the factor analysis. Multivariate analysis of variance tested the 4 health care leadership roles to determine if an effect was present among the competencies. A subsequent analysis of variance test was conducted on the competencies to confirm an effect was present, and a Games-Howell post hoc test followed. These tests indicated that there was a significant difference in rating the perceived importance of specific leadership competencies by the health care leaders in each competency domain. The participants included in this study consisted of the chief executive officer (CEO), director of nursing (DON), operating room director (ORD), and director of radiology (DOR). Based on the Games-Howell post hoc test, a commonality existed between the leaders. The CEOs and DONs often indicated no significant difference in competency perception to one another in relation to the dependent variables, yet indicated a significant difference in competency perception when compared with the ORDs and DORs. Similarly, the ORD and DOR variables often indicated no significant difference in competency perception to one another in relation to the dependent variables, yet indicated a significant difference in competency perception compared with the CEO and DON variables. This study positively indicated that health care leadership's perception of competencies does differ between the various leadership roles.

X-ray fluorescence microscopy reveals the role of selenium in spermatogenesis

OpenAIRE

Kehr, Sebastian; Malinouski, Mikalai; Finney, Lydia; Vogt, Stefan; Labunskyy, Vyacheslav M.; Kasaikina, Marina V.; Carlson, Bradley A.; Zhou, You; Hatfield, Dolph L.; Gladyshev, Vadim N.

2009-01-01

Selenium (Se) is a trace element with important roles in human health. Several selenoproteins have essential functions in development. However, the cellular and tissue distribution of Se remains largely unknown because of the lack of analytical techniques that image this element with sufficient sensitivity and resolution. Herein, we report that X-ray fluorescence microscopy (XFM) can be used to visualize and quantify the tissue, cellular and subcellular topography of Se. We applied this techn...

The important role of civil society groups in eco-innovation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Yang, Yan; Holgaard, Jette Egelund

2012-01-01

the role of civil society groups in eco-innovation by addressing the following research questions: Why is it necessary to stress that civil society groups are as important as university, industry and government in eco-innovation? What inspiration can “triple helix twins” and “quadruple helix” provide when...... groups are not only foundations for developing innovation – they can be actors themselves; the existence of semi-governmental organizations in the Chinese case company, which is categorized under the concept of NGOs, shows the limitations of the concept of civil society groups in exposing important......, as they are helpful not only to provide pressure and push industry onto a green track, but also as supporters and carriers of green business. Corporate social responsibility is proposed as a stepping-stone to engage civil society groups in broader eco-innovation activity. Originality/value – The paper starts...

Calmodulin-dependent nuclear import of HMG-box family nuclear factors: importance of the role of SRY in sex reversal.

Science.gov (United States)

Kaur, Gurpreet; Delluc-Clavieres, Aurelie; Poon, Ivan K H; Forwood, Jade K; Glover, Dominic J; Jans, David A

2010-08-15

The HMG (high-mobility group)-box-containing chromatin-remodelling factor SRY (sex-determining region on the Y chromosome) plays a key role in sex determination. Its role in the nucleus is critically dependent on two NLSs (nuclear localization signals) that flank its HMG domain: the C-terminally located 'beta-NLS' that mediates nuclear transport through Impbeta1 (importin beta1) and the N-terminally located 'CaM-NLS' which is known to recognize the calcium-binding protein CaM (calmodulin). In the present study, we examined a number of missense mutations in the SRY CaM-NLS from human XY sex-reversed females for the first time, showing that they result in significantly reduced nuclear localization of GFP (green fluorescent protein)-SRY fusion proteins in transfected cells compared with wild-type. The CaM antagonist CDZ (calmidazolium chloride) was found to significantly reduce wild-type SRY nuclear accumulation, indicating dependence of SRY nuclear import on CaM. Intriguingly, the CaM-NLS mutants were all resistant to CDZ's effects, implying a loss of interaction with CaM, which was confirmed by direct binding experiments. CaM-binding/resultant nuclear accumulation was the only property of SRY found to be impaired by two of the CaM-NLS mutations, implying that inhibition of CaM-dependent nuclear import is the basis of sex reversal in these cases. Importantly, the CaM-NLS is conserved in other HMG-box-domain-containing proteins such as SOX-2, -9, -10 and HMGN1, all of which were found for the first time to rely on CaM for optimal nuclear localization. CaM-dependent nuclear translocation is thus a common mechanism for this family of important transcription factors.

High temporal and spatial diversity in marine RNA viruses implies that they have an important role in mortality and structuring plankton communities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julia Anne Gustavsen

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Viruses in the order Picornavirales infect eukaryotes, and are widely distributed in coastal waters. Amplicon deep-sequencing of the RNA dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp revealed diverse and highly uneven communities of picorna-like viruses in the coastal waters of British Columbia (B.C., Canada. Almost 300 000 pyrosequence reads revealed 145 operational taxonomic units (OTUs based on 95% sequence similarity at the amino-acid level. Each sample had between 24 and 71 OTUs and there was little overlap among samples. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that some clades of OTUs were only found at one site; whereas, other groups included OTUs from all sites. Since most of these OTUs are likely from viruses that infect eukaryotic phytoplankton, and viral isolates infecting phytoplankton are strain-specific; each OTU probably arose from the lysis of a specific phytoplankton taxon. Moreover, the patchiness in OTU distribution, and the high turnover of viruses in the mixed layer, implies continuous infection and lysis by RNA viruses of a diverse array of eukaryotic phytoplankton taxa. Hence, these viruses are likely important elements structuring the phytoplankton community, and play a significant role in nutrient cycling and energy transfer.

Biotransformation effect of Bombyx Mori L. may play an important role in treating diabetic nephropathy.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lei; Zhang, La; Li, Yin; Guo, Xin-Feng; Liu, Xu-Sheng

2016-11-01

Compared with herbal drugs, medicine processed from animals (animal medicine) was thought to have more bioactive substances and higher activities. Biotransformation effect often plays an important role in their effect. However, researches about effect of animal medicine on diabetic nephropathy and applying animal medicine as natural bio-transformer were seldom reported. The purpose of this paper was to reveal the use of Bombyx Mori L. on diabetic nephropathy from ancient to modern times. The classical literature indicated that Saosi Decoction (), which contains Bombyx Mori L. or silkworm cocoon, was applied to treat disorders congruent with modern disease diabetic nephropathy from the Ming to Qing Dynasty in ancient China. Modern studies showed that Bombyx Mori L. contains four main active constituents. Among these, 1-deoxynojirimycin (1-DNJ) and quercetin showed promising potential to be new agents in diabetic nephropathy treatment. The concentrations of 1-DNJ and the activities of quercetin in Bombyx Mori L. are higher than in mulberry leaves, because of the biotransformation in the Bombyx Mori L. body. However, these specifific components need further human and mechanistic studies to determine their therapeutic potential for this challenging condition.

Attribution of importance to life roles and their implications for mental health among Filipino American working women.

Science.gov (United States)

Napholz, Linda; Mo, Wenbin

2010-02-01

Our purpose was to determine levels of role commitment, role conflict, depression, self-esteem, and life satisfaction among a community-based sample of working Filipino women. The convenience sample consisted of 87 Filipino working women, ranging in age from 18 to 59 years. Participants completed instruments assessing self-esteem, depression, life satisfaction, and role conflict. Our analyses revealed that participants who were equally or more committed to work than relationships had significantly higher depression scores, self-esteem scores, and levels of education than participants who were committed primarily to relationships. There were no significant differences among role commitment type on role conflict and life satisfaction. We found significant interactions between experiences of depression, self-esteem, and the perceptions of self. From our study findings our knowledge of working Filipina American's psychological well-being has increased and provided a foundation for future research.

[Ammonia-oxidizing archaea and their important roles in nitrogen biogeochemical cycling: a review].

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jing-Jing; Wu, Wei-Xiang; Ding, Ying; Shi, De-Zhi; Chen, Ying-Xu

2010-08-01

As the first step of nitrification, ammonia oxidation is the key process in global nitrogen biogeochemical cycling. So far, the autotrophic ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) in the beta- and gamma-subgroups of proteobacteria have been considered as the most important contributors to ammonia oxidation, but the recent researches indicated that ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) are widely distributed in various kinds of ecosystems and quantitatively predominant, playing important roles in the global nitrogen biogeochemical cycling. This paper reviewed the morphological, physiological, and ecological characteristics and the molecular phylogenies of AOA, and compared and analyzed the differences and similarities of the ammonia monooxygenase (AMO) and its encoding genes between AOA and AOB. In addition, the potential significant roles of AOA in nitrogen biogeochemical cycling in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems were summarized, and the future research directions of AOA in applied ecology and environmental protection were put forward.

Striking Plasticity of CRISPR-Cas9 and Key Role of Non-target DNA, as Revealed by Molecular Simulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Palermo, Giulia; Miao, Yinglong; Walker, Ross C; Jinek, Martin; McCammon, J Andrew

2016-10-26

The CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)-Cas9 system recently emerged as a transformative genome-editing technology that is innovating basic bioscience and applied medicine and biotechnology. The endonuclease Cas9 associates with a guide RNA to match and cleave complementary sequences in double stranded DNA, forming an RNA:DNA hybrid and a displaced non-target DNA strand. Although extensive structural studies are ongoing, the conformational dynamics of Cas9 and its interplay with the nucleic acids during association and DNA cleavage are largely unclear. Here, by employing multi-microsecond time scale molecular dynamics, we reveal the conformational plasticity of Cas9 and identify key determinants that allow its large-scale conformational changes during nucleic acid binding and processing. We show how the "closure" of the protein, which accompanies nucleic acid binding, fundamentally relies on highly coupled and specific motions of the protein domains, collectively initiating the prominent conformational changes needed for nucleic acid association. We further reveal a key role of the non-target DNA during the process of activation of the nuclease HNH domain, showing how the nontarget DNA positioning triggers local conformational changes that favor the formation of a catalytically competent Cas9. Finally, a remarkable conformational plasticity is identified as an intrinsic property of the HNH domain, constituting a necessary element that allows for the HNH repositioning. These novel findings constitute a reference for future experimental studies aimed at a full characterization of the dynamic features of the CRISPR-Cas9 system, and-more importantly-call for novel structure engineering efforts that are of fundamental importance for the rational design of new genome-engineering applications.

The Role and Importance of Local Economic Development in Urban Development: A Case of Harare

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gladys Mandisvika

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The study assessed the role and importance of Local Economic Development as a means of enhancing urban development paying particular attention to the regulators of Local Economic Development in Harare. Local Economic Development is a process which encourages partners from the community, public sector, private sector and non-governmental sectors to work collectively to create better conditions for economic growth and employment generation with the aim of improving the locality economic future and the quality of life for all citizens. The study was premised on the theory of competitive advantage which puts up that prosperity and wealth creation is determined by microeconomic factors and that prosperity means increasing the standards of living for the local people and ultimately their quality of life. Primary data for the research was gathered through observation and key informant interviews. Data on key stakeholders understanding on the concept of Local Economic Development, how it is being practised and how the current regulatory framework enhance or impinge on local people’s participation in Local Economic Development was collected. Secondary data was also collected from Harare’s 2014 budget, census and existing forward plans. The study revealed that the practice of Local Economic Development in Harare is biased towards the setting aside of land zoned for industrial and commercial uses and implementation of development control parameters. Small to Medium Enterprises and the informal sector have also been identified as the major forms of Local Economic Development that citizens are involved in. However, the study revealed that proper policy frameworks which guide practice of Local Economic Development initiatives were missing

The European Commission: nuclear power has an important role to play; Commission Europeenne: le nucleaire a un role important a jouer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Anon

2008-11-15

The European Commission (E.C.) thinks that nuclear power has an important role to play: first to reduce CO{sub 2} emissions and secondly to reinforce energy self-reliance of the member states. The decision to introduce nuclear power in their energy mix belongs to every state but the E.C. has also highlighted that if adequate investment are quickly made 2 thirds of the electricity produced in the European Union in 2010 could by from low-carbon-emitting sources. Today with 148 reactors operating in 15 member countries nuclear power contributes to 1 third of the electricity produced. Another issue that is looming is the security of electricity supplying. A study has shown that the security level is worsening (particularly in winter) because of the greater part of wind energy in the energy mix as wind energy is not necessarily available when energy demand is peaking. The E.C. has proposed a new directive drawing a common standard frame for nuclear safety requirements concerning design, site selection, maintenance, operation and decommissioning of nuclear facilities. Each member state will have the choice to implement stiffer regulations. The European Union must reduce its dependency on Russian gas by increasing its storing capacities, by easing gas exchanges between member states and by importing more liquefied natural gas. European member states will have to invert 1000*10{sup 9} euros in gas and electrical power infrastructures in the next 25 years. (A.C.)

Epigenomic Co-localization and Co-evolution Reveal a Key Role for 5hmC as a Communication Hub in the Chromatin Network of ESCs

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David Juan

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Summary: Epigenetic communication through histone and cytosine modifications is essential for gene regulation and cell identity. Here, we propose a framework that is based on a chromatin communication model to get insight on the function of epigenetic modifications in ESCs. The epigenetic communication network was inferred from genome-wide location data plus extensive manual annotation. Notably, we found that 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC is the most-influential hub of this network, connecting DNA demethylation to nucleosome remodeling complexes and to key transcription factors of pluripotency. Moreover, an evolutionary analysis revealed a central role of 5hmC in the co-evolution of chromatin-related proteins. Further analysis of regions where 5hmC co-localizes with specific interactors shows that each interaction points to chromatin remodeling, stemness, differentiation, or metabolism. Our results highlight the importance of cytosine modifications in the epigenetic communication of ESCs. : 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC plays a key role in the epigenomic communication network of embryonic stem cells. Juan et al. build a communication network based in co-localization of epigenomic data and literature. The analysis of the network and its components reveals that proteins reading and editing 5hmC co-evolve and serve as links between diverse molecular processes.

Dissecting a role for melanopsin in behavioural light aversion reveals a response independent of conventional photoreception.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ma'ayan Semo

Full Text Available Melanopsin photoreception plays a vital role in irradiance detection for non-image forming responses to light. However, little is known about the involvement of melanopsin in emotional processing of luminance. When confronted with a gradient in light, organisms exhibit spatial movements relative to this stimulus. In rodents, behavioural light aversion (BLA is a well-documented but poorly understood phenomenon during which animals attribute salience to light and remove themselves from it. Here, using genetically modified mice and an open field behavioural paradigm, we investigate the role of melanopsin in BLA. While wildtype (WT, melanopsin knockout (Opn4(-/- and rd/rd cl (melanopsin only (MO mice all exhibit BLA, our novel methodology reveals that isolated melanopsin photoreception produces a slow, potentiating response to light. In order to control for the involvement of pupillary constriction in BLA we eliminated this variable with topical atropine application. This manipulation enhanced BLA in WT and MO mice, but most remarkably, revealed light aversion in triple knockout (TKO mice, lacking three elements deemed essential for conventional photoreception (Opn4(-/- Gnat1(-/- Cnga3(-/-. Using a number of complementary strategies, we determined this response to be generated at the level of the retina. Our findings have significant implications for the understanding of how melanopsin signalling may modulate aversive responses to light in mice and humans. In addition, we also reveal a clear potential for light perception in TKO mice.

Proteomic amino-termini profiling reveals targeting information for protein import into complex plastids.

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Pitter F Huesgen

Full Text Available In organisms with complex plastids acquired by secondary endosymbiosis from a photosynthetic eukaryote, the majority of plastid proteins are nuclear-encoded, translated on cytoplasmic ribosomes, and guided across four membranes by a bipartite targeting sequence. In-depth understanding of this vital import process has been impeded by a lack of information about the transit peptide part of this sequence, which mediates transport across the inner three membranes. We determined the mature N-termini of hundreds of proteins from the model diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana, revealing extensive N-terminal modification by acetylation and proteolytic processing in both cytosol and plastid. We identified 63 mature N-termini of nucleus-encoded plastid proteins, deduced their complete transit peptide sequences, determined a consensus motif for their cleavage by the stromal processing peptidase, and found evidence for subsequent processing by a plastid methionine aminopeptidase. The cleavage motif differs from that of higher plants, but is shared with other eukaryotes with complex plastids.

Genetic Screen Reveals the Role of Purine Metabolism in Staphylococcus aureus Persistence to Rifampicin

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Rebecca Yee

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Chronic infections with Staphylococcus aureus such as septicemia, osteomyelitis, endocarditis, and biofilm infections are difficult to treat because of persisters. Despite many efforts in understanding bacterial persistence, the mechanisms of persister formation in S. aureus remain elusive. Here, we performed a genome-wide screen of a transposon mutant library to study the molecular mechanisms involved in persistence of community-acquired S. aureus. Screening of the library for mutants defective in persistence or tolerance to rifampicin revealed many genes involved in metabolic pathways that are important for antibiotic persistence. In particular, the identified mutants belonged to metabolic pathways involved in carbohydrate, amino acid, lipid, vitamin and purine biosynthesis. Five mutants played a role in purine biosynthesis and two mutants, purB, an adenylosuccinate lyase, and purM, a phosphoribosylaminoimidazole synthetase, were selected for further confirmation. Mutants purB and purM showed defective persistence compared to the parental strain USA300 in multiple stress conditions including various antibiotics, low pH, and heat stress. The defect in persistence was restored by complementation with the wildtype purB and purM gene in the respective mutants. These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms of persistence in S. aureus and provide novel therapeutic targets for developing more effective treatment for persistent infections due to S. aureus.

THE ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF INTERNET MARKETING IN MODERN HOTEL INDUSTRY

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivica Batinić

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Dynamic and rapid development of Internet technology and marketing opportunities provided by modern digital technology, enabled the radical change in traditional marketing activities and opened the space for the development of Internet marketing. Internet marketing has become an inevitable trend in the business, and its benefits are recognized by many businesses, regardless of their economic activity, with the aim of achieving better business results. Representatives of the hospitality and tourism demand (potential users of services and products are more frequently and increasingly getting their information on offers through the Internet, and the marketing presentation of the overall offer via the Internet is becoming an increasingly important success factor of each hotel as a business system. This paper analyzes the basic determinants of Internet marketing and the role and importance of Internet marketing in modern hotel business.

Quantitative Analysis of the Association Angle between T-cell Receptor Vα/Vβ Domains Reveals Important Features for Epitope Recognition.

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Thomas Hoffmann

2015-07-01

Full Text Available T-cell receptors (TCR play an important role in the adaptive immune system as they recognize pathogen- or cancer-based epitopes and thus initiate the cell-mediated immune response. Therefore there exists a growing interest in the optimization of TCRs for medical purposes like adoptive T-cell therapy. However, the molecular mechanisms behind T-cell signaling are still predominantly unknown. For small sets of TCRs it was observed that the angle between their Vα- and Vβ-domains, which bind the epitope, can vary and might be important for epitope recognition. Here we present a comprehensive, quantitative study of the variation in the Vα/Vβ interdomain-angle and its influence on epitope recognition, performing a systematic bioinformatics analysis based on a representative set of experimental TCR structures. For this purpose we developed a new, cuboid-based superpositioning method, which allows a unique, quantitative analysis of the Vα/Vβ-angles. Angle-based clustering led to six significantly different clusters. Analysis of these clusters revealed the unexpected result that the angle is predominantly influenced by the TCR-clonotype, whereas the bound epitope has only a minor influence. Furthermore we could identify a previously unknown center of rotation (CoR, which is shared by all TCRs. All TCR geometries can be obtained by rotation around this center, rendering it a new, common TCR feature with the potential of improving the accuracy of TCR structure prediction considerably. The importance of Vα/Vβ rotation for signaling was confirmed as we observed larger variances in the Vα/Vβ-angles in unbound TCRs compared to epitope-bound TCRs. Our results strongly support a two-step mechanism for TCR-epitope: First, preformation of a flexible TCR geometry in the unbound state and second, locking of the Vα/Vβ-angle in a TCR-type specific geometry upon epitope-MHC association, the latter being driven by rotation around the unique center of rotation.

Sperm associated antigen 9 plays an important role in bladder transitional cell carcinoma.

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Deepika Kanojia

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Majority of bladder cancer deaths are caused due to transitional cell carcinoma (TCC which is the most prevalent and chemoresistant malignancy of urinary bladder. Therefore, we analyzed the role of Sperm associated antigen 9 (SPAG9 in bladder TCC. METHODOLOGY AND FINDINGS: We examined SPAG9 expression and humoral response in 125 bladder TCC patients. Four bladder cancer cell lines were assessed for SPAG9 expression. In addition, we investigated the effect of SPAG9 ablation on cellular proliferation, cell cycle, migration and invasion in UM-UC-3 bladder cancer cells by employing gene silencing approach. Our SPAG9 gene and protein expression analysis revealed SPAG9 expression in 81% of bladder TCC tissue specimens. High SPAG9 expression (>60% SPAG9 positive cells was found to be significantly associated with superficial non-muscle invasive stage (P = 0.042 and low grade tumors (P = 0.002 suggesting SPAG9 putative role in early spread and tumorigenesis. Humoral response against SPAG9 was observed in 95% of patients found positive for SPAG9 expression. All four bladder cancer cell lines revealed SPAG9 expression. In addition, SPAG9 gene silencing in UM-UC-3 cells resulted in induction of G0-G1 arrest characterized by up-regulation of p16 and p21 and consequent down-regulation of cyclin E, cyclin D and cyclin B, CDK4 and CDK1. Further, SPAG9 gene silencing also resulted in reduction in cellular growth, and migration and invasion ability of cancer cells in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, our data in clinical specimens indicated that SPAG9 is potential biomarker and therapeutic target for bladder TCC.

A nuclear-encoded chloroplast protein harboring a single CRM domain plays an important role in the Arabidopsis growth and stress response.

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Lee, Kwanuk; Lee, Hwa Jung; Kim, Dong Hyun; Jeon, Young; Pai, Hyun-Sook; Kang, Hunseung

2014-04-16

Although several chloroplast RNA splicing and ribosome maturation (CRM) domain-containing proteins have been characterized for intron splicing and rRNA processing during chloroplast gene expression, the functional role of a majority of CRM domain proteins in plant growth and development as well as chloroplast RNA metabolism remains largely unknown. Here, we characterized the developmental and stress response roles of a nuclear-encoded chloroplast protein harboring a single CRM domain (At4g39040), designated CFM4, in Arabidopsis thaliana. Analysis of CFM4-GFP fusion proteins revealed that CFM4 is localized to chloroplasts. The loss-of-function T-DNA insertion mutants for CFM4 (cfm4) displayed retarded growth and delayed senescence, suggesting that CFM4 plays a role in growth and development of plants under normal growth conditions. In addition, cfm4 mutants showed retarded seed germination and seedling growth under stress conditions. No alteration in the splicing patterns of intron-containing chloroplast genes was observed in the mutant plants, but the processing of 16S and 4.5S rRNAs was abnormal in the mutant plants. Importantly, CFM4 was determined to possess RNA chaperone activity. These results suggest that the chloroplast-targeted CFM4, one of two Arabidopsis genes encoding a single CRM domain-containing protein, harbors RNA chaperone activity and plays a role in the Arabidopsis growth and stress response by affecting rRNA processing in chloroplasts.

The role and importance of UAV within the current theaters of operations

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Niculae MARIN

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Current theaters of operations are not limited to battlefields, but they are much morediversified, including the fight against the international terrorism phenomenon, the social conflicts (ofreligious, political, economic and separatist nature within several countries, thus supplying somepolitical-military conflicts within different states and areas of the world. The armed interference mustbe done based on some highly accurate information that must be gathered without endangering thehuman lives. This is the role currently played by the unmanned air vehicles (UAVs; they can performseveral functions: surveillance, information gathering, data storage and their transmission to theground stations, including the function of interference, when needed. This paper presents, within theabove context, the status of the current theaters of operations and of the UAVs performing differentmissions within these theaters, together with their role and importance in warfare operations.

The importance to reveal buried interfaces in the semiconductor heterostructure devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeda, Yoshikazu; Tabuchi, Masao

2007-01-01

Even though several in-situ monitoring techniques exist and are quite useful to understand the growth processes in MBE or MOVPE, we also need a technique to reveal the buried interfaces along which carriers are transported and recombine to emit light. The interface is modified during the capping (overgrowth) and also during the device fabrication processes after growth. We need to correlate the interface structures in the devices and the device performances. The only technique we have at present is the X-ray CTR scattering measurements. We discuss the limits of the in-situ monitoring and the necessity to reveal the buried interfaces non-destructively, either in-situ or ex-situ

Study on role structure in social planning systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimata, Noboru

1984-01-01

New proposals are attended with a new set of role-expectation. If we lack attention to this aspect of any proposal, we face a serious difficulty in its implementation stage. The system called as Public Hearring shows us this fact. In this paper, introducing ABC model of communication by Westley and Maclean, we try to describe a set of role-expectation for particitants in social planning systems. And also introducing analytical concepts of role enactment process, we reveal two important problems for any proposal as a subsystem of social planning systems: (i) importance of role negotiation process for role-consensus, and (ii) necessity of supporting systems for role-adaptation. Especially for role-adaptation to Channel-Roles, we indicate the potential of VISMS as its supporting system. (author)

A painful reminder: the role of level and salience of attitude importance in cognitive dissonance.

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Starzyk, Katherine B; Fabrigar, Leandre R; Soryal, Ashley S; Fanning, Jessie J

2009-01-01

In his seminal book, L. Festinger (1957) emphasized the role of attitude importance in cognitive dissonance. This study (N = 308) explored whether people's use of dissonance reduction strategies differs as a function of level of attitude importance and whether the personal importance of an attitude is salient. Results showed that level and salience of attitude importance interacted to affect high-choice (HC) participants' tendency to use attitude change and trivialization to reduce dissonance. When HC participants were not reminded of the personal importance of their attitude (i.e., it was not salient), they changed their attitudes equally irrespective of attitude importance, but engaged in greater trivialization with increasing levels of importance. In contrast, when attitude importance was salient, HC participants changed their attitudes less with increasing attitude importance and showed no evidence of trivializing under any level of importance.

The Importance of Role Modeling in Mentoring Women: Lessons from Pat Summitt Legacy

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Picariello Manuela

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The role of mentoring for women in sports industry has gathered attention among researchers in the past years (Bower, 2009; Bower, & Hums 2009, 2014; Weaver, & Chelladurai, 1999, 2002. Since few women are in leadership positions (Acosta, & Carpenter, 2014, cross-gender mentoring relationships are more likely to happen (Hopkins et al., 2008. However, according to Kram (1985, cross-gender mentoring relationships are more complex in terms of individual development and quality of the developmental relationship. In particular, role modeling function is limited (Kram, 1985. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the functions of the same gender mentoring relationships looking at coach Pat Summitt, the winningest coach in NCAA Division I basketball history and a woman in leadership position (Becker & Wrisberg, 2008. Due to the exploratory nature of the study and the huge impact of Pat Summitt on sport (Janssen, & Dale, 2002, De Marco, & Mccullick, 1997, a single case study design to analyze her relationships from the staff and players’ perspectives was utilized as the method for data collection. This study collected data published on American news sites located using Internet search engines Google News (http://www.google.com for 7 days. The dataset included content published through national and regional online news media, radio, television and entertainment websites and blogs. Texts were qualitatively reviewed with a content analysis and coded (Patton, 2002. This study identified career and psychosocial functions that were important in developing an effective mentoring relationships. In particular, the psychosocial functions of “role modeling” was identified as the most important for the relationship. In fact a female mentor as a role model can be perceived as a woman that has successfully overcome discriminatory barriers to career advancement.

Small RNA profiling reveals important roles for miRNAs in Arabidopsis response to Bacillus velezensis FZB42.

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Xie, Shanshan; Jiang, Haiyang; Xu, Zhilan; Xu, Qianqian; Cheng, Beijiu

2017-09-20

Bacillus velezensis FZB42 (previously classified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens FZB42) has been confirmed to successfully colonize plant roots and enhance defense response against pathogen infection. This study indicated that FZB42 inoculation enhanced Arabidopsis defense response against Pseudomonas syringae DC3000 through inducing the expression of PR1, PDF1.2 and stomata closure. To further clarify the induced defense response at miRNA level, sRNA libraries from Arabidopsis roots inoculated with FZB42 and control were constructed and sequenced. The reads of 21nt and 24nt in length were the most abundant groups in FZB42-treated library and control library, respectively. 234 known miRNAs and 16 novel miRNAs were identified. Among them, 11 known miRNAs and 4 novel miRNAs were differentially expressed after FZB42 inoculation. Moreover cis-elements (TC-rich repeats, TCA-element and CGTCA-motif) associated with plant defense were also found in the promoters of these miRNAs. Additionally, 141 mRNAs were predicted as potential targets of these differentially expressed miRNAs. GO annotations of the target genes indicated their potential roles in polyamine biosynthetic process and intracellular protein transport biological process, which may contribute to increased defense response. Our findings indicated that Bacillus velezensis FZB42 inoculation altered the expression of Arabidopsis miRNAs and their target genes, which were associated with defense response. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

LKR/SDH plays important roles throughout the tick life cycle including a long starvation period.

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Banzragch Battur

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Lysine-ketoglutarate reductase/saccharopine dehydrogenase (LKR/SDH is a bifunctional enzyme catalyzing the first two steps of lysine catabolism in plants and mammals. However, to date, the properties of the lysine degradation pathway and biological functions of LKR/SDH have been very little described in arthropods such as ticks. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We isolated and characterized the gene encoding lysine-ketoglutarate reductase (LKR, EC 1.5.1.8 and saccharopine dehydrogenase (SDH, EC 1.5.1.9 from a tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, cDNA library that encodes a bifunctional polypeptide bearing domains similar to the plant and mammalian LKR/SDH enzymes. Expression of LKR/SDH was detected in all developmental stages, indicating an important role throughout the tick life cycle, including a long period of starvation after detachment from the host. The LKR/SDH mRNA transcripts were more abundant in unfed and starved ticks than in fed and engorged ticks, suggesting that tick LKR/SDH are important for the starved tick. Gene silencing of LKR/SDH by RNAi indicated that the tick LKR/SDH plays an integral role in the osmotic regulation of water balance and development of eggs in ovary of engorged females. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Transcription analysis and gene silencing of LKR/SDH indicated that tick LKR/SDH enzyme plays not only important roles in egg production, reproduction and development of the tick, but also in carbon, nitrogen and water balance, crucial physiological processes for the survival of ticks. This is the first report on the role of LKR/SDH in osmotic regulation in animals including vertebrate and arthropods.

Proteomics of Fusarium oxysporum race 1 and race 4 reveals enzymes involved in carbohydrate metabolism and ion transport that might play important roles in banana Fusarium wilt.

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Sun, Yong; Yi, Xiaoping; Peng, Ming; Zeng, Huicai; Wang, Dan; Li, Bo; Tong, Zheng; Chang, Lili; Jin, Xiang; Wang, Xuchu

2014-01-01

Banana Fusarium wilt is a soil-spread fungal disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum. In China, the main virulence fungi in banana are F. oxysporum race 1 (F1, weak virulence) and race 4 (F4, strong virulence). To date, no proteomic analyses have compared the two races, but the difference in virulence between F1 and F4 might result from their differentially expressed proteins. Here we report the first comparative proteomics of F1 and F4 cultured under various conditions, and finally identify 99 protein species, which represent 59 unique proteins. These proteins are mainly involved in carbohydrate metabolism, post-translational modification, energy production, and inorganic ion transport. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that among the 46 proteins identified from F4 were several enzymes that might be important for virulence. Reverse transcription PCR analysis of the genes for 15 of the 56 proteins revealed that their transcriptional patterns were similar to their protein expression patterns. Taken together, these data suggest that proteins involved in carbohydrate metabolism and ion transport may be important in the pathogenesis of banana Fusarium wilt. Some enzymes such as catalase-peroxidase, galactosidase and chitinase might contribute to the strong virulence of F4. Overexpression or knockout of the genes for the F4-specific proteins will help us to further understand the molecular mechanism of Fusarium-induced banana wilt.

Quantitative Proteomics of the Tonoplast Reveals a Role for Glycolytic Enzymes in Salt Tolerance[C][W

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Barkla, Bronwyn J.; Vera-Estrella, Rosario; Hernández-Coronado, Marcela; Pantoja, Omar

2009-01-01

To examine the role of the tonoplast in plant salt tolerance and identify proteins involved in the regulation of transporters for vacuolar Na+ sequestration, we exploited a targeted quantitative proteomics approach. Two-dimensional differential in-gel electrophoresis analysis of free flow zonal electrophoresis separated tonoplast fractions from control, and salt-treated Mesembryanthemum crystallinum plants revealed the membrane association of glycolytic enzymes aldolase and enolase, along with subunits of the vacuolar H+-ATPase V-ATPase. Protein blot analysis confirmed coordinated salt regulation of these proteins, and chaotrope treatment indicated a strong tonoplast association. Reciprocal coimmunoprecipitation studies revealed that the glycolytic enzymes interacted with the V-ATPase subunit B VHA-B, and aldolase was shown to stimulate V-ATPase activity in vitro by increasing the affinity for ATP. To investigate a physiological role for this association, the Arabidopsis thaliana cytoplasmic enolase mutant, los2, was characterized. These plants were salt sensitive, and there was a specific reduction in enolase abundance in the tonoplast from salt-treated plants. Moreover, tonoplast isolated from mutant plants showed an impaired ability for aldolase stimulation of V-ATPase hydrolytic activity. The association of glycolytic proteins with the tonoplast may not only channel ATP to the V-ATPase, but also directly upregulate H+-pump activity. PMID:20028841

Setting a good example: Regenerative energies play an important role in Schleswig-Holstein

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rave, K.

1995-01-01

In Schleswig-Holstein the use of regenerative energies is supported more than in any other Land of Germany. Due to the fact that large regions of the Land are situated in strong breeze zones, wind power plays the most important role. Almost 50% of the overall German wind current is gained in Schleswig-Holstein. Furthermore solar energy and water power are also used directly. (orig.) [de

Functional importance of PAI-1 glycosylation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Anni; Naessens, Dominik; Skottrup, Peter

2001-01-01

Structure-function studies of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) have previously been performed mostly with non-glycosylated material expressed in E. coli. We have now studied the importance of PAI-1 glycosylation for its functional properties. PAI-1 has 3 potential sites for N......-glycosylated PAI-1 could be conferred upon PAI-1 expressed in HEK293 cells by mutational inactivation of one or the other glycosylation site. These findings reveal a novel functional role for glycosylation of a serpin. The glycosylation sites are localised between a-helix H and b-strand 2C and b-strand 3C and a...

Quantitative proteomics reveals that peroxidases play key roles in post-flooding recovery in soybean roots.

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Khan, Mudassar Nawaz; Sakata, Katsumi; Hiraga, Susumu; Komatsu, Setsuko

2014-12-05

Soybean is an important legume crop that exhibits markedly reduced growth and yields under flooding conditions. To unravel the mechanisms involved in recovery after flooding in soybean root, gel-free proteomic analysis was performed. Morphological analysis revealed that growth suppression was more severe with increased flooding duration. Out of a total of 1645 and 1707 identified proteins, 73 and 21 proteins were changed significantly during the recovery stage following 2 and 4 days flooding, respectively. Based on the proteomic, clustering, and in silico protein-protein interaction analyses, six key enzymes were analyzed at the mRNA level. Lipoxygenase 1, which was increased at the protein level during the recovery period, was steadily down-regulated at the mRNA level. The peroxidase superfamily protein continuously increased in abundance during the course of recovery and was up-regulated at the mRNA level. HAD acid phosphatase was decreased at the protein level and down-regulated at the transcript level, while isoflavone reductase and an unknown protein were increased at both the protein and mRNA levels. Consistent with these findings, the enzymatic activity of peroxidase was decreased under flooding stress but increased significantly during the recovery sage. These results suggest that peroxidases might play key roles in post-flooding recovery in soybean roots through the scavenging of toxic radicals.

Extracellular matrix components expression in human pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal organoids recapitulates retinogenesis in vivo and reveals an important role for IMPG1 and CD44 in the development of photoreceptors and interphotoreceptor matrix.

Science.gov (United States)

Felemban, Majed; Dorgau, Birthe; Hunt, Nicola Claire; Hallam, Dean; Zerti, Darin; Bauer, Roman; Ding, Yuchun; Collin, Joseph; Steel, David; Krasnogor, Natalio; Al-Aama, Jumana; Lindsay, Susan; Mellough, Carla; Lako, Majlinda

2018-05-17

The extracellular matrix (ECM) plays an important role in numerous processes including cellular proliferation, differentiation, migration, maturation, adhesion guidance and axonal growth. To date, there has been no detailed analysis of the ECM distribution during retinal ontogenesis in humans and the functional importance of many ECM components is poorly understood. In this study, the expression of key ECM components in adult mouse and monkey retina, developing and adult human retina and retinal organoids derived from human pluripotent stem cells was studied. Our data indicate that basement membrane ECMs (Fibronectin and Collagen IV) were expressed in Bruch's membrane and the inner limiting membrane of the developing human retina, whilst the hyalectins (Versican and Brevican), cluster of differentiation 44 (CD44), photoreceptor-specific ECMs Interphotoreceptor Matrix Proteoglycan 1 (IMPG1) and Interphotoreceptor Matrix Proteoglycan 2 (IMPG2) were detected in the developing interphotoreceptor matrix (IPM). The expression of IMPG1, Versican and Brevican in the developing IPM was conserved between human developing retina and human pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal organoids. Blocking the action of CD44 and IMPG1 in pluripotent stem cell derived retinal organoids affected the development of photoreceptors, their inner/outer segments and connecting cilia and disrupted IPM formation, with IMPG1 having an earlier and more significant impact. Together, our data suggest an important role for IMPG1 and CD44 in the development of photoreceptors and IPM formation during human retinogenesis. The expression and the role of many extracellular matrix (ECM) components during human retinal development is not fully understood. In this study, expression of key ECM components (Collagen IV, Fibronectin, Brevican, Versican, IMPG1 and IMPG2) was investigated during human retinal ontogenesis. Collagen IV and Fibronectin were expressed in Bruch's membrane; whereas Brevican, Versican

The role and importance of diversified farming enterprises in socio-economic development of rural areas

OpenAIRE

Askarov N.

2018-01-01

In this article considered the necessity of the organization and development of diversified farming enterprises, their role and importance in the practical solution of socio-economic problems of rural areas. The issues of the development of farms are important in increasing the employment and income of the rural population, as well as in addressing the social problems associated with them. For the period 2013-2016. 352,015 new jobs were created. Today one of the most effective factors...

Role of the import motor in insertion of transmembrane segments by the mitochondrial TIM23 complex.

Science.gov (United States)

Popov-Čeleketić, Dušan; Waegemann, Karin; Mapa, Koyeli; Neupert, Walter; Mokranjac, Dejana

2011-06-01

The TIM23 complex mediates translocation of proteins across, and their lateral insertion into, the mitochondrial inner membrane. Translocation of proteins requires both the membrane-embedded core of the complex and its ATP-dependent import motor. Insertion of some proteins, however, occurs in the absence of ATP, questioning the need for the import motor during lateral insertion. We show here that the import motor associates with laterally inserted proteins even when its ATPase activity is not required. Furthermore, our results suggest a role for the import motor in lateral insertion. Thus, the import motor is involved in ATP-dependent translocation and ATP-independent lateral insertion.

High mobility group box associated with cell proliferation appears to play an important role in hepatocellular carcinogenesis in rats and humans.

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Suzuki, Shugo; Takeshita, Kentaro; Asamoto, Makoto; Takahashi, Satoru; Kandori, Hitoshi; Tsujimura, Kazunari; Saito, Fumiyo; Masuko, Kazuo; Shirai, Tomoyuki

2009-01-31

To identify genes important in hepatocellular carcinogenesis, especially processes involved in malignant transformation, we focused on differences in gene expression between adenomas and carcinomas by DNA microarray. Eighty-one genes for which expression was specific in carcinomas were analyzed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis software and Gene Ontology, and found to be associated with TP53 and regulators of cell proliferation. In the genes associated with TP53, we selected high mobility group box (HMGB) for detailed analysis. Immunohistochemistry revealed expression of HMGBs in carcinomas to be significantly higher than in other lesions among both human and rat liver, and a positive correlation between HMGBs and TP53 was detected in rat carcinomas. Knock-down of HMGB 2 expression in a rat hepatocellular carcinoma cell line by RNAi resulted in inhibition of cell growth, although no effects on invasion were evident in vitro. These results suggest that acquisition of malignant potential in the liver requires specific signaling pathways related to high cell proliferation associated with TP53. In particular, HMGBs appear to have an important role for progression and cell proliferation associated with loss of TP53 function in rat and in human hepatocarcinogenesis.

High mobility group box associated with cell proliferation appears to play an important role in hepatocellular carcinogenesis in rats and humans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suzuki, Shugo; Takeshita, Kentaro; Asamoto, Makoto; Takahashi, Satoru; Kandori, Hitoshi; Tsujimura, Kazunari; Saito, Fumiyo; Masuko, Kazuo; Shirai, Tomoyuki

2009-01-01

To identify genes important in hepatocellular carcinogenesis, especially processes involved in malignant transformation, we focused on differences in gene expression between adenomas and carcinomas by DNA microarray. Eighty-one genes for which expression was specific in carcinomas were analyzed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis software and Gene Ontology, and found to be associated with TP53 and regulators of cell proliferation. In the genes associated with TP53, we selected high mobility group box (HMGB) for detailed analysis. Immunohistochemistry revealed expression of HMGBs in carcinomas to be significantly higher than in other lesions among both human and rat liver, and a positive correlation between HMGBs and TP53 was detected in rat carcinomas. Knock-down of HMGB 2 expression in a rat hepatocellular carcinoma cell line by RNAi resulted in inhibition of cell growth, although no effects on invasion were evident in vitro. These results suggest that acquisition of malignant potential in the liver requires specific signaling pathways related to high cell proliferation associated with TP53. In particular, HMGBs appear to have an important role for progression and cell proliferation associated with loss of TP53 function in rat and in human hepatocarcinogenesis

The role and importance of social media in communicating brand value

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Đukić Suzana

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Communication between consumers is the most important way of communicating value and forming opinions on brands and enterprises. The expansion of communication technologies has made communication between people easier and provided the links with consumers on a radically new basis. Virtual space represents a dominant meeting place for people with similar interests. Thus, virtual consumer communities across the world preferring and committed to same brands have been created. Members are loyal to communities they belong to and participate actively and indirectly in modeling and developing them. By expressing their own opinions and exploring others, consumers influence and help each other in finding solutions for certain situations in buying and consumption. Considering the intensity of the exchange of information, opinions, experience and ideas, one can speak about the expansion of communication messages that are exchanged in the virtual space and social media as transfer channels. These are the media formed by consumers themselves, who control the information communicated through them. Because of the importance of massages exchanged through them and their impact on consumer behavior, social media have an important place in integrated marketing communications. Although enterprises cannot completely control the communication within social media, the efficiency of marketing communication can be realized by providing conditions for friendly, correct, continuous and transparent message exchange between consumers and enterprises as well as between consumers themselves. The paper examines the communication possibilities of social media determining their role and importance in communicating value in the market for the purpose of enhancing consumer loyalty and creating image and professional respectability of the enterprise.

2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS analysis reveal that small GTPase signaling pathways may play an important role in cadmium-induced colon cell malignant transformation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu, Jian; Zhou, Zhongping; Zheng, Jianzhou; Zhang, Zhuyi; Lu, Rongzhu; Liu, Hanqing; Shi, Haifeng; Tu, Zhigang

2015-01-01

Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal present in the environment and in industrial materials. Cadmium has demonstrated carcinogenic activity that induces cell transformation, but how this occurs is unclear. We used 2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS combined with bioinformatics and immunoblotting to investigate the molecular mechanism of cadmium transformation. We found that small GTPases were critical for transformation. Additionally, proteins involved in mitochondrial transcription, DNA repair, and translation also had altered expression patterns in cadmium treated cells. Collectively, our results suggest that activation of small GTPases contributes to cadmium-induced transformation of colon cells. - Highlights: • Colon epithelial cell line is firstly successfully transformed by cadmium. • 2D-DIGE is applied to visualize the differentially expressed proteins. • RhoA plays an important role in cadmium induced malignant transformation. • Bioinformatic and experimental methods are combined to explore new mechanisms.

2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS analysis reveal that small GTPase signaling pathways may play an important role in cadmium-induced colon cell malignant transformation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lu, Jian, E-mail: lujian@ujs.edu.cn [School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Zhou, Zhongping [School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Zheng, Jianzhou [Department of Respiration Medicine, Changzhou No.2 People' s Hospital, Changzhou 213003 (China); Zhang, Zhuyi [School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Lu, Rongzhu [School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Liu, Hanqing [School of Pharmacy, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Shi, Haifeng [Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China); Tu, Zhigang, E-mail: tuzg_ujs@ujs.edu.cn [Institute of Life Sciences, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013 (China)

2015-10-01

Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal present in the environment and in industrial materials. Cadmium has demonstrated carcinogenic activity that induces cell transformation, but how this occurs is unclear. We used 2D-DIGE and MALDI TOF/TOF MS combined with bioinformatics and immunoblotting to investigate the molecular mechanism of cadmium transformation. We found that small GTPases were critical for transformation. Additionally, proteins involved in mitochondrial transcription, DNA repair, and translation also had altered expression patterns in cadmium treated cells. Collectively, our results suggest that activation of small GTPases contributes to cadmium-induced transformation of colon cells. - Highlights: • Colon epithelial cell line is firstly successfully transformed by cadmium. • 2D-DIGE is applied to visualize the differentially expressed proteins. • RhoA plays an important role in cadmium induced malignant transformation. • Bioinformatic and experimental methods are combined to explore new mechanisms.

Genomic analysis reveals a potential role for cell cycle perturbation in HCV-mediated apoptosis of cultured hepatocytes.

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Kathie-Anne Walters

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The mechanisms of liver injury associated with chronic HCV infection, as well as the individual roles of both viral and host factors, are not clearly defined. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that direct cytopathic effects, in addition to immune-mediated processes, play an important role in liver injury. Gene expression profiling during multiple time-points of acute HCV infection of cultured Huh-7.5 cells was performed to gain insight into the cellular mechanism of HCV-associated cytopathic effect. Maximal induction of cell-death-related genes and appearance of activated caspase-3 in HCV-infected cells coincided with peak viral replication, suggesting a link between viral load and apoptosis. Gene ontology analysis revealed that many of the cell-death genes function to induce apoptosis in response to cell cycle arrest. Labeling of dividing cells in culture followed by flow cytometry also demonstrated the presence of significantly fewer cells in S-phase in HCV-infected relative to mock cultures, suggesting HCV infection is associated with delayed cell cycle progression. Regulation of numerous genes involved in anti-oxidative stress response and TGF-beta1 signaling suggest these as possible causes of delayed cell cycle progression. Significantly, a subset of cell-death genes regulated during in vitro HCV infection was similarly regulated specifically in liver tissue from a cohort of HCV-infected liver transplant patients with rapidly progressive fibrosis. Collectively, these data suggest that HCV mediates direct cytopathic effects through deregulation of the cell cycle and that this process may contribute to liver disease progression. This in vitro system could be utilized to further define the cellular mechanism of this perturbation.

Spatiotemporal mechanical variation reveals critical role for rho kinase during primitive streak morphogenesis.

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Henkels, Julia; Oh, Jaeho; Xu, Wenwei; Owen, Drew; Sulchek, Todd; Zamir, Evan

2013-02-01

Large-scale morphogenetic movements during early embryo development are driven by complex changes in biochemical and biophysical factors. Current models for amniote primitive streak morphogenesis and gastrulation take into account numerous genetic pathways but largely ignore the role of mechanical forces. Here, we used atomic force microscopy (AFM) to obtain for the first time precise biomechanical properties of the early avian embryo. Our data reveal that the primitive streak is significantly stiffer than neighboring regions of the epiblast, and that it is stiffer than the pre-primitive streak epiblast. To test our hypothesis that these changes in mechanical properties are due to a localized increase of actomyosin contractility, we inhibited actomyosin contractility via the Rho kinase (ROCK) pathway using the small-molecule inhibitor Y-27632. Our results using several different assays show the following: (1) primitive streak formation was blocked; (2) the time-dependent increase in primitive streak stiffness was abolished; and (3) convergence of epiblast cells to the midline was inhibited. Taken together, our data suggest that actomyosin contractility is necessary for primitive streak morphogenesis, and specifically, ROCK plays a critical role. To better understand the underlying mechanisms of this fundamental process, future models should account for the findings presented in this study.

The important role of salivary α-amylase in the gastric digestion of wheat bread starch.

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Freitas, Daniela; Le Feunteun, Steven; Panouillé, Maud; Souchon, Isabelle

2018-01-24

The role of salivary α-amylase (HSA) in starch digestion is often overlooked in favour of that of pancreatic α-amylase due to the short duration of the oral phase. Although it is generally accepted that the amylase of salivary origin can continue to be active in the stomach, studies ascertaining its contribution are lacking. This study aimed to address this issue by coupling in vitro oral processing with an in vitro dynamic system that mimicked different postprandial gastric pH reduction kinetics observed in vivo following a snack- or lunch-type meal. The digestion of both starch and protein from wheat bread as well as the interplay between the two processes were studied. We have observed that the amylolytic activity of saliva plays a preponderant role hydrolysing up to 80% of bread starch in the first 30 min of gastric digestion. Amylolysis evolved exponentially and nearly superimposing curves were obtained regardless of the acidification profiles, revealing its high efficiency.

Role and importance of the spatial planning plan in the Republic of Serbia

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Marinković Goran

2017-01-01

Full Text Available When it comes to spatial planning, it is impossible to circumvent the cadastre, which in essence is the basis for the preparation and realization of planning documents. Considering this fact in this paper, an analysis of the importance and role of the cadastre for spatial planning was carried out, whereby the obligations and procedures implemented by the cadastre in the spatial and urban planning situation in the Republic of Serbia are described in detail.

Multi-functional roles for the polypeptide transport associated domains of Toc75 in chloroplast protein import

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Paila, Yamuna D; Richardson, Lynn GL; Inoue, Hitoshi; Parks, Elizabeth S; McMahon, James; Inoue, Kentaro; Schnell, Danny J

2016-01-01

Toc75 plays a central role in chloroplast biogenesis in plants as the membrane channel of the protein import translocon at the outer envelope of chloroplasts (TOC). Toc75 is a member of the Omp85 family of bacterial and organellar membrane insertases, characterized by N-terminal POTRA (polypeptide-transport associated) domains and C-terminal membrane-integrated β-barrels. We demonstrate that the Toc75 POTRA domains are essential for protein import and contribute to interactions with TOC receptors, thereby coupling preprotein recognition at the chloroplast surface with membrane translocation. The POTRA domains also interact with preproteins and mediate the recruitment of molecular chaperones in the intermembrane space to facilitate membrane transport. Our studies are consistent with the multi-functional roles of POTRA domains observed in other Omp85 family members and demonstrate that the domains of Toc75 have evolved unique properties specific to the acquisition of protein import during endosymbiotic evolution of the TOC system in plastids. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.12631.001 PMID:26999824

Important roles of Fischer-Tropsch synfuels in the global energy future

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takeshita, Takayuki; Yamaji, Kenji

2008-01-01

This paper examines the potential roles of Fischer-Tropsch (FT) synfuels in the 21st century with a global energy model treating the entire fuel supply chain in detail. The major conclusions are the following. First, FT synfuels become a major alternative fuel regardless of CO 2 policy due to their low transportation costs and compatibility with existing petroleum infrastructure and vehicles. Secondly, the FT process brings stranded gas to world markets until around 2050. In a 550 ppm CO 2 stabilization case thereafter, producing FT synfuels from biomass, whose competitiveness is robust against its capital costs, and their interregional trade enable a worldwide diffusion of carbon-neutral fuels. This provides a significant source of income for developing regions, such as Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa. Thirdly, FT synfuels play a crucial role in meeting the growing transportation energy demand and assuring diversified supplies of transportation fuels. Increasing portions of FT liquids are refined to FT-kerosene to be provided for the rapidly growing aviation sector in the second half of the century. Furthermore, upgrading FT-naphtha into FT-gasoline proves to be critically important. FT synfuels' participation could help the development in Africa through technological contributions of the South African leading companies in the world synfuel industry

The role and importance of ECB's monetary policy in the global economic crisis

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Stakić Nikola

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the role and importance of the European Central Bank (ECB in the context of measures and effects that are being taken to repair the consequences of the current economic crisis. The ECB, together with the European single currency, the euro, symbolizes long-lasting monetary integration of the EU states. Such form of integration has created the possibility of a supranational action of ECB in the banking sector and financial markets in general. Along with the other most important central banks in the world, the ECB applies various unconventional instruments of monetary policy to stimulate economic growth and development. In this context, the paper explains the nature and mechanism of such measures in order to influence on the insufficient liquidity in the financial markets.

Automatic morphological subtyping reveals new roles of caspases in mitochondrial dynamics.

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Jyh-Ying Peng

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Morphological dynamics of mitochondria is associated with key cellular processes related to aging and neuronal degenerative diseases, but the lack of standard quantification of mitochondrial morphology impedes systematic investigation. This paper presents an automated system for the quantification and classification of mitochondrial morphology. We discovered six morphological subtypes of mitochondria for objective quantification of mitochondrial morphology. These six subtypes are small globules, swollen globules, straight tubules, twisted tubules, branched tubules and loops. The subtyping was derived by applying consensus clustering to a huge collection of more than 200 thousand mitochondrial images extracted from 1422 micrographs of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO cells treated with different drugs, and was validated by evidence of functional similarity reported in the literature. Quantitative statistics of subtype compositions in cells is useful for correlating drug response and mitochondrial dynamics. Combining the quantitative results with our biochemical studies about the effects of squamocin on CHO cells reveals new roles of Caspases in the regulatory mechanisms of mitochondrial dynamics. This system is not only of value to the mitochondrial field, but also applicable to the investigation of other subcellular organelle morphology.

Negative Correlation between miR-200c and Decorin Plays an Important Role in the Pathogenesis of Colorectal Carcinoma

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Ren-Yi Tang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Aim. To demonstrate the regulatory role of miRNA in colorectal carcinoma (CRC and reveal the transcript markers that may be associated with CRC clinical outcomes. Method. Herein, we analyzed both mRNA and miRNA gene expression profiles of 255 CRC tumor samples from The Cancer Genome Atlas project to reveal the regulatory association between miRNA and mRNA. Also, the potential role of gene coexpression network in CRC has been explored. Results. The negative correlation between miR-200c and DCN (Decorin was calculated in CRC, indicating that DCN could be a potential target of miR-200c. Clinical features indicated that colon polyp history and overall survival were significantly related to the expression level of miR-200c. Three coexpression networks have been constructed, and genes involved in the networks are related to cell cycle, NOTCH, and mTOR signaling pathways. Conclusion. Our result provides a new insight into cancer related mRNA coexpression network in CRC research.

Depletion of Plasmodium berghei plasmoredoxin reveals a non-essential role for life cycle progression of the malaria parasite.

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Buchholz, Kathrin; Rahlfs, Stefan; Schirmer, R Heiner; Becker, Katja; Matuschewski, Kai

2008-06-25

Proliferation of the pathogenic Plasmodium asexual blood stages in host erythrocytes requires an exquisite capacity to protect the malaria parasite against oxidative stress. This function is achieved by a complex antioxidant defence system composed of redox-active proteins and low MW antioxidants. Here, we disrupted the P. berghei plasmoredoxin gene that encodes a parasite-specific 22 kDa member of the thioredoxin superfamily. The successful generation of plasmoredoxin knockout mutants in the rodent model malaria parasite and phenotypic analysis during life cycle progression revealed a non-vital role in vivo. Our findings suggest that plasmoredoxin fulfils a specialized and dispensable role for Plasmodium and highlights the need for target validation to inform drug development strategies.

Gene disruption reveals a dispensable role for plasmepsin VII in the Plasmodium berghei life cycle.

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Mastan, Babu S; Kumari, Anchala; Gupta, Dinesh; Mishra, Satish; Kumar, Kota Arun

2014-06-01

Plasmepsins (PM), aspartic proteases of Plasmodium, comprises a family of ten proteins that perform critical functions in Plasmodium life cycle. Except VII and VIII, functions of the remaining plasmepsin members have been well characterized. Here, we have generated a mutant parasite lacking PM VII in Plasmodium berghei using reverse genetics approach. Systematic comparison of growth kinetics and infection in both mosquito and vertebrate host revealed that PM VII depleted mutants exhibited no defects in development and progressed normally throughout the parasite life cycle. These studies suggest a dispensable role for PM VII in Plasmodium berghei life cycle. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Investigating the relative importance of individual differences on the work-family interface and the moderating role of boundary preference for segmentation.

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Michel, Jesse S; Clark, Malissa A

2013-10-01

This study examines the relative importance of individual differences in relation to perceptions of work-family conflict and facilitation, as well as the moderating role of boundary preference for segmentation on these relationships. Relative importance analyses, based on a diverse sample of 380 employees from the USA, revealed that individual differences were consistently predictive of self-reported work-family conflict and facilitation. Conscientiousness, neuroticism, negative affect and core self-evaluations were consistently related to both directions of work-family conflict, whereas agreeableness predicted significant variance in family-to-work conflict only. Positive affect and core self-evaluations were consistently related to both directions of work-family facilitation, whereas agreeableness and neuroticism predicted significant variance in family-to-work facilitation only. Collectively, individual differences explained 25-28% of the variance in work-family conflict (primarily predicted by neuroticism and negative affect) and 11-18% of the variance in work-family facilitation (primarily predicted by positive affect and core self-evaluations). Moderated regression analyses showed that boundary preference for segmentation strengthened many of the relationships between individual differences and work-family conflict and facilitation. Implications for addressing the nature of work and family are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Metabolomics analysis reveals the metabolic and functional roles of flavonoids in light-sensitive tea leaves.

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Zhang, Qunfeng; Liu, Meiya; Ruan, Jianyun

2017-03-20

As the predominant secondary metabolic pathway in tea plants, flavonoid biosynthesis increases with increasing temperature and illumination. However, the concentration of most flavonoids decreases greatly in light-sensitive tea leaves when they are exposed to light, which further improves tea quality. To reveal the metabolism and potential functions of flavonoids in tea leaves, a natural light-sensitive tea mutant (Huangjinya) cultivated under different light conditions was subjected to metabolomics analysis. The results showed that chlorotic tea leaves accumulated large amounts of flavonoids with ortho-dihydroxylated B-rings (e.g., catechin gallate, quercetin and its glycosides etc.), whereas total flavonoids (e.g., myricetrin glycoside, epigallocatechin gallate etc.) were considerably reduced, suggesting that the flavonoid components generated from different metabolic branches played different roles in tea leaves. Furthermore, the intracellular localization of flavonoids and the expression pattern of genes involved in secondary metabolic pathways indicate a potential photoprotective function of dihydroxylated flavonoids in light-sensitive tea leaves. Our results suggest that reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging and the antioxidation effects of flavonoids help chlorotic tea plants survive under high light stress, providing new evidence to clarify the functional roles of flavonoids, which accumulate to high levels in tea plants. Moreover, flavonoids with ortho-dihydroxylated B-rings played a greater role in photo-protection to improve the acclimatization of tea plants.

Genome sequencing and analysis reveals possible determinants of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage

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Cole Alexander M

2008-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus is a major risk factor in clinical and community settings due to the range of etiologies caused by the organism. We have identified unique immunological and ultrastructural properties associated with nasal carriage isolates denoting a role for bacterial factors in nasal carriage. However, despite extensive molecular level characterizations by several groups suggesting factors necessary for colonization on nasal epithelium, genetic determinants of nasal carriage are unknown. Herein, we have set a genomic foundation for unraveling the bacterial determinants of nasal carriage in S. aureus. Results MLST analysis revealed no lineage specific differences between carrier and non-carrier strains suggesting a role for mobile genetic elements. We completely sequenced a model carrier isolate (D30 and a model non-carrier strain (930918-3 to identify differential gene content. Comparison revealed the presence of 84 genes unique to the carrier strain and strongly suggests a role for Type VII secretion systems in nasal carriage. These genes, along with a putative pathogenicity island (SaPIBov present uniquely in the carrier strains are likely important in affecting carriage. Further, PCR-based genotyping of other clinical isolates for a specific subset of these 84 genes raise the possibility of nasal carriage being caused by multiple gene sets. Conclusion Our data suggest that carriage is likely a heterogeneic phenotypic trait and implies a role for nucleotide level polymorphism in carriage. Complete genome level analyses of multiple carriage strains of S. aureus will be important in clarifying molecular determinants of S. aureus nasal carriage.

Role of anxiety in the pathophysiology of irritable bowel syndrome: importance of the amygdala

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Brent Myers

2009-06-01

Full Text Available A common characteristic of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS is that symptoms, including abdominal pain and abnormal bowel habits, are often triggered or exacerbated during periods of stress and anxiety. However, the impact of anxiety and affective disorders on the gastrointestinal (GI tract is poorly understood and may in part explain the lack of effective therapeutic approaches to treat IBS. The amygdala is an important structure for regulating anxiety with the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA facilitating the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA axis and the autonomic nervous system in response to stress. Moreover, chronic stress enhances function of the amygdala and promotes neural plasticity throughout the amygdaloid complex. This review outlines the latest findings obtained from human studies and animal models related to the role of the emotional brain in the regulation of enteric function, specifically how increasing the gain of the amygdala to induce anxiety-like behavior using corticosterone (CORT or chronic stress increases responsiveness to both visceral and somatic stimuli in rodents. A focus of the review is the relative importance of mineralocorticoid receptor (MR and glucocorticoid receptor (GR-mediated mechanisms within the amygdala in the regulation of anxiety and nociceptive behaviors that are characteristic features of IBS. This review also discusses several outstanding questions important for future research on the role of the amygdala in the generation of abnormal GI function that may lead to potential targets for new therapies to treat functional bowel disorders such as IBS.

Effective connectivity reveals important roles for both the hyperdirect (fronto-subthalamic) and indirect (fronto-striatal-pallidal) fronto-basal ganglia pathways during response inhibition

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jahfari, S.; Waldorp, L.; van den Wildenberg, W.P.M.; Scholte, H.S.; Ridderinkhof, K.R.; Forstmann, B.U.

2011-01-01

Fronto-basal ganglia pathways play a crucial role in voluntary action control, including the ability to inhibit motor responses. Response inhibition might be mediated via a fast hyperdirect pathway connecting the right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG) and the presupplementary motor area (preSMA) with

Copy number variation plays an important role in clinical epilepsy

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Olson, Heather; Shen, Yiping; Avallone, Jennifer; Sheidley, Beth R.; Pinsky, Rebecca; Bergin, Ann M.; Berry, Gerard T.; Duffy, Frank H.; Eksioglu, Yaman; Harris, David J.; Hisama, Fuki M.; Ho, Eugenia; Irons, Mira; Jacobsen, Christina M.; James, Philip; Kothare, Sanjeev; Khwaja, Omar; Lipton, Jonathan; Loddenkemper, Tobias; Markowitz, Jennifer; Maski, Kiran; Megerian, J. Thomas; Neilan, Edward; Raffalli, Peter C.; Robbins, Michael; Roberts, Amy; Roe, Eugene; Rollins, Caitlin; Sahin, Mustafa; Sarco, Dean; Schonwald, Alison; Smith, Sharon E.; Soul, Janet; Stoler, Joan M.; Takeoka, Masanori; Tan, Wen-Han; Torres, Alcy R.; Tsai, Peter; Urion, David K.; Weissman, Laura; Wolff, Robert; Wu, Bai-Lin; Miller, David T.; Poduri, Annapurna

2015-01-01

Objective To evaluate the role of copy number abnormalities detectable by chromosomal microarray (CMA) testing in patients with epilepsy at a tertiary care center. Methods We identified patients with ICD-9 codes for epilepsy or seizures and clinical CMA testing performed between October 2006 and February 2011 at Boston Children’s Hospital. We reviewed medical records and included patients meeting criteria for epilepsy. We phenotypically characterized patients with epilepsy-associated abnormalities on CMA. Results Of 973 patients who had CMA and ICD-9 codes for epilepsy or seizures, 805 patients satisfied criteria for epilepsy. We observed 437 copy number variants (CNVs) in 323 patients (1–4 per patient), including 185 (42%) deletions and 252 (58%) duplications. Forty (9%) were confirmed de novo, 186 (43%) were inherited, and parental data were unavailable for 211 (48%). Excluding full chromosome trisomies, CNV size ranged from 18 kb to 142 Mb, and 34% were over 500 kb. In at least 40 cases (5%), the epilepsy phenotype was explained by a CNV, including 29 patients with epilepsy-associated syndromes and 11 with likely disease-associated CNVs involving epilepsy genes or “hotspots.” We observed numerous recurrent CNVs including 10 involving loss or gain of Xp22.31, a region described in patients with and without epilepsy. Interpretation Copy number abnormalities play an important role in patients with epilepsy. Given that the diagnostic yield of CMA for epilepsy patients is similar to the yield in autism spectrum disorders and in prenatal diagnosis, for which published guidelines recommend testing with CMA, we recommend the implementation of CMA in the evaluation of unexplained epilepsy. PMID:24811917

A ChIP-chip approach reveals a novel role for transcription factor IRF1 in the DNA damage response.

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Frontini, Mattia; Vijayakumar, Meeraa; Garvin, Alexander; Clarke, Nicole

2009-03-01

IRF1 is a transcription factor that regulates key processes in the immune system and in tumour suppression. To gain further insight into IRF1's role in these processes, we searched for new target genes by performing chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled to a CpG island microarray (ChIP-chip). Using this approach we identified 202 new IRF1-binding sites with high confidence. Functional categorization of the target genes revealed a surprising cadre of new roles that can be linked to IRF1. One of the major functional categories was the DNA damage response pathway. In order to further validate our findings, we show that IRF1 can regulate the mRNA expression of a number of the DNA damage response genes in our list. In particular, we demonstrate that the mRNA and protein levels of the DNA repair protein BRIP1 [Fanconi anemia gene J (FANC J)] are upregulated after IRF1 over-expression. We also demonstrate that knockdown of IRF1 by siRNA results in loss of BRIP1 expression, abrogation of BRIP1 foci after DNA interstrand crosslink (ICL) damage and hypersensitivity to the DNA crosslinking agent, melphalan; a characteristic phenotype of FANC J cells. Taken together, our data provides a more complete understanding of the regulatory networks controlled by IRF1 and reveals a novel role for IRF1 in regulating the ICL DNA damage response.

A ChIP–chip approach reveals a novel role for transcription factor IRF1 in the DNA damage response

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Frontini, Mattia; Vijayakumar, Meeraa; Garvin, Alexander; Clarke, Nicole

2009-01-01

IRF1 is a transcription factor that regulates key processes in the immune system and in tumour suppression. To gain further insight into IRF1's role in these processes, we searched for new target genes by performing chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled to a CpG island microarray (ChIP–chip). Using this approach we identified 202 new IRF1-binding sites with high confidence. Functional categorization of the target genes revealed a surprising cadre of new roles that can be linked to IRF1. One of the major functional categories was the DNA damage response pathway. In order to further validate our findings, we show that IRF1 can regulate the mRNA expression of a number of the DNA damage response genes in our list. In particular, we demonstrate that the mRNA and protein levels of the DNA repair protein BRIP1 [Fanconi anemia gene J (FANC J)] are upregulated after IRF1 over-expression. We also demonstrate that knockdown of IRF1 by siRNA results in loss of BRIP1 expression, abrogation of BRIP1 foci after DNA interstrand crosslink (ICL) damage and hypersensitivity to the DNA crosslinking agent, melphalan; a characteristic phenotype of FANC J cells. Taken together, our data provides a more complete understanding of the regulatory networks controlled by IRF1 and reveals a novel role for IRF1 in regulating the ICL DNA damage response. PMID:19129219

The role of syntax in complex networks: Local and global importance of verbs in a syntactic dependency network

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Čech, Radek; Mačutek, Ján; Žabokrtský, Zdeněk

2011-10-01

Syntax of natural language has been the focus of linguistics for decades. The complex network theory, being one of new research tools, opens new perspectives on syntax properties of the language. Despite numerous partial achievements, some fundamental problems remain unsolved. Specifically, although statistical properties typical for complex networks can be observed in all syntactic networks, the impact of syntax itself on these properties is still unclear. The aim of the present study is to shed more light on the role of syntax in the syntactic network structure. In particular, we concentrate on the impact of the syntactic function of a verb in the sentence on the complex network structure. Verbs play the decisive role in the sentence structure (“local” importance). From this fact we hypothesize the importance of verbs in the complex network (“global” importance). The importance of verb in the complex network is assessed by the number of links which are directed from the node representing verb to other nodes in the network. Six languages (Catalan, Czech, Dutch, Hungarian, Italian, Portuguese) were used for testing the hypothesis.

Multiple roles of integrin-linked kinase in epidermal development, maturation and pigmentation revealed by molecular profiling.

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David Judah

Full Text Available Integrin-linked kinase (ILK is an important scaffold protein that mediates a variety of cellular responses to integrin stimulation by extracellular matrix proteins. Mice with epidermis-restricted inactivation of the Ilk gene exhibit pleiotropic phenotypic defects, including impaired hair follicle morphogenesis, reduced epidermal adhesion to the basement membrane, compromised epidermal integrity, as well as wasting and failure to thrive leading to perinatal death. To better understand the underlying molecular mechanisms that cause such a broad range of alterations, we investigated the impact of Ilk gene inactivation on the epidermis transcriptome. Microarray analysis showed over 700 differentially regulated mRNAs encoding proteins involved in multiple aspects of epidermal function, including keratinocyte differentiation and barrier formation, inflammation, regeneration after injury, and fundamental epidermal developmental pathways. These studies also revealed potential effects on genes not previously implicated in ILK functions, including those important for melanocyte and melanoblast development and function, regulation of cytoskeletal dynamics, and homeobox genes. This study shows that ILK is a critical regulator of multiple aspects of epidermal function and homeostasis, and reveals the previously unreported involvement of ILK not only in epidermal differentiation and barrier formation, but also in melanocyte genesis and function.

Multiple roles of integrin-linked kinase in epidermal development, maturation and pigmentation revealed by molecular profiling.

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Judah, David; Rudkouskaya, Alena; Wilson, Ryan; Carter, David E; Dagnino, Lina

2012-01-01

Integrin-linked kinase (ILK) is an important scaffold protein that mediates a variety of cellular responses to integrin stimulation by extracellular matrix proteins. Mice with epidermis-restricted inactivation of the Ilk gene exhibit pleiotropic phenotypic defects, including impaired hair follicle morphogenesis, reduced epidermal adhesion to the basement membrane, compromised epidermal integrity, as well as wasting and failure to thrive leading to perinatal death. To better understand the underlying molecular mechanisms that cause such a broad range of alterations, we investigated the impact of Ilk gene inactivation on the epidermis transcriptome. Microarray analysis showed over 700 differentially regulated mRNAs encoding proteins involved in multiple aspects of epidermal function, including keratinocyte differentiation and barrier formation, inflammation, regeneration after injury, and fundamental epidermal developmental pathways. These studies also revealed potential effects on genes not previously implicated in ILK functions, including those important for melanocyte and melanoblast development and function, regulation of cytoskeletal dynamics, and homeobox genes. This study shows that ILK is a critical regulator of multiple aspects of epidermal function and homeostasis, and reveals the previously unreported involvement of ILK not only in epidermal differentiation and barrier formation, but also in melanocyte genesis and function.

PCR-Based Analysis of ColE1 Plasmids in Clinical Isolates and Metagenomic Samples Reveals Their Importance as Gene Capture Platforms

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Manuel Ares-Arroyo

2018-03-01

Full Text Available ColE1 plasmids are important vehicles for the spread of antibiotic resistance in the Enterobacteriaceae and Pasteurellaceae families of bacteria. Their monitoring is essential, as they harbor important resistant determinants in humans, animals and the environment. In this work, we have analyzed ColE1 replicons using bioinformatic and experimental approaches. First, we carried out a computational study examining the structure of different ColE1 plasmids deposited in databases. Bioinformatic analysis of these ColE1 replicons revealed a mosaic genetic structure consisting of a host-adapted conserved region responsible for the housekeeping functions of the plasmid, and a variable region encoding a wide variety of genes, including multiple antibiotic resistance determinants. From this exhaustive computational analysis we developed a new PCR-based technique, targeting a specific sequence in the conserved region, for the screening, capture and sequencing of these small plasmids, either specific for Enterobacteriaceae or specific for Pasteurellaceae. To validate this PCR-based system, we tested various collections of isolates from both bacterial families, finding that ColE1 replicons were not only highly prevalent in antibiotic-resistant isolates, but also present in susceptible bacteria. In Pasteurellaceae, ColE1 plasmids carried almost exclusively antibiotic resistance genes. In Enterobacteriaceae, these plasmids encoded a large range of traits, including not only antibiotic resistance determinants, but also a wide variety of genes, showing the huge genetic plasticity of these small replicons. Finally, we also used a metagenomic approach in order to validate this technique, performing this PCR system using total DNA extractions from fecal samples from poultry, turkeys, pigs and humans. Using Illumina sequencing of the PCR products we identified a great diversity of genes encoded by ColE1 replicons, including different antibiotic resistance

Proteomic investigations reveal a role for RNA processing factor THRAP3 in the DNA damage response

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Beli, Petra; Lukashchuk, Natalia; Wagner, Sebastian A

2012-01-01

/ATR/DNA-PK target consensus motif, suggesting an important role of downstream kinases in amplifying DDR signals. We show that the splicing-regulator phosphatase PPM1G is recruited to sites of DNA damage, while the splicing-associated protein THRAP3 is excluded from these regions. Moreover, THRAP3 depletion causes...

On the importance of looking back: the role of recursive remindings in recency judgments and cued recall.

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Jacoby, Larry L; Wahlheim, Christopher N

2013-07-01

Suppose that you were asked which of two movies you had most recently seen. The results of the experiments reported here suggest that your answer would be more accurate if, when viewing the later movie, you were reminded of the earlier one. In the present experiments, we investigated the role of remindings in recency judgments and cued-recall performance. We did this by presenting a list composed of two instances from each of several different categories and later asking participants to select (Exp. 1) or to recall (Exp. 2) the more recently presented instance. Reminding was manipulated by varying instructions to look back over memory of earlier instances during the presentation of later instances. As compared to a control condition, cued-recall performance revealed facilitation effects when remindings occurred and were later recollected, but interference effects in their absence. The effects of reminding on recency judgments paralleled those on cued recall of more recently presented instances. We interpret these results as showing that reminding produces a recursive representation that embeds memory for an earlier-presented category instance into that of a later-presented one and, thereby, preserves their temporal order. Large individual differences in the probabilities of remindings and of their later recollection were observed. The widespread importance of recursive reminding for theory and for applied purposes is discussed.

Enhancing the nurses' role in healthcare delivery through strategic management: recognizing its importance or not?

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Carney, Marie

2009-09-01

To determine the importance of strategy in nursing management and to establish if strategic management has entered the lexicon of nurses' vocabulary. Developing and managing strategy is a critical success factor for health care managers. It remains unclear if nurse managers view strategy development as their role. A review of scholarly International nursing and management literature, available through CINAHL and PUBMED Data Bases was undertaken. The titles of 1063 articles, published between 1997 and 2007 were examined in order to determine the profile of strategy in those titles. Documentary analysis was undertaken on a random sample of 250 of those articles and on the full text of a further 100. Less than 10% of journal titles contained the word strategy. What was presented as strategy was in the majority of cases describing policy, administration or management. Little formal strategy theory was evident. The nursing profession does not appear to have adopted the terms strategy or strategic management to any great extent. Nurse Managers could play a greater role in enhancing healthcare delivery if an understanding of, and acceptance of the importance of strategy in health care delivery was promoted.

Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in solving the most important issues of globalization process' Proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

Present collection comprises of materials of Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in solving the most important issues of globalization process'. Present collection is intended for scientific and technical staff, postgraduates, and students of institutes of higher education.

Taxonomy of the nuclear plant operator's role

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kisner, R.A.; Fullerton, A.M.; Frey, P.R.; Dougherty, E.M.

1981-01-01

A program is presently under way at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to define the functional design requirements of operational aids for nuclear power plant operators. A first and important step in defining these requirements is to develop an understanding of the operator's role or function. This paper describes a taxonomy of operator functions that applies during all operational modes and conditions of the plant. Other topics such as the influence of automation, role acceptance, and the operator's role during emergencies are also discussed. This systematic approach has revealed several areas which have potential for improving the operator's ability to perform his role

THE IMPORTANCE AND THE ROLES OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN PRESCHOOL EDUCATION

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Nazım BURGUL

2008-06-01

Full Text Available The aim of this research is to determine the importance and the roles of the existing informationtechnologies in preschool education and to do a content analysis.The research is done by using the descriptive study method which is one of the general scanning models. Having examinedthe results of the previous researches, the theoretical framework that would light the way for the research was prepared. Theavailable information about the subject was scanned from resources such as documents, other written sources and also theinternet, and expert’s opinions were asked for. The content analysis of the collected information was done.The preschool period is a process to which all education scientists attach great importance. However, in order to realize theaim of this process, well planned education programmes are needed. The preschool education period provides crèche,nursery and reception education activities. Because of the annual changes of education technologies, positive differences areseen for the teaching activities in this area. On the other hand, there are some requirements to do to speed up the educationand to increase the productivity of education in our present day information society.The preschool education programmes are “the Crèche Programme (0-36 months”, “The Nursery Programme (37-60months and “The Reception Programme (61-72 months”. Optimum educational programs must be prepared for activitiesthat will take place on a daily basis according to specific aims and attitudes to determine the educational status of theseactivities. After having examined the technology-based education model, it is observed by the evaluation and assessmentdiscipline that using equipment such as tv, radio, computer, video, projection, overhead projector and slide apparatus makesthe learning process more effective and productive.As a result, information has become the most expensive product today. The roles of computer-aided education and the

Secondary prevention at 360°: the important role of diagnostic imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Ciarrapico, Anna Micaela; Manenti, Guglielmo; Pistolese, Chiara; Fabiano, Sebastiano; Fiori, Roberto; Romagnoli, Andrea; Sergiacomi, Gianluigi; Stefanini, Matteo; Simonetti, Giovanni

2015-06-01

The aim of this paper is to underline the importance of the role of general practitioners (GPs) in distributing vital information about prevention to citizens, to highlight the importance of the so-called voluntary prevention programmes, both for conditions for which no organised screening programmes exist and for those for which they do exist but may well be obsolete or inefficient. Nowadays, voluntary prevention is made more effective thanks to the new sophisticated diagnostic technologies applied worldwide by diagnostic imaging. Epidemiological data about the incidence and causes of death among the Italian population have shown that screening programmes should be aimed first at fighting the following diseases: prostatic carcinoma, lung cancer, colorectal carcinoma, breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, aortic and peripheral vascular disease. GPs do not generally give good or adequate instructions concerning voluntary prevention programmes; GPs may not even be aware of this type of prevention which could represent a valuable option together with the existing mass screening programmes. Therefore, in the following analysis, we aim to outline the correct diagnostic pathway for the prevention of diseases having the highest incidence in our country and which represent the most frequent causes of death. If used correctly, these screening programmes may contribute to the success of secondary prevention, limiting the use of tertiary prevention and thus producing savings for the Italian National Health System.

Role of media and peers on body change strategies among adult men: is body size important?

Science.gov (United States)

McCabe, Marita P; McGreevy, Shauna J

2011-01-01

There has been limited previous research that has examined the role of sociocultural influences on body change strategies among adult men. The current study investigated the role of specific types of messages (encouragement, teasing and modelling) from peers and the media on the strategies to change weight among adult men. Differences were evaluated between 526 men aged from 18 to 60 years from three groups (normal weight, overweight and obese) on body image, body change strategies and messages about their body received from peers and the media. Men were primarily drawn from United States, Australia and Europe. Results showed that messages received by men regarding losing weight or increasing muscle size differed according to weight. Body image and media messages were the strongest predictors of losing weight, whereas body image importance and messages from peers were the strongest predictors of increasing muscles. These findings highlight the importance of sociocultural influences on body change strategies among adult males. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Experimental Analysis of Mimivirus Translation Initiation Factor 4a Reveals Its Importance in Viral Protein Translation during Infection of Acanthamoeba polyphaga.

Science.gov (United States)

Bekliz, Meriem; Azza, Said; Seligmann, Hervé; Decloquement, Philippe; Raoult, Didier; La Scola, Bernard

2018-05-15

The Acanthamoeba polyphaga mimivirus is the first giant virus ever described, with a 1.2-Mb genome which encodes 979 proteins, including central components of the translation apparatus. One of these proteins, R458, was predicted to initiate translation, although its specific role remains unknown. We silenced the R458 gene using small interfering RNA (siRNA) and compared levels of viral fitness and protein expression in silenced versus wild-type mimivirus. Silencing decreased the growth rate, but viral particle production at the end of the viral cycle was unaffected. A comparative proteomic approach using two-dimensional difference-in-gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE) revealed deregulation of the expression of 32 proteins in silenced mimivirus, which were defined as up- or downregulated. Besides revealing proteins with unknown functions, silencing R458 also revealed deregulation in proteins associated with viral particle structures, transcriptional machinery, oxidative pathways, modification of proteins/lipids, and DNA topology/repair. Most of these proteins belong to genes transcribed at the end of the viral cycle. Overall, our data suggest that the R458 protein regulates the expression of mimivirus proteins and, thus, that mimivirus translational proteins may not be strictly redundant in relation to those from the amoeba host. As is the case for eukaryotic initiation factor 4a (eIF4a), the R458 protein is the prototypical member of the ATP-dependent DEAD box RNA helicase mechanism. We suggest that the R458 protein is required to unwind the secondary structures at the 5' ends of mRNAs and to bind the mRNA to the ribosome, making it possible to scan for the start codon. These data are the first experimental evidence of mimivirus translation-related genes, predicted to initiate protein biosynthesis. IMPORTANCE The presence in the genome of a mimivirus of genes coding for many translational processes, with the exception of ribosome constituents, has been the subject of

Genome editing reveals a role for OCT4 in human embryogenesis.

Science.gov (United States)

Fogarty, Norah M E; McCarthy, Afshan; Snijders, Kirsten E; Powell, Benjamin E; Kubikova, Nada; Blakeley, Paul; Lea, Rebecca; Elder, Kay; Wamaitha, Sissy E; Kim, Daesik; Maciulyte, Valdone; Kleinjung, Jens; Kim, Jin-Soo; Wells, Dagan; Vallier, Ludovic; Bertero, Alessandro; Turner, James M A; Niakan, Kathy K

2017-10-05

Despite their fundamental biological and clinical importance, the molecular mechanisms that regulate the first cell fate decisions in the human embryo are not well understood. Here we use CRISPR-Cas9-mediated genome editing to investigate the function of the pluripotency transcription factor OCT4 during human embryogenesis. We identified an efficient OCT4-targeting guide RNA using an inducible human embryonic stem cell-based system and microinjection of mouse zygotes. Using these refined methods, we efficiently and specifically targeted the gene encoding OCT4 (POU5F1) in diploid human zygotes and found that blastocyst development was compromised. Transcriptomics analysis revealed that, in POU5F1-null cells, gene expression was downregulated not only for extra-embryonic trophectoderm genes, such as CDX2, but also for regulators of the pluripotent epiblast, including NANOG. By contrast, Pou5f1-null mouse embryos maintained the expression of orthologous genes, and blastocyst development was established, but maintenance was compromised. We conclude that CRISPR-Cas9-mediated genome editing is a powerful method for investigating gene function in the context of human development.

THE SUSTAINABLE IMPORTANCE OF REMITTANCES AND THEIR ROLE IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. THE CASE OF ROMANIA

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Liana SON

2009-06-01

Full Text Available The increasing amplitude of migrants and remittences in the last years, especially toward the developing countries has positive effects on development in the countries of origin. Empiric research outline the potentially significant effect of remittances on the economy of a country in various ways, as a source of external financing, contributing to the growth and economic development, to the increase of the national income and stimulation of consumption, and at the same time, important in financing households, contributing to poverty decrease. These challenges are a priority for Romania, an emigration country that receives every year un important volume of remittances, but, at present with a preponderant role in the consumption.

Ruminal Prevotella spp. may play an important role in the conversion of plant lignans into human health beneficial antioxidants.

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Ana L B Schogor

Full Text Available Secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG, the most abundant lignan in flaxseed, is metabolized by the ruminal microbiota into enterolignans, which are strong antioxidants. Enterolactone (EL, the main mammalian enterolignan produced in the rumen, is transferred into physiological fluids, with potentially human health benefits with respect to menopausal symptoms, hormone-dependent cancers, cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis and diabetes. However, no information exists to our knowledge on bacterial taxa that play a role in converting plant lignans into EL in ruminants. In order to investigate this, eight rumen cannulated cows were used in a double 4 × 4 Latin square design and fed with four treatments: control with no flax meal (FM, or 5%, 10% and 15% FM (on a dry matter basis. Concentration of EL in the rumen increased linearly with increasing FM inclusion. Total rumen bacterial 16S rRNA concentration obtained using Q-PCR did not differ among treatments. PCR-T-RFLP based dendrograms revealed no global clustering based on diet indicating between animal variation. PCR-DGGE showed a clustering by diet effect within four cows that had similar basal ruminal microbiota. DNA extracted from bands present following feeding 15% FM and absent with no FM supplementation were sequenced and it showed that many genera, in particular Prevotella spp., contributed to the metabolism of lignans. A subsequent in vitro study using selected pure cultures of ruminal bacteria incubated with SDG indicated that 11 ruminal bacteria were able to convert SDG into secoisolariciresinol (SECO, with Prevotella spp. being the main converters. These data suggest that Prevotella spp. is one genus playing an important role in the conversion of plant lignans to human health beneficial antioxidants in the rumen.

Evolving Importance of Securities Market to Ensure Economic Growth: Evidence from Armenia

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Salnazaryan Ashot

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This research aims to reveal the importance of securities market in ensuring economic growth in Armenia. In order to make the research more substantial, we also examined the impact of other financial market segments, such as insurance market and credit market, on the economic growth. To estimate the relationship between financial market segments and economic growth, an empirical research was conducted using correlation and regression techniques. The research reveals that the most significant impact on the economic growth among Armenian financial market segments has the credit market of Armenia. There is no significant relationship between economic growth and insurance, as well as corporate securities market. It is pointed out in the research, that the evolving importance of the role of securities market in the economic growth is not yet demonstrated in Armenia, which, perhaps, results from the absence of interaction between securities market and economy in Armenia.

IMPORT SUBSTITUTION IN RUSSIA AS DEVELOPMENT FACTOR IN GLOBAL CHALLENGES PERIOD OF 2017–2019

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N. I. Komkov

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose: objectives of research: 1 Justification of a new role of import-substituting strategy as factor of large-scale import-substituting industrial revolution in the Russian Federation, an economic development driving force; 2 Confirmation of expediency of complex synergetic innovative tools of state support on decrease in import technology dependence of the Russian Federation, increase in dynamics of industry growth, technological potential and export of technologies; 3 The proof of progressiveness of scaling of import substitution as new key strategy of Russia development taking into account the best international experience, public and private initiatives and risks of import substitution.Methods: the methodology of the work is based on a modeling of scenarios, analysis of open statistical sources, projections and calculations, forecasting methods.Results: on the basis of the analysis of statistics a positive assessment is given to methodologically progressive instruments and mechanisms of realization of strategy of import substitution in the Russian Federation with the proved or potential efficiency taking into account national specifics. New national advantages and benefits of overcoming the degrading consumer market in Russia in 2014–2015 are shown. Processes of transformation and creation of the new national market on the basis of import substitution are described. The forecast of achievement of planned targets for import substitution programs in the Russian Federation on condition of further total economy modernization for import substitution is developed.conclusions and relevance: the statistics of large-scale revolutionary transition of the enterprises of the Russian Federation to a full cycle of production instead of the short technological chains which have taken roots in the last 20 years is collected. The problems and risks which are slowing down progress in import substitution in the Russian Federation are revealed. The role

Evaluation of support groups for women with breast cancer: importance of the navigator role

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Till James E

2003-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background At least some forms of breast cancer are increasingly being viewed as a chronic illness, where an emphasis is placed on meeting the various ongoing needs of people living with cancer, their families and other members of their social support networks. This commentary outlines some approaches to the evaluation of cancer-related support groups, with a particular emphasis on those designed to provide long-distance support, via the internet, for women with breast cancer. Discussion The literature on evaluations of community-based cancer support groups indicates that they offer a number of benefits, and that it is more reasonable to expect an impact of such interventions on psychosocial functioning and/or health-related quality of life than on survival. The literature on both face-to-face and online social support groups suggests that they offer many advantages, although evaluation of the latter delivery mechanism presents some ethical issues that need to be addressed. Many popular online support groups are peer-moderated, rather than professionally-moderated. In an evaluation of online support groups, different models of the role of the "navigator" need to be taken into account. Some conceptual models are outlined for the evaluation of the "navigator role" in meeting the informational, decisional and educational needs of women with breast cancer. The Breast-Cancer Mailing List, an example of an unmoderated internet-based peer-support group, is considered within the context of a Shared or Tacit Model of the navigator role. Conclusion Application of the concept of a "navigator role" to support groups in general, and to unmoderated online ones in particular, has received little or no attention in the research literature. The navigator role should be taken into account in research on this increasingly important aspect of cancer communication.

Transcriptomic analysis reveals importance of ROS and phytohormones in response to short-term salinity stress in Populus tomentosa

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Lingyu eZheng

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Populus tomentosa (Chinese white poplar is well adapted to various extreme environments, and is considered an important species to study the effects of salinity stress on poplar trees. To decipher the mechanism of poplar’s rapid response to short-term salinity stress, we firstly detected the changes in H2O2 and hormone, and then profiled the gene expression pattern of ten-week-old seedling roots treated with 200 mM NaCl for 0, 6, 12 and 24 hours (h by RNA-seq on the Illumina-Solexa platform. Physiological determination showed that the significant increase in H2O2 began at 6 h, while that in hormone ABA was at 24 h, under salt stress. Compared with controls (0 h, 3991, 4603 and 4903 genes were up regulated, and 1408, 2206 and 3461 genes were down regulated (adjusted P-value ≤ 0.05 and |log2Ratio|≥1 at 6, 12, and 24 h time points, respectively. The Gene Ontology (GO and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG pathway annotation revealed that the differentially expressed genes (DEGs were highly enriched in hormone- and reactive oxygen species-related biological processes, including ‘response to oxidative stress or abiotic stimulus’, ‘peroxidase activity’, ‘regulation of transcription’, ‘hormone synthetic and metabolic process’, ‘hormone signal transduction’, ‘antioxidant activity’ and ‘transcription factor activity’. Moreover, K-means clustering demonstrated that DEGs (total RPKM value>12 from four time points could be categorized into four kinds of expression trends: quick up/down over 6 h or 12 h, and slow up/down over 24 h. Of these, DEGs involved in H2O2- and hormone- producing and signal-related genes were further enriched in this analysis, which indicated that the two kinds of small molecules, hormones and H2O2, play pivotal roles in the short-term salt stress response in poplar. This study provides a basis for future studies of the molecular adaptation of poplar and other tree species to salinity

The European Commission: nuclear power has an important role to play

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

2008-01-01

The European Commission (E.C.) thinks that nuclear power has an important role to play: first to reduce CO 2 emissions and secondly to reinforce energy self-reliance of the member states. The decision to introduce nuclear power in their energy mix belongs to every state but the E.C. has also highlighted that if adequate investment are quickly made 2 thirds of the electricity produced in the European Union in 2010 could by from low-carbon-emitting sources. Today with 148 reactors operating in 15 member countries nuclear power contributes to 1 third of the electricity produced. Another issue that is looming is the security of electricity supplying. A study has shown that the security level is worsening (particularly in winter) because of the greater part of wind energy in the energy mix as wind energy is not necessarily available when energy demand is peaking. The E.C. has proposed a new directive drawing a common standard frame for nuclear safety requirements concerning design, site selection, maintenance, operation and decommissioning of nuclear facilities. Each member state will have the choice to implement stiffer regulations. The European Union must reduce its dependency on Russian gas by increasing its storing capacities, by easing gas exchanges between member states and by importing more liquefied natural gas. European member states will have to invert 1000*10 9 euros in gas and electrical power infrastructures in the next 25 years. (A.C.)

Structural Snapshots of an Engineered Cystathionine-γ-lyase Reveal the Critical Role of Electrostatic Interactions in the Active Site

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yan, Wupeng; Stone, Everett; Zhang, Yan Jessie

2017-02-01

Enzyme therapeutics that can degrade l-methionine (l-Met) are of great interest as numerous malignancies are exquisitely sensitive to l-Met depletion. To exhaust the pool of methionine in human serum, we previously engineered an l-Met-degrading enzyme based on the human cystathionine-γ-lyase scaffold (hCGL-NLV) to circumvent immunogenicity and stability issues observed in the preclinical application of bacterially derived methionine-γ-lyases. To gain further insights into the structure–activity relationships governing the chemistry of the hCGL-NLV lead molecule, we undertook a biophysical characterization campaign that captured crystal structures (2.2 Å) of hCGL-NLV with distinct reaction intermediates, including internal aldimine, substrate-bound, gem-diamine, and external aldimine forms. Curiously, an alternate form of hCGL-NLV that crystallized under higher-salt conditions revealed a locally unfolded active site, correlating with inhibition of activity as a function of ionic strength. Subsequent mutational and kinetic experiments pinpointed that a salt bridge between the phosphate of the essential cofactor pyridoxal 5'-phosphate (PLP) and residue R62 plays an important role in catalyzing β- and γ-eliminations. Our study suggests that solvent ions such as NaCl disrupt electrostatic interactions between R62 and PLP, decreasing catalytic efficiency.

Binning of shallowly sampled metagenomic sequence fragments reveals that low abundance bacteria play important roles in sulfur cycling and degradation of complex organic polymers in an acid mine drainage community

Science.gov (United States)

Dick, G. J.; Andersson, A.; Banfield, J. F.

2007-12-01

not expected to reflect the tetranucleotide frequency signature of the host genome. Four unknown tetranucleotide frequency clusters with significant sequence (6 Mb total) were noted and analyzed further. Based on phylogenetic markers and BLAST results, these clusters represent low abundance bacteria including Acintobacteria, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria. Functional analysis of these clusters revealved that the low- abundance bacteria harbor genes that could potentially encode important ecosystem functions such as sulfur utilization (e.g. polysulfide reductase) and polymer degradation (e.g. chitinase and glycoside hydrolase). We conclude that ESOM clustering of tetranucleotide frequency patterns is an effective method for rapidly binning shotgun community genomic sequences and a valuable tool for analyzing minor community members, which despite their low abundance may play crucial ecological roles.

Disruption of Msx-1 and Msx-2 reveals roles for these genes in craniofacial, eye, and axial development.

Science.gov (United States)

Foerst-Potts, L; Sadler, T W

1997-05-01

In mouse embryos, the muscle segment homeobox genes, Msx-1 and Msx-2 are expressed during critical stages of neural tube, neural crest, and craniofacial development, suggesting that these genes play important roles in organogenesis and cell differentiation. Although the patterns of expression are intriguing, little is known about the function of these genes in vertebrate embryonic development. Therefore, the expression of both genes, separately and together, was disrupted using antisense oligodeoxynucleotides and whole embryo culture techniques. Antisense attenuation of Msx-1 during early stages of neurulation produced hypoplasia of the maxillary, mandibular, and frontonasal prominences, eye anomalies, and somite and neural tube abnormalities. Eye defects consisted of enlarged optic vesicles, which may ultimately result in micropthalmia similar to that observed in Small eye mice homozygous for mutations in the Pax-6 gene. Histological sections and SEM analysis revealed a thinning of the neuroepithelium in the diencephalon and optic vesicle and mesenchymal deficiencies in the craniofacial region. Injections of Msx-2 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides produced similar malformations as those targeting Msx-1, with the exception that there was an increase in number and severity of neural tube and somite defects. Embryos injected with the combination of Msx-1 + Msx-2 antisense oligodeoxynucleotides showed no novel abnormalities, suggesting that the genes do not operate in a redundant manner.

An Essential Role for Coagulase in Staphylococcus aureus Biofilm Development Reveals New Therapeutic Possibilities for Device-Related Infections.

Science.gov (United States)

Zapotoczna, Marta; McCarthy, Hannah; Rudkin, Justine K; O'Gara, James P; O'Neill, Eoghan

2015-12-15

High-level resistance to antimicrobial drugs is a major factor in the pathogenesis of chronic Staphylococcus aureus biofilm-associated, medical device-related infections. Antimicrobial susceptibility analysis revealed that biofilms grown for ≤ 24 hours on biomaterials conditioned with human plasma under venous shear in iron-free cell culture medium were significantly more susceptible to antistaphylococcal antibiotics. Biofilms formed under these physiologically relevant conditions were regulated by SaeRS and dependent on coagulase-catalyzed conversion of fibrinogen into fibrin. In contrast, SarA-regulated biofilms formed on uncoated polystyrene in nutrient-rich bacteriological medium were mediated by the previously characterized biofilm factors poly-N-acetyl glucosamine, fibronectin-binding proteins, or autolytic activity and were antibiotic resistant. Coagulase-mediated biofilms exhibited increased antimicrobial resistance over time (>48 hours) but were always susceptible to dispersal by the fibrinolytic enzymes plasmin or nattokinase. Biofilms recovered from infected central venous catheters in a rat model of device-related infection were dispersed by nattokinase, supporting the important role of the biofilm phenotype and identifying a potentially new therapeutic approach with antimicrobials and fibrinolytic drugs, particularly during the early stages of device-related infection. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

IRBIT plays an important role in NHE3-mediated pHi regulation in HSG cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Tran, Tien Manh; Park, Moon-Yong; Lee, Jiyeon; Bae, Jun-Seok; Hwang, Sung-Min; Choi, Se-Young; Mikoshiba, Katsuhiko; Park, Kyungpyo

2013-07-19

Expression of inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) receptor-binding protein (IRBIT) has been reported in epithelial cells. However, its role in pHi regulation is not well understood. In this study, we investigated the role of IRBIT in pHi regulation, mediated by Na(+)/H(+) exchangers (NHEs), in salivary glands. We measured pHi recovery from cell acidification in BCECF-loaded salivary HSG cells. Western blot and co-immunoprecipitation (CO-IP) assays were also performed, showing that NHE1, 2 and 3 are expressed, and IRBIT binds to NHE3. HOE642, a specific NHE1 blocker, inhibited pHi recovery, but 40% pH(i) recovery was still observed even at the highest concentration of HOE642. Furthermore, pretreatment of the cells with siIRBIT significantly inhibited pHi recovery, indicating that NHE3 potentially plays a role in pHi recovery as well. The amount of membrane-localized NHE3 and its interaction with IRBIT are also significantly increased by cell acidification. In addition, we found that Ste20p-related proline alanine-rich kinase (SPAK) reverses the effect of IRBIT on membrane NHE3 translocation. Taken together, we conclude that IRBIT plays an important role in pHi regulation, mediated by NHE3, and further regulated by SPAK. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chirality plays important roles in radiopharmaceuticals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shen Yumei

2006-01-01

The paper introduces the basic concept of chirality, target specific selectivity and their relationship in radiopharmaceuticals. If the ligands labeled by radionuclides have chiral center, the enantiomers must be separated, or the target specific selectivity will not be good. Chirality is one of the most important factors which must be considered in the study of the structure-activity relationship of radiopharmaceuticals. (authors)

Important Late-Stage Symbiotic Role of the Sinorhizobium meliloti Exopolysaccharide Succinoglycan.

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, Markus F F; Penterman, Jon; Shabab, Mohammed; Chen, Esther J; Walker, Graham C

2018-07-01

Sinorhizobium meliloti enters into beneficial symbiotic interactions with Medicago species of legumes. Bacterial exopolysaccharides play critical signaling roles in infection thread initiation and growth during the early stages of root nodule formation. After endocytosis of S. meliloti by plant cells in the developing nodule, plant-derived nodule-specific cysteine-rich (NCR) peptides mediate terminal differentiation of the bacteria into nitrogen-fixing bacteroids. Previous transcriptional studies showed that the intensively studied cationic peptide NCR247 induces expression of the exo genes that encode the proteins required for succinoglycan biosynthesis. In addition, genetic studies have shown that some exo mutants exhibit increased sensitivity to the antimicrobial action of NCR247. Therefore, we investigated whether the symbiotically active S. meliloti exopolysaccharide succinoglycan can protect S. meliloti against the antimicrobial activity of NCR247. We discovered that high-molecular-weight forms of succinoglycan have the ability to protect S. meliloti from the antimicrobial action of the NCR247 peptide but low-molecular-weight forms of wild-type succinoglycan do not. The protective function of high-molecular-weight succinoglycan occurs via direct molecular interactions between anionic succinoglycan and the cationic NCR247 peptide, but this interaction is not chiral. Taken together, our observations suggest that S. meliloti exopolysaccharides not only may be critical during early stages of nodule invasion but also are upregulated at a late stage of symbiosis to protect bacteria against the bactericidal action of cationic NCR peptides. Our findings represent an important step forward in fully understanding the complete set of exopolysaccharide functions during legume symbiosis. IMPORTANCE Symbiotic interactions between rhizobia and legumes are economically important for global food production. The legume symbiosis also is a major part of the global nitrogen

Memory, not just perception, plays an important role in terrestrial mammalian migration.

Science.gov (United States)

Bracis, Chloe; Mueller, Thomas

2017-05-31

One of the key questions regarding the underlying mechanisms of mammalian land migrations is how animals select where to go. Most studies assume perception of resources as the navigational mechanism. The possible role of memory that would allow forecasting conditions at distant locations and times based on information about environmental conditions from previous years has been little studied. We study migrating zebra in Botswana using an individual-based simulation model, where perceptually guided individuals use currently sensed resources at different perceptual ranges, while memory-guided individuals use long-term averages of past resources to forecast future conditions. We compare simulated individuals guided by perception or memory on resource landscapes of remotely sensed vegetation data to trajectories of GPS-tagged zebras. Our results show that memory provides a clear signal that best directs migrants to their destination compared to perception at even the largest perceptual ranges. Zebras modelled with memory arrived two to four times, or up to 100 km, closer to the migration destination than those using perception. We suggest that memory in addition to perception is important for directing ungulate migration. Furthermore, our findings are important for the conservation of migratory mammals, as memory informing direction suggests migration routes could be relatively inflexible. © 2017 The Author(s).

Single-Cell Analysis of SMN Reveals Its Broader Role in Neuromuscular Disease

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Natalia Rodriguez-Muela

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The mechanism underlying selective motor neuron (MN death remains an essential question in the MN disease field. The MN disease spinal muscular atrophy (SMA is attributable to reduced levels of the ubiquitous protein SMN. Here, we report that SMN levels are widely variable in MNs within a single genetic background and that this heterogeneity is seen not only in SMA MNs but also in MNs derived from controls and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS patients. Furthermore, cells with low SMN are more susceptible to cell death. These findings raise the important clinical implication that some SMN-elevating therapeutics might be effective in MN diseases besides SMA. Supporting this, we found that increasing SMN across all MN populations using an Nedd8-activating enzyme inhibitor promotes survival in both SMA and ALS-derived MNs. Altogether, our work demonstrates that examination of human neurons at the single-cell level can reveal alternative strategies to be explored in the treatment of degenerative diseases.

An empirical study, role and importance of visual merchandising in retail branding- A practitioners’ perspective

OpenAIRE

Rebeiro, Damian

2015-01-01

The aim of this research is to analyze the role and importance of Visual merchandising and below the line advertising on retail branding. An initial investigation on “visual merchandising” is undertaken along with its effects on consumer’s purchase behavior and brand identity. The research is based on the companies in Dubai, which represents the Middle East and African market. Semi - Structured Interviews of various practitioner based in Dubai were undertaken in order to understand the topic ...

Modeling autosomal recessive cutis laxa type 1C in mice reveals distinct functions for Ltbp-4 isoforms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bultmann-Mellin, Insa; Conradi, Anne; Maul, Alexandra C

2015-01-01

Recent studies have revealed an important role for LTBP-4 in elastogenesis. Its mutational inactivation in humans causes autosomal recessive cutis laxa type 1C (ARCL1C), which is a severe disorder caused by defects of the elastic fiber network. Although the human gene involved in ARCL1C has been ...

Mitochondrial DNA reveals regional and interregional importance of the central Mediterranean African shelf for loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paolo Casale

2008-09-01

Full Text Available The wide north African continental shelf in the central Mediterranean is known to be one of the few important areas in the basin for loggerhead turtles in the neritic stage. In order to assess the origin of these turtles, sequences of the mtDNA control region were obtained from 70 turtles caught by bottom trawlers in the area, and compared with known sequences from turtles from Mediterranean and Atlantic nesting sites. Five haplotypes were identified (Haplotype diversity = 0.262; nucleotide diversity = 5.4×10-3. Specific haplotypes indicate contributions from distant rookeries such as Turkey and the Atlantic, which shows that Atlantic turtles entering the Mediterranean while in the oceanic phase use at least one Mediterranean continental shelf as a neritic foraging ground. A new haplotype and another one previously found only in foraging areas, highlight the genetic information gaps for nesting sites, which undermine powerful mixed stock analyses. Despite these limitations, the results reveal the regional importance of the study area as a neritic foraging ground for turtles that are probably from most of the Mediterranean nesting aggregates. Therefore, reducing turtle mortality resulting from the high fishing effort in the area should be regarded as key for Mediterranean turtle conservation and is also possibly important for Atlantic populations.

Small interference RNA profiling reveals the essential role of human membrane trafficking genes in mediating the infectious entry of dengue virus

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Chu Justin

2010-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Dengue virus (DENV is the causative agent of Dengue fever and the life-threatening Dengue Haemorrhagic fever or Dengue shock syndrome. In the absence of anti-viral agents or vaccine, there is an urgent need to develop an effective anti-viral strategy against this medically important viral pathogen. The initial interplay between DENV and the host cells may represent one of the potential anti-viral targeting sites. Currently the involvements of human membrane trafficking host genes or factors that mediate the infectious cellular entry of dengue virus are not well defined. Results In this study, we have used a targeted small interfering RNA (siRNA library to identify and profile key cellular genes involved in processes of endocytosis, cytoskeletal dynamics and endosome trafficking that are important and essential for DENV infection. The infectious entry of DENV into Huh7 cells was shown to be potently inhibited by siRNAs targeting genes associated with clathrin-mediated endocytosis. The important role of clathrin-mediated endocytosis was confirmed by the expression of well-characterized dominant-negative mutants of genes in this pathway and by using the clathrin endocytosis inhibitor chlorpromazine. Furthermore, DENV infection was shown to be sensitive to the disruption of human genes in regulating the early to late endosomal trafficking as well as the endosomal acidic pH. The importance and involvement of both actin and microtubule dynamics in mediating the infectious entry of DENV was also revealed in this study. Conclusions Together, the findings from this study have provided a detail profiling of the human membrane trafficking cellular genes and the mechanistic insight into the interplay of these host genes with DENV to initiate an infection, hence broadening our understanding on the entry pathway of this medically important viral pathogen. These data may also provide a new potential avenue for development of anti

Importance And Role Of Competence In Professional Career Of Product Develop Engineers

Science.gov (United States)

Miltenović, Aleksandar; Banić, Milan; Miltenović, Vojislav

2015-07-01

Product development is a creative task where is systematically created a new product, which makes possible to firms to offer attractive, innovative and market oriented products. In conditions of fierce competition and saturated markets, companies that do not innovate are stagnating and disappear from the market. Innovation is therefore every intervention which can reduce production costs, enables optimum utilization of available human, energy and material resources, improve product quality, improve the placement, which leads to an increase in competitiveness. A prerequisite for fulfillment of the above-mentioned tasks is that the companies have engineers with the appropriate competencies, which are able to, through creativity, innovation and fascinating technique of creating new or improving existing products and lunch it on the market. The paper discusses the role and importance of the competences that are necessary for a successful professional career of product development engineers.

Role of the tunisian central pharmacy in the import of radio-pharmaceutical products

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Souissi Jaziri, Camelia; Moulahi, L.

2013-01-01

In Tunisia the centralized organization of the medicine sector has a strategic and economic importance. It presents particular characteristics concerning the importation and the control of drugs. Tcp has a monopoly on the importation of drugs for the country, which enters in the state policy for the control of drug purchasing costs, their availability in different region of the country and their guarantee and quality. The Tcp has a crucial role in the availability of drugs and in the holding safety stock and strategic reserve of the imported pharmaceutical products, either for the public or private sector. The Tcp has to stock up medicaments, chemical and pharmaceutical products, objects of bandages, instruments, accessory tools and other supplies necessary for the human and veterinary medicine. The Tcp packages any specialized or not medicament and all other products or supplies. The Tcp provides medicaments and products entering within the framework of its task to different health groups and hospitals. The Tcp provides distributors, laboratories and pharmacies over the country. In Tunisia the import of radioisotopes used in the medical domain is attributed to the Tcp. The objective is to centralize purchases and to guarantee: the security, the availability as well as the traceability. The Tcp supply radiopharmaceutical products for diagnostic and therapy purposes according to an authorization delivered annually by the National Center of Radiation Protection (NCRP). An authorization of removal used at the customs allows the clearance of products at the level of the air freights by the transit service of the Tcp. Regarding the evolution of purchases of radio-pharmaceutical products, their importation remained stable during the last three years. Indeed, it is approximately around 1MDT annually (954 121 DT in 2010, 939 956 in 2011 and 1047 967 in 2012). Sources of supply are divided between 4 suppliers: International IBA-CISBIO (49.9 pour cent), COVIDIEN EX (TYCO

The goya mouse mutant reveals distinct newly identified roles for MAP3K1 in the development and survival of cochlear sensory hair cells.

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Parker, Andrew; Cross, Sally H; Jackson, Ian J; Hardisty-Hughes, Rachel; Morse, Susan; Nicholson, George; Coghill, Emma; Bowl, Michael R; Brown, Steve D M

2015-12-01

Mitogen-activated protein kinase, MAP3K1, plays an important role in a number of cellular processes, including epithelial migration during eye organogenesis. In addition, studies in keratinocytes indicate that MAP3K1 signalling through JNK is important for actin stress fibre formation and cell migration. However, MAP3K1 can also act independently of JNK in the regulation of cell proliferation and apoptosis. We have identified a mouse mutant, goya, which exhibits the eyes-open-at-birth and microphthalmia phenotypes. In addition, these mice also have hearing loss. The goya mice carry a splice site mutation in the Map3k1 gene. We show that goya and kinase-deficient Map3k1 homozygotes initially develop supernumerary cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs) that subsequently degenerate, and a progressive profound hearing loss is observed by 9 weeks of age. Heterozygote mice also develop supernumerary OHCs, but no cellular degeneration or hearing loss is observed. MAP3K1 is expressed in a number of inner-ear cell types, including outer and inner hair cells, stria vascularis and spiral ganglion. Investigation of targets downstream of MAP3K1 identified an increase in p38 phosphorylation (Thr180/Tyr182) in multiple cochlear tissues. We also show that the extra OHCs do not arise from aberrant control of proliferation via p27KIP1. The identification of the goya mutant reveals a signalling molecule involved with hair-cell development and survival. Mammalian hair cells do not have the ability to regenerate after damage, which can lead to irreversible sensorineural hearing loss. Given the observed goya phenotype, and the many diverse cellular processes that MAP3K1 is known to act upon, further investigation of this model might help to elaborate upon the mechanisms underlying sensory hair cell specification, and pathways important for their survival. In addition, MAP3K1 is revealed as a new candidate gene for human sensorineural hearing loss. © 2015. Published by The Company of

The goya mouse mutant reveals distinct newly identified roles for MAP3K1 in the development and survival of cochlear sensory hair cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew Parker

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Mitogen-activated protein kinase, MAP3K1, plays an important role in a number of cellular processes, including epithelial migration during eye organogenesis. In addition, studies in keratinocytes indicate that MAP3K1 signalling through JNK is important for actin stress fibre formation and cell migration. However, MAP3K1 can also act independently of JNK in the regulation of cell proliferation and apoptosis. We have identified a mouse mutant, goya, which exhibits the eyes-open-at-birth and microphthalmia phenotypes. In addition, these mice also have hearing loss. The goya mice carry a splice site mutation in the Map3k1 gene. We show that goya and kinase-deficient Map3k1 homozygotes initially develop supernumerary cochlear outer hair cells (OHCs that subsequently degenerate, and a progressive profound hearing loss is observed by 9 weeks of age. Heterozygote mice also develop supernumerary OHCs, but no cellular degeneration or hearing loss is observed. MAP3K1 is expressed in a number of inner-ear cell types, including outer and inner hair cells, stria vascularis and spiral ganglion. Investigation of targets downstream of MAP3K1 identified an increase in p38 phosphorylation (Thr180/Tyr182 in multiple cochlear tissues. We also show that the extra OHCs do not arise from aberrant control of proliferation via p27KIP1. The identification of the goya mutant reveals a signalling molecule involved with hair-cell development and survival. Mammalian hair cells do not have the ability to regenerate after damage, which can lead to irreversible sensorineural hearing loss. Given the observed goya phenotype, and the many diverse cellular processes that MAP3K1 is known to act upon, further investigation of this model might help to elaborate upon the mechanisms underlying sensory hair cell specification, and pathways important for their survival. In addition, MAP3K1 is revealed as a new candidate gene for human sensorineural hearing loss.

When proteomics reveals unsuspected roles: the plastoglobule example

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Claire eBréhélin

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Plastoglobules are globular compartments found in plastids. Before initial proteomic studies were published, these particles were often viewed as passive lipid droplets whose unique role was to store lipids coming from the thylakoid turn-over, or to accumulate carotenoids in the chromoplasts. Yet, two proteomic studies, published concomitantly, suggested for the first time that plastoglobules are more than "junk cupboards" for lipids. Indeed, both studies demonstrated that plastoglobules do not only include structural proteins belonging to the plastoglobulin / fibrillin family, but also contain active enzymes. The specific plastoglobule localization of these enzymes has been confirmed by different approaches such as immunogold localization and GFP protein fusions, thus providing evidence that plastoglobules actively participate in diverse pathways of plastid metabolism. These proteomic studies have been the basis for numerous recent works investigating plastoglobule function. However, a lot still needs to be discovered about the molecular composition and the role of plastoglobules. In this chapter, we will describe how the proteomic approaches have launched new perspectives on plastoglobule functions.

The Plant Ribosome-Inactivating Proteins Play Important Roles in Defense against Pathogens and Insect Pest Attacks

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Feng Zhu

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Ribosome-inactivating proteins (RIPs are toxic N-glycosidases that depurinate eukaryotic and prokaryotic rRNAs, thereby arresting protein synthesis during translation. RIPs are widely found in various plant species and within different tissues. It is demonstrated in vitro and in transgenic plants that RIPs have been connected to defense by antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, and insecticidal activities. However, the mechanism of these effects is still not completely clear. There are a number of reviews of RIPs. However, there are no reviews on the biological functions of RIPs in defense against pathogens and insect pests. Therefore, in this report, we focused on the effect of RIPs from plants in defense against pathogens and insect pest attacks. First, we summarize the three different types of RIPs based on their physical properties. RIPs are generally distributed in plants. Then, we discuss the distribution of RIPs that are found in various plant species and in fungi, bacteria, algae, and animals. Various RIPs have shown unique bioactive properties including antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and insecticidal activity. Finally, we divided the discussion into the biological roles of RIPs in defense against bacteria, fungi, viruses, and insects. This review is focused on the role of plant RIPs in defense against bacteria, fungi, viruses, and insect attacks. The role of plant RIPs in defense against pathogens and insects is being comprehended currently. Future study utilizing transgenic technology approaches to study the mechanisms of RIPs will undoubtedly generate a better comprehending of the role of plant RIPs in defense against pathogens and insects. Discovering additional crosstalk mechanisms between RIPs and phytohormones or reactive oxygen species (ROS against pathogen and insect infections will be a significant subject in the field of biotic stress study. These studies are helpful in revealing significance of genetic control that can

Myc inhibition is effective against glioma and reveals a role for Myc in proficient mitosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Annibali, Daniela; Whitfield, Jonathan R; Favuzzi, Emilia; Jauset, Toni; Serrano, Erika; Cuartas, Isabel; Redondo-Campos, Sara; Folch, Gerard; Gonzàlez-Juncà, Alba; Sodir, Nicole M; Massó-Vallés, Daniel; Beaulieu, Marie-Eve; Swigart, Lamorna B; Mc Gee, Margaret M; Somma, Maria Patrizia; Nasi, Sergio; Seoane, Joan; Evan, Gerard I; Soucek, Laura

2014-08-18

Gliomas are the most common primary tumours affecting the adult central nervous system and respond poorly to standard therapy. Myc is causally implicated in most human tumours and the majority of glioblastomas have elevated Myc levels. Using the Myc dominant negative Omomyc, we previously showed that Myc inhibition is a promising strategy for cancer therapy. Here, we preclinically validate Myc inhibition as a therapeutic strategy in mouse and human glioma, using a mouse model of spontaneous multifocal invasive astrocytoma and its derived neuroprogenitors, human glioblastoma cell lines, and patient-derived tumours both in vitro and in orthotopic xenografts. Across all these experimental models we find that Myc inhibition reduces proliferation, increases apoptosis and remarkably, elicits the formation of multinucleated cells that then arrest or die by mitotic catastrophe, revealing a new role for Myc in the proficient division of glioma cells.

Vietnamese-Australian grandparenthood: the changing roles and psychological well-being.

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Vo-Thanh-Xuan, J; Rice, P L

2000-01-01

This study attempts to understand the Vietnamese-Australian grandparenthood and their changing roles and psychological well-being. Using a qualitative approach, thirty-six grandparents participated in four focus group interviews. The findings reveal that Vietnamese grandparents play many important roles such as those of living ancestor, family historian, role model, teacher, mentor, nurturer, crony and mediator although at a reasonably modest level. Through assisting the parents, it creates a vital bridge between grandparents and grandchildren. Grandparents' most important roles are the maintenance of good emotional relationships and support, and the construction of harmony and continuity in their modified extended families. To be able to assume these roles grandparents need to actively explore and accept new values and to adapt values to new cultural context. A successful grandparenthood brings happiness to the family and this in turn positively influences grandparents' life satisfaction and psychological well-being and enhances their quality of life.

Role conflict and satisfaction in the work-family context: Age differences in the moderating effect of role commitment.

Science.gov (United States)

Chan, Hiu Ching; Jiang, Da; Fung, Helene H

2015-03-01

This study examined age differences in the buffering effects of role commitment on the associations between role conflicts and satisfaction from the within-domain and cross-domain perspectives. Eighty-five working mothers participated in the study. Multiple regression analyses revealed that work conflicts were negatively associated with job satisfaction of younger employees but not older employees. Commitment to both work and family buffered against the negative association between family conflicts and family satisfaction for older employees but not younger employees. These findings highlight the importance of role commitment for working mothers across adulthood to cope with the demands in the work-family interface. © 2015 The Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Developing Self-Regulation Skills: The Important Role of Homework

Science.gov (United States)

Ramdass, Darshanand; Zimmerman, Barry J.

2011-01-01

The article evaluates the relationship between homework and self-regulation from the elementary grades to college. It reveals that quality measures of homework such as managing distractions, self-efficacy and perceived responsibility for learning, setting goals, self-refection, managing time, and setting a place for homework completion are more…

PEDAGOGICAL PHILOSOPHY: THE ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF THEORY IN CREATIVE COGNITION

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Oleksandr Plahotskyi

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The main provisions and the essential characteristics of the theory of pedagogical philosophy are considered in the article. The outstanding Ukrainian scientists in the branch of pedagogical studies (V. Alfimov, O. Hluzman, V. Yevdokimov, О. Kucheriavyi and in the field of education practice (H. Minenko follow the point of view of problem relevance. Appearing of the pedagogical philosophy is caused by the need of understanding complicated issues like what a modern person (a child, a pupil, a student, a teacher, a tutor is; what the modern environment of human life is like; what the part the education plays in their life. The aim of the study is to justify the prospective opportunities of pedagogical philosophy while solving current educational tasks in order to arise the practitioners’ interest and desire to find the ways of using them in their creative activity. In the article the role and importance of pedagogical philosophy in the practice of school and higher educational institutions in modern Ukraine are analyzed. The challenges of time and the motion of the education system in advancing development are noted. The key parallels between the understanding of the essence of the educational process in the pedagogical philosophy and the current needs of human development and educational objectives are determined. The author concludes that theory of pedagogical philosophy, which is being developed at present time, is really new, independent, relevant and corresponding to the current life needs. In general its role and significance is proved by the fact that pedagogical philosophy has a necessary and sufficient recourse of showing the ways in the future for educators at secondary schools and higher educational establishments according to the occasions and processes that take place in Ukraine.

Attributing Increased River Flooding in the Future: Hydrodynamic Downscaling Reveals Role of Plant Physiological Responses to Increased CO2 is First Order

Science.gov (United States)

Fowler, M. D.; Kooperman, G. J.; Pritchard, M. S.; Randerson, J. T.

2017-12-01

River flooding events, which are the most frequently occurring natural disaster today, are expected to become more frequent and intense in response to climate change. However, the magnitude of these changes remains debated, in part due to uncertainty in our understanding of the physical processes that contribute to these events and their representation in global climate models. While the intensification of precipitation has been shown to be a primary driver of increased flooding, plant physiological responses to increasing CO2 may also play an important role. As the atmospheric concentration of CO2 increases, plants may respond by reducing the width of their stomata (i.e. stomatal conductance), which can decrease water lost through transpiration and in turn maintain higher soil moisture levels. On long timescales, reduced transpiration has been shown to increase average runoff, but on short timescales elevated soil moisture can also increase instantaneous runoff by limiting the rate at which water is able to infiltrate the soil surface. Here, through hydrodynamic downscaling, we isolate the portion of flooding amplification that can be attributed to the physiological response to increasing CO2. This builds on a new analysis that has revealed such physiological effects can rival changes caused by the atmospheric response alone in the tails of the runoff distribution. We use a set of four simulations run with the Community Earth System Model: one pre-industrial control simulation and three others that are forced with four times CO2. In the three climate change simulations, the increased CO2 is applied only to the land-surface, only to the atmosphere, and to both, respectively. Thirty years of daily runoff from these experiments are used as input for the hydrodynamic CaMa-Flood model. Our results reveal that both the radiative and physiological responses to climate change contribute significantly to future changes in flood return period and inundated area. This

The Role of Beliefs about the Importance of Social Skills in Elementary Children's Social Behaviors and School Attitudes

Science.gov (United States)

Kwon, Kyongboon; Kim, Elizabeth Moorman; Sheridan, Susan M.

2014-01-01

Background: Positive attitudes toward school have been suggested as a meaningful indicator of school engagement among elementary children. The current study was guided by a social cognitive developmental perspective which suggests that social cognitions, including beliefs, play an important role in children's adjustment outcomes. Objective: The…

Invasion of melanoma cells into dermal connective tissue in vitro: evidence for an important role of cysteine proteases.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Dennhofer, R.; Kurschat, P.; Zigrino, P.; Klose, A.; Bosserhoff, A.; Muijen, G.N.P. van; Krieg, T.; Mauch, C.; Hunzelmann, N.

2003-01-01

Invasion of melanoma cells into the dermal connective tissue is a major characteristic in the complex process of metastasis. Proteases play an important role in tumor cell invasion as these enzymes are able to degrade most components of the extracellular matrix (ECM), and thus enable cells to

In situ camera observations reveal major role of zooplankton in modulating marine snow formation during an upwelling-induced plankton bloom

Science.gov (United States)

Taucher, Jan; Stange, Paul; Algueró-Muñiz, María; Bach, Lennart T.; Nauendorf, Alice; Kolzenburg, Regina; Büdenbender, Jan; Riebesell, Ulf

2018-05-01

Particle aggregation and the consequent formation of marine snow alter important properties of biogenic particles (size, sinking rate, degradability), thus playing a key role in controlling the vertical flux of organic matter to the deep ocean. However, there are still large uncertainties about rates and mechanisms of particle aggregation, as well as the role of plankton community structure in modifying biomass transfer from small particles to large fast-sinking aggregates. Here we present data from a high-resolution underwater camera system that we used to observe particle size distributions and formation of marine snow (aggregates >0.5 mm) over the course of a 9-week in situ mesocosm experiment in the Eastern Subtropical North Atlantic. After an oligotrophic phase of almost 4 weeks, addition of nutrient-rich deep water (650 m) initiated the development of a pronounced diatom bloom and the subsequent formation of large marine snow aggregates in all 8 mesocosms. We observed a substantial time lag between the peaks of chlorophyll a and marine snow biovolume of 9-12 days, which is much longer than previously reported and indicates a marked temporal decoupling of phytoplankton growth and marine snow formation during our study. Despite this time lag, our observations revealed substantial transfer of biomass from small particle sizes (single phytoplankton cells and chains) to marine snow aggregates of up to 2.5 mm diameter (ESD), with most of the biovolume being contained in the 0.5-1 mm size range. Notably, the abundance and community composition of mesozooplankton had a substantial influence on the temporal development of particle size spectra and formation of marine snow aggregates: While higher copepod abundances were related to reduced aggregate formation and biomass transfer towards larger particle sizes, the presence of appendicularia and doliolids enhanced formation of large marine snow. Furthermore, we combined in situ particle size distributions with

Cartographic modeling: The role and importance

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Ikonović Vesna

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Aim and sense of cartographic modeling is to represent essential, typical and characteristically attributes of mapping territory. Cartographic modeling is applying in two phases: 1. trough theoretical modeling and creating mind models (by notice relevant factors of space, modeling is in cartographer’s mind and 2. trough practical modeling and making prototype model (continuing and objectification of mind model which one has bigger degree of concrezation and experimented role. The maps are mathematical and logical models, which are not just representing the contents of the real space, but also their specific and relational traits which can’t be seen at first sight. Atlas is modeled contexture contents of treated thematic of space on optimal map union. Atlases are higher form of cartography. Modern computer's technology and specific software make possible better and faster making of all kinds of maps, atlases and spatial analysis connections and relationships among all elements of contents from concrete space which is, until now, demand much more time or they can not imagine.

Joint enterprise and the role of the intermediator

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bjørn, Pernille; Simonsen, Jesper

2005-01-01

, by analyzing the failure of inte-grating groupware into two global virtual teams within industry. We present an empirically driven interpretive case study conducted in a large distributed global or-ganization. Based on the empirical observations, we reveal two organizational factors challenging the inte......-gration process: The importance of joint enterprise and the role of the intermediator....

Separable roles of UFO during floral development revealed by conditional restoration of gene function.

Science.gov (United States)

Laufs, Patrick; Coen, Enrico; Kronenberger, Jocelyne; Traas, Jan; Doonan, John

2003-02-01

The UNUSUAL FLORAL ORGANS (UFO) gene is required for several aspects of floral development in Arabidopsis including specification of organ identity in the second and third whorls and the proper pattern of primordium initiation in the inner three whorls. UFO is expressed in a dynamic pattern during the early phases of flower development. Here we dissect the role of UFO by ubiquitously expressing it in ufo loss-of-function flowers at different developmental stages and for various durations using an ethanol-inducible expression system. The previously known functions of UFO could be separated and related to its expression at specific stages of development. We show that a 24- to 48-hour period of UFO expression from floral stage 2, before any floral organs are visible, is sufficient to restore normal petal and stamen development. The earliest requirement for UFO is during stage 2, when the endogenous UFO gene is transiently expressed in the centre of the wild-type flower and is required to specify the initiation patterns of petal, stamen and carpel primordia. Petal and stamen identity is determined during stages 2 or 3, when UFO is normally expressed in the presumptive second and third whorl. Although endogenous UFO expression is absent from the stamen whorl from stage 4 onwards, stamen identity can be restored by UFO activation up to stage 6. We also observed floral phenotypes not observed in loss-of-function or constitutive gain-of-function backgrounds, revealing additional roles of UFO in outgrowth of petal primordia.

The importance of health advocacy in Canadian postgraduate medical education: current attitudes and issues

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Alexander Poulton

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Health advocacy is currently a key component of medical education in North America. In Canada, Health Advocate is one of the seven roles included in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada’s CanMEDS competency framework. Method: A literature search was undertaken to determine the current state of health advocacy in Canadian postgraduate medical education and to identify issues facing educators and learners with regards to health advocacy training. Results:  The literature revealed that the Health Advocate role is considered among the least relevant to clinical practice by educators and learners and among the most challenging to teach and assess. Furthermore learners feel their educational needs are not being met in this area. A number of key barriers affecting health advocacy education were identified including limited published material on the subject, lack of clarity within the role, insufficient explicit role modeling in practice, and lack of a gold standard for assessment. Health advocacy is defined and its importance to medical practice is highlighted, using pediatric emergency medicine as an example. Conclusions: Increased published literature and awareness of the role, along with integration of the new 2015 CanMEDS framework, are important going forward to address concerns regarding the quality of postgraduate health advocacy education in Canada.

The importance of health advocacy in Canadian postgraduate medical education: current attitudes and issues.

Science.gov (United States)

Poulton, Alexander; Rose, Heather

2015-01-01

Health advocacy is currently a key component of medical education in North America. In Canada, Health Advocate is one of the seven roles included in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada's CanMEDS competency framework. A literature search was undertaken to determine the current state of health advocacy in Canadian postgraduate medical education and to identify issues facing educators and learners with regards to health advocacy training. The literature revealed that the Health Advocate role is considered among the least relevant to clinical practice by educators and learners and among the most challenging to teach and assess. Furthermore learners feel their educational needs are not being met in this area. A number of key barriers affecting health advocacy education were identified including limited published material on the subject, lack of clarity within the role, insufficient explicit role modeling in practice, and lack of a gold standard for assessment. Health advocacy is defined and its importance to medical practice is highlighted, using pediatric emergency medicine as an example. Increased published literature and awareness of the role, along with integration of the new 2015 CanMEDS framework, are important going forward to address concerns regarding the quality of postgraduate health advocacy education in Canada.

A Role of Endogenous Progesterone in Stroke Cerebroprotection Revealed by the Neural-Specific Deletion of Its Intracellular Receptors.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Xiaoyan; Fréchou, Magalie; Liere, Philippe; Zhang, Shaodong; Pianos, Antoine; Fernandez, Neïké; Denier, Christian; Mattern, Claudia; Schumacher, Michael; Guennoun, Rachida

2017-11-08

Treatment with progesterone protects the male and female brain against damage after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). However, in both sexes, the brain contains significant amounts of endogenous progesterone. It is not known whether endogenously produced progesterone enhances the resistance of the brain to ischemic insult. Here, we used steroid profiling by gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) for exploring adaptive and sex-specific changes in brain levels of progesterone and its metabolites after MCAO. We show that, in the male mouse brain, progesterone is mainly metabolized via 5α-reduction leading to 5α-dihydroprogesterone (5α-DHP), also a progesterone receptor (PR) agonist ligand in neural cells, then to 3α,5α-tetrahydroprogesterone (3α,5α-THP). In the female mouse brain, levels of 5α-DHP and 3α,5α-THP are lower and levels of 20α-DHP are higher than in males. After MCAO, levels of progesterone and 5α-DHP are upregulated rapidly to pregnancy-like levels in the male but not in the female brain. To assess whether endogenous progesterone and 5α-DHP contribute to the resistance of neural cells to ischemic damage, we inactivated PR selectively in the CNS. Deletion of PR in the brain reduced its resistance to MCAO, resulting in increased infarct volumes and neurological deficits in both sexes. Importantly, endogenous PR ligands continue to protect the brain of aging mice. These results uncover the unexpected importance of endogenous progesterone and its metabolites in cerebroprotection. They also reveal that the female reproductive hormone progesterone is an endogenous cerebroprotective neurosteroid in both sexes. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The brain responds to injury with protective signaling and has a remarkable capacity to protect itself. We show here that, in response to ischemic stroke, levels of progesterone and its neuroactive metabolite 5α-dihydroprogesterone are upregulated rapidly in the male mouse brain but not in the

Diuron treatment reveals the different roles of two cyclic electron transfer pathways in photosystem II in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Yujian; Chen, Si; Fan, Xiaoji; Song, Hao; Li, Xingxing; Xu, Jiahui; Qian, Haifeng

2017-04-01

Three ecotypes of Arabidopsis thaliana, ecotype Columbia (Wild type, Wt) and two mutants (pgr5 and ndf4), were used to evaluate the effects of diuron on photosynthetic activity of A. thaliana. It was found that diuron adversely affected the fresh weight and chlorophyll content of the plants. Chlorophyll fluorescence studies determined that the pgr5 mutant was more sensitive to diuron than Wt and the ndf4 mutant. Gene expression analysis revealed different roles for the two cyclic electron transfer (CET) pathways, NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (NDH) and proton gradient regulation (PGR5) pathways, in the plant after diuron treatment. For example, a gene in the NDH pathway, lhca5, was activated in the low dose (LD) group in the pgr5 mutant, but was down-regulated in the moderate dose (MD) group, along with two other NDH-related genes (ppl2 and ndhH). In the PGR5 pathway, the pgr5 gene was functional under conditions of increased stress (MD group), and was up-regulated to a greater extent in the ndf4 mutant than that in the Wt and pgr5 mutant. Our results suggest that the PGR5 pathway in plants is more important than the NDH pathway during resistance to environmental stress. Deficiencies in the PGR5 pathway could not be counteracted by the NDH pathway, but deficiencies in the NDH pathway could be overcome by stimulating PGR5. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Autophagy plays an important role in protecting Pacific oysters from OsHV-1 and Vibrio aestuarianus infections.

Science.gov (United States)

Moreau, Pierrick; Moreau, Kevin; Segarra, Amélie; Tourbiez, Delphine; Travers, Marie-Agnès; Rubinsztein, David C; Renault, Tristan

2015-01-01

Recent mass mortality outbreaks around the world in Pacific oysters, Crassostrea gigas, have seriously affected the aquaculture economy. Although the causes for these mortality outbreaks appear complex, infectious agents are involved. Two pathogens are associated with mass mortality outbreaks, the virus ostreid herpesvirus 1 (OsHV-1) and the bacterium Vibrio aestuarianus. Here we describe the interactions between these 2 pathogens and autophagy, a conserved intracellular pathway playing a key role in innate immunity. We show for the first time that autophagy pathway is present and functional in Pacific oysters and plays an important role to protect animals from infections. This study contributes to better understand the innate immune system of Pacific oysters.

The role of women in family businesses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaka Vadnjal

2010-11-01

Full Text Available

The role of women in family businesses is explored in the paper. Although recognised as generally very important players, the role of women is oft en defined as invisible in business decision-making, supportive in men’s traditional business domains and only rarely adequately recognised and rewarded. The paper explores possible differences in the views of men and women who manage small family firms. Their attitudes opposing the traditional business roles of women, different views on managerial, ownership and transition issues and possible gender discrimination are examined. The findings support the paradigm of a different, more feminine style of management, while signs of discrimination are not clearly revealed.

The important roles of nuclear energy in the future energy system of China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yingzhong, L.

1984-01-01

The goal of Four Modernizations in China requires doubling present energy production by the year 2000. Because of uneven geographic distribution of coal and hydropower resources, difficulties in exploitation and transportation, and environmental issues, conventional energy alone could not meet the tremendous energy demand in the most densely populated and highly industrialized coastal provinces. Therefore nuclear energy will play an increasingly important role in such regions and is now considered indispensable for the development of China's economy. Nuclear energy will supply not only base-load electricity but district heating and process heat in these provinces. Another promising potential application of nuclear heat will be in the petroleum industry. Nuclear energy will find broad applications in various sectors of China's economy as the country achieves the Four Modernizations. (author)

Increasing evidence for the important role of Labyrinthulomycetes in marine ecosystems

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Raghukumar, S.; Damare, V.S.

This review summarizes increasing evidence for the role of Labyrinthulomycetes in marine ecosystems gathered over the last six decades. It focuses on their diversity, habitats, biomass, productivity and overall role in food webs and remineralization...

What Is the Role and Importance of the Revised AERA, APA, NCME "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing"?

Science.gov (United States)

Plake, Barbara S.; Wise, Lauress L.

2014-01-01

With the 2014 publication of the 5th revision of the "Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing," the cochairs of the Joint Committee for the revision process were asked to consider the role and importance of the "Standards" for the educational testing community, and in particular for members of the National Council…

Spatially resolved metabolic analysis reveals a central role for transcriptional control in carbon allocation to wood.

Science.gov (United States)

Roach, Melissa; Arrivault, Stéphanie; Mahboubi, Amir; Krohn, Nicole; Sulpice, Ronan; Stitt, Mark; Niittylä, Totte

2017-06-15

The contribution of transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation to modifying carbon allocation to developing wood of trees is not well defined. To clarify the role of transcriptional regulation, the enzyme activity patterns of eight central primary metabolism enzymes across phloem, cambium, and developing wood of aspen (Populus tremula L.) were compared with transcript levels obtained by RNA sequencing of sequential stem sections from the same trees. Enzymes were selected on the basis of their importance in sugar metabolism and in linking primary metabolism to lignin biosynthesis. Existing enzyme assays were adapted to allow measurements from ~1 mm3 sections of dissected stem tissue. These experiments provided high spatial resolution of enzyme activity changes across different stages of wood development, and identified the gene transcripts probably responsible for these changes. In most cases, there was a clear positive relationship between transcripts and enzyme activity. During secondary cell wall formation, the increases in transcript levels and enzyme activities also matched with increased levels of glucose, fructose, hexose phosphates, and UDP-glucose, emphasizing an important role for transcriptional regulation in carbon allocation to developing aspen wood. These observations corroborate the efforts to increase carbon allocation to wood by engineering gene regulatory networks. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

Peptidoglycan crosslinking relaxation plays an important role in Staphylococcus aureus WalKR-dependent cell viability.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aurelia Delaune

Full Text Available The WalKR two-component system is essential for viability of Staphylococcus aureus, a major pathogen. We have shown that WalKR acts as the master controller of peptidoglycan metabolism, yet none of the identified regulon genes explain its requirement for cell viability. Transmission electron micrographs revealed cell wall thickening and aberrant division septa in the absence of WalKR, suggesting its requirement may be linked to its role in coordinating cell wall metabolism and cell division. We therefore tested whether uncoupling autolysin gene expression from WalKR-dependent regulation could compensate for its essential nature. Uncoupled expression of genes encoding lytic transglycosylases or amidases did not restore growth to a WalKR-depleted strain. We identified only two WalKR-regulon genes whose expression restored cell viability in the absence of WalKR: lytM and ssaA. Neither of these two genes are essential under our conditions and a ΔlytM ΔssaA mutant does not present any growth defect. LytM is a glycyl-glycyl endopeptidase, hydrolyzing the pentaglycine interpeptide crossbridge, and SsaA belongs to the CHAP amidase family, members of which such as LysK and LytA have been shown to have D-alanyl-glycyl endopeptidase activity, cleaving between the crossbridge and the stem peptide. Taken together, our results strongly suggest that peptidoglycan crosslinking relaxation through crossbridge hydrolysis plays a crucial role in the essential requirement of the WalKR system for cell viability.

The Leadership Roles of a Principal in Improving School Effectiveness

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Burhanuddin Burhanuddin

2016-02-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to investigate the leadership roles and practices of the principal in improving school effectiveness. This descriptive study involved the principal , counselor, and 11 teachers from the Tonsley Park Primary School in South Australia. The findings showed that all respondents generally regarded team leader as the most important role, while supervisor was rated as the least important. Of the 20 tasks observed, generally revealed that a principal should work cooperatively with staff to ensure more effective use of their skills. While, the task of a principal in making decisions on staff development programs was not necessarily expected by the practicing teachers. All respondents considered organization coordination as the most important area within which a principal should provide more leadership, while curriculum or instructional improvement and innovation was regarded as the least important

Revealing conceptual understanding of international business

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sue Ashley; Dr. Harmen Schaap; Prof.Dr. Elly de Bruijn

2017-01-01

This study aims to identify an adequate approach for revealing conceptual understanding in higher professional education. Revealing students’ conceptual understanding is an important step towards developing effective curricula, assessment and aligned teaching strategies to enhance conceptual

Expression atlas and comparative coexpression network analyses reveal important genes involved in the formation of lignified cell wall in Brachypodium distachyon.

Science.gov (United States)

Sibout, Richard; Proost, Sebastian; Hansen, Bjoern Oest; Vaid, Neha; Giorgi, Federico M; Ho-Yue-Kuang, Severine; Legée, Frédéric; Cézart, Laurent; Bouchabké-Coussa, Oumaya; Soulhat, Camille; Provart, Nicholas; Pasha, Asher; Le Bris, Philippe; Roujol, David; Hofte, Herman; Jamet, Elisabeth; Lapierre, Catherine; Persson, Staffan; Mutwil, Marek

2017-08-01

While Brachypodium distachyon (Brachypodium) is an emerging model for grasses, no expression atlas or gene coexpression network is available. Such tools are of high importance to provide insights into the function of Brachypodium genes. We present a detailed Brachypodium expression atlas, capturing gene expression in its major organs at different developmental stages. The data were integrated into a large-scale coexpression database ( www.gene2function.de), enabling identification of duplicated pathways and conserved processes across 10 plant species, thus allowing genome-wide inference of gene function. We highlight the importance of the atlas and the platform through the identification of duplicated cell wall modules, and show that a lignin biosynthesis module is conserved across angiosperms. We identified and functionally characterised a putative ferulate 5-hydroxylase gene through overexpression of it in Brachypodium, which resulted in an increase in lignin syringyl units and reduced lignin content of mature stems, and led to improved saccharification of the stem biomass. Our Brachypodium expression atlas thus provides a powerful resource to reveal functionally related genes, which may advance our understanding of important biological processes in grasses. © 2017 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2017 New Phytologist Trust.

Import substitution and its role in food security and agricultural development in the region

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E. V. Pastushkova

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The article presents the analysis of the security of the food market during the period 2010-2015, with an account of modern conditions of economy of the Russian Federation. The volume of production (manufacturing of major food products in Russia in the period 2010-2015 indicate the increase in domestic production of food products such as meat products, fish and fish products, frozen fruits and vegetables, milk and dairy products. Key categories of micro-economic analysis is supply and demand in selected markets. On the basis of information about the diets of the population per capita in the region and Russia as a whole, revealed that the consumption of meat and meat products, eggs complies with the standards. The problem of formation of demand for food products is relevant due to the fact that consumption and demand for food in large parts of the population formed at an insufficient level due to low incomes. In examining the share of imported products in the food market of the Russian Federation, it was identified that there is a dependency on the following inventory: beef (import share of 57.3%, animal oil (34.4 per cent and cheese (37.3 per cent. In the conditions of modern development of the economy another important factor is the state support of import substitution advocating a kind of incentive for the development and protection of own food production. Assessment of the dynamics of foreign trade turnover of trade in the region helps to identify trends in the development of relations in the region. The analysis of the index of foreign trade of the Urals Federal district in the period 2012-2016 has undergone minor changes, this fact is due to the introduction of foreign sanctions. Import substitution is one of the main factors contributing to implement large-scale and deep modernization of the domestic agricultural sector, causing the use of leading technology.

The importance of familia for Latina/o college students: examining the role of familial support in intragroup marginalization.

Science.gov (United States)

Llamas, Jasmín D; Morgan Consoli, Melissa

2012-10-01

Intragroup marginalization refers to the perceived interpersonal distancing by members of the heritage culture when an individual exhibits cultural characteristics of the dominant group. This study expands understanding of the college experience of Latina/o students by examining relationships between intragroup marginalization, college adjustment, resilience, and thriving in a sample of 181 Latina/o college students, ranging from freshman to graduate students. In addition, the role of familial social support is explored to determine any possible mediating effects on the relationship between intragroup marginalization, college adjustment, resilience, and thriving. Findings revealed that intragroup marginalization predicted college adjustment, resilience, and thriving. Familial social support was found to mediate the relationship between intragroup marginalization and thriving. This research highlights the negative impact of intragroup marginalization for Latina/o students, as well as the role of familial support in thriving. The results also shed light on the Latina/o college experience as a means to improving Latina/o students' college outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).

SWATH label-free proteomics analyses revealed the roles of oxidative stress and antioxidant defensing system in sclerotia formation of Polyporus umbellatus

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Bing; Tian, Xiaofang; Wang, Chunlan; Zeng, Xu; Xing, Yongmei; Ling, Hong; Yin, Wanqiang; Tian, Lixia; Meng, Zhixia; Zhang, Jihui; Guo, Shunxing

2017-01-01

Understanding the initiation and maturing mechanisms is important for rational manipulating sclerotia differentiation and growth from hypha of Polyporus umbellatus. Proteomes in P. umbellatus sclerotia and hyphae at initial, developmental and mature phases were studied. 1391 proteins were identified by nano-liquid chromatograph-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) in Data Dependant Acquisition mode, and 1234 proteins were quantified successfully by Sequential Window Acquisition of all THeoretical fragment ion spectra-MS (SWATH-MS) technology. There were 347 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) in sclerotia at initial phase compared with those in hypha, and the DEP profiles were dynamically changing with sclerotia growth. Oxidative stress (OS) in sclerotia at initial phase was indicated by the repressed proteins of respiratory chain, tricarboxylic acid cycle and the activation of glycolysis/gluconeogenesis pathways were determined based on DEPs. The impact of glycolysis/gluconeogenesis on sclerotium induction was further verified by glycerol addition assays, in which 5% glycerol significantly increased sclerotial differentiation rate and biomass. It can be speculated that OS played essential roles in triggering sclerotia differentiation from hypha of P. umbellatus, whereas antioxidant activity associated with glycolysis is critical for sclerotia growth. These findings reveal a mechanism for sclerotial differentiation in P. umbellatus, which may also be applicable for other fungi.

The Common Agricultural Policy Role in Addressing External Shocks - The Case of Russian Import Ban

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ANDREEA DRĂGOI

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP is one of the oldest and most controversial common policies and it is financed directly from the European Union budget. Some critics of CAP argue that especially in the context of the challenges brought by the international crisis, this policy represents a “burden” for the European budget. Our research aims to responds those critics by showing that CAP may represent an important tool for addressing the external shocks impact on agricultural sector of EU. In this view, we will highlight the role of CAP in sustaining the European farmer during the crisis generated by the Russian import ban, adopted as a response to the sanctions imposed by EU to the Russian Federation in the context of Ukrainian crisis. Using a quantitative and qualitative analysis we will assess how the CAP has supported the European agricultural sector and also the future measures that could be adopted to create a more flexible response in the case of other external shocks.

Elucidation of the regulatory role of the fructose operon reveals a novel target for enhancing the NADPH supply in Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Zhihao; Chan, Siu Hung Joshua; Sudarsan, Suresh; Blank, Lars M; Jensen, Peter Ruhdal; Solem, Christian

2016-11-01

The performance of Corynebacterium glutamicum cell factories producing compounds which rely heavily on NADPH has been reported to depend on the sugar being metabolized. While some aspects of this phenomenon have been elucidated, there are still many unresolved questions as to how sugar metabolism is linked to redox and to the general metabolism. We here provide new insights into the regulation of the metabolism of this important platform organism by systematically characterizing mutants carrying various lesions in the fructose operon. Initially, we found that a strain where the dedicated fructose uptake system had been inactivated (KO-ptsF) was hampered in growth on sucrose minimal medium, and suppressor mutants appeared readily. Comparative genomic analysis in conjunction with enzymatic assays revealed that suppression was linked to inactivation of the pfkB gene, encoding a fructose-1-phosphate kinase. Detailed characterization of KO-ptsF, KO-pfkB and double knock-out (DKO) derivatives revealed a strong role for sugar-phosphates, especially fructose-1-phosphate (F1P), in governing sugar as well as redox metabolism due to effects on transcriptional regulation of key genes. These findings allowed us to propose a simple model explaining the correlation between sugar phosphate concentration, gene expression and ultimately the observed phenotype. To guide us in our analysis and help us identify bottlenecks in metabolism we debugged an existing genome-scale model onto which we overlaid the transcriptome data. Based on the results obtained we managed to enhance the NADPH supply and transform the wild-type strain into delivering the highest yield of lysine ever obtained on sucrose and fructose, thus providing a good example of how regulatory mechanisms can be harnessed for bioproduction. Copyright © 2016 International Metabolic Engineering Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Balancing multiple roles through consensus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Oshima, Sae

2014-01-01

, the stylist and the client negotiate not only the quality of the cut, but also their expected roles. Caring about both the bodies and the minds of customers is an important element in measuring the quality of cosmetological services, a consideration which may oblige stylists to immediately agree with and act...... upon every client request or concern. However, simply yielding to the customer’s opinions can threaten the stylist’s role as a beauty expert, one who possesses their own professional standards. The analysis reveals that the participants frequently transform revision requests/offers into mutual...... decisions through a combination of verbal and bodily actions. In doing so, they harmonize the sometimes conflicting responsibilities of “service provider/patron” and “expert/novice.”...

The right thalamus may play an important role in anesthesia-awakening regulation in frogs

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Yanzhu Fan

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Background Previous studies have shown that the mammalian thalamus is a key structure for anesthesia-induced unconsciousness and anesthesia-awakening regulation. However, both the dynamic characteristics and probable lateralization of thalamic functioning during anesthesia-awakening regulation are not fully understood, and little is known of the evolutionary basis of the role of the thalamus in anesthesia-awakening regulation. Methods An amphibian species, the South African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis was used in the present study. The frogs were immersed in triciane methanesulfonate (MS-222 for general anesthesia. Electroencephalogram (EEG signals were recorded continuously from both sides of the telencephalon, diencephalon (thalamus and mesencephalon during the pre-anesthesia stage, administration stage, recovery stage and post-anesthesia stage. EEG data was analyzed including calculation of approximate entropy (ApEn and permutation entropy (PE. Results Both ApEn and PE values differed significantly between anesthesia stages, with the highest values occurring during the awakening period and the lowest values during the anesthesia period. There was a significant correlation between the stage durations and ApEn or PE values during anesthesia-awakening cycle primarily for the right diencephalon (right thalamus. ApEn and PE values for females were significantly higher than those for males. Discussion ApEn and PE measurements are suitable for estimating depth of anesthesia and complexity of amphibian brain activity. The right thalamus appears physiologically positioned to play an important role in anesthesia-awakening regulation in frogs indicating an early evolutionary origin of the role of the thalamus in arousal and consciousness in land vertebrates. Sex differences exist in the neural regulation of general anesthesia in frogs.

A new set of ESTs from chickpea (Cicer arietinum L. embryo reveals two novel F-box genes, CarF-box_PP2 and CarF-box_LysM, with potential roles in seed development.

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Shefali Gupta

Full Text Available Considering the economic importance of chickpea (C. arietinum L. seeds, it is important to understand the mechanisms underlying seed development for which a cDNA library was constructed from 6 day old chickpea embryos. A total of 8,186 ESTs were obtained from which 4,048 high quality ESTs were assembled into 1,480 unigenes that majorly encoded genes involved in various metabolic and regulatory pathways. Of these, 95 ESTs were found to be involved in ubiquitination related protein degradation pathways and 12 ESTs coded specifically for putative F-box proteins. Differential transcript accumulation of these putative F-box genes was observed in chickpea tissues as evidenced by quantitative real-time PCR. Further, to explore the role of F-box proteins in chickpea seed development, two F-box genes were selected for molecular characterization. These were named as CarF-box_PP2 and CarF-box_LysM depending on their C-terminal domains, PP2 and LysM, respectively. Their highly conserved structures led us to predict their target substrates. Subcellular localization experiment revealed that CarF-box_PP2 was localized in the cytoplasm and CarF-box_LysM was localized in the nucleus. We demonstrated their physical interactions with SKP1 protein, which validated that they function as F-box proteins in the formation of SCF complexes. Sequence analysis of their promoter regions revealed certain seed specific cis-acting elements that may be regulating their preferential transcript accumulation in the seed. Overall, the study helped in expanding the EST database of chickpea, which was further used to identify two novel F-box genes having a potential role in seed development.

A new set of ESTs from chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) embryo reveals two novel F-box genes, CarF-box_PP2 and CarF-box_LysM, with potential roles in seed development.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Shefali; Garg, Vanika; Bhatia, Sabhyata

2015-01-01

Considering the economic importance of chickpea (C. arietinum L.) seeds, it is important to understand the mechanisms underlying seed development for which a cDNA library was constructed from 6 day old chickpea embryos. A total of 8,186 ESTs were obtained from which 4,048 high quality ESTs were assembled into 1,480 unigenes that majorly encoded genes involved in various metabolic and regulatory pathways. Of these, 95 ESTs were found to be involved in ubiquitination related protein degradation pathways and 12 ESTs coded specifically for putative F-box proteins. Differential transcript accumulation of these putative F-box genes was observed in chickpea tissues as evidenced by quantitative real-time PCR. Further, to explore the role of F-box proteins in chickpea seed development, two F-box genes were selected for molecular characterization. These were named as CarF-box_PP2 and CarF-box_LysM depending on their C-terminal domains, PP2 and LysM, respectively. Their highly conserved structures led us to predict their target substrates. Subcellular localization experiment revealed that CarF-box_PP2 was localized in the cytoplasm and CarF-box_LysM was localized in the nucleus. We demonstrated their physical interactions with SKP1 protein, which validated that they function as F-box proteins in the formation of SCF complexes. Sequence analysis of their promoter regions revealed certain seed specific cis-acting elements that may be regulating their preferential transcript accumulation in the seed. Overall, the study helped in expanding the EST database of chickpea, which was further used to identify two novel F-box genes having a potential role in seed development.

Autophagy plays an important role in Sunitinib-mediated cell death in H9c2 cardiac muscle cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao Yuqin; Xue Tao; Yang Xiaochun; Zhu Hong; Ding Xiaofei; Lou Liming; Lu Wei; Yang Bo; He Qiaojun

2010-01-01

Sunitinib, which is a multitargeted tyrosine-kinase inhibitor, exhibits antiangiogenic and antitumor activity, and extends survival of patients with metastatic renal-cell carcinoma (mRCC) and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST). This molecule has also been reported to be associated with cardiotoxicity at a high frequency, but the mechanism is still unknown. In the present study, we observed that Sunitinib showed high anti-proliferative effect on H9c2 cardiac muscle cells measured by PI staining and the MTT assay. But apoptotic markers (PARP cleavage, caspase 3 cleavage and chromatin condensation) were uniformly negative in H9c2 cells after Sunitinib treatment for 48 h, indicating that another cell death pathway may be involved in Sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity. Here we found Sunitinib dramatically increased autophagic flux in H9c2 cells. Acidic vesicle fluorescence and high expression of LC3-II in H9c2 cells identified autophagy as a Sunitinib-induced process that might be associated with cytotoxicity. Furthermore, knocking down Beclin 1 by RNA-interference to block autophagy in H9c2 cells revealed that the death rate was decreased when treated with Sunitinib in comparison to control cells. These results confirmed that autophagy plays an important role in Sunitinib-mediated H9c2 cells cytotoxicity. Taken together, the data presented here strongly suggest that autophagy is associated with Sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity, and that inhibition of autophagy constitutes a viable strategy for reducing Sunitinib-induced cardiomyocyte death thereby alleviating Sunitinib cardiotoxicity.

Multi-variant pathway association analysis reveals the importance of genetic determinants of estrogen metabolism in breast and endometrial cancer susceptibility.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yen Ling Low

2010-07-01

Full Text Available Despite the central role of estrogen exposure in breast and endometrial cancer development and numerous studies of genes in the estrogen metabolic pathway, polymorphisms within the pathway have not been consistently associated with these cancers. We posit that this is due to the complexity of multiple weak genetic effects within the metabolic pathway that can only be effectively detected through multi-variant analysis. We conducted a comprehensive association analysis of the estrogen metabolic pathway by interrogating 239 tagSNPs within 35 genes of the pathway in three tumor samples. The discovery sample consisted of 1,596 breast cancer cases, 719 endometrial cancer cases, and 1,730 controls from Sweden; and the validation sample included 2,245 breast cancer cases and 1,287 controls from Finland. We performed admixture maximum likelihood (AML-based global tests to evaluate the cumulative effect from multiple SNPs within the whole metabolic pathway and three sub-pathways for androgen synthesis, androgen-to-estrogen conversion, and estrogen removal. In the discovery sample, although no single polymorphism was significant after correction for multiple testing, the pathway-based AML global test suggested association with both breast (p(global = 0.034 and endometrial (p(global = 0.052 cancers. Further testing revealed the association to be focused on polymorphisms within the androgen-to-estrogen conversion sub-pathway, for both breast (p(global = 0.008 and endometrial cancer (p(global = 0.014. The sub-pathway association was validated in the Finnish sample of breast cancer (p(global = 0.015. Further tumor subtype analysis demonstrated that the association of the androgen-to-estrogen conversion sub-pathway was confined to postmenopausal women with sporadic estrogen receptor positive tumors (p(global = 0.0003. Gene-based AML analysis suggested CYP19A1 and UGT2B4 to be the major players within the sub-pathway. Our study indicates that the composite

The adipocyte as an important target cell for Trypanosoma cruzi infection.

Science.gov (United States)

Combs, Terry P; Nagajyothi; Mukherjee, Shankar; de Almeida, Cecilia J G; Jelicks, Linda A; Schubert, William; Lin, Ying; Jayabalan, David S; Zhao, Dazhi; Braunstein, Vicki L; Landskroner-Eiger, Shira; Cordero, Aisha; Factor, Stephen M; Weiss, Louis M; Lisanti, Michael P; Tanowitz, Herbert B; Scherer, Philipp E

2005-06-24

Adipose tissue plays an active role in normal metabolic homeostasis as well as in the development of human disease. Beyond its obvious role as a depot for triglycerides, adipose tissue controls energy expenditure through secretion of several factors. Little attention has been given to the role of adipocytes in the pathogenesis of Chagas disease and the associated metabolic alterations. Our previous studies have indicated that hyperglycemia significantly increases parasitemia and mortality in mice infected with Trypanosoma cruzi. We determined the consequences of adipocyte infection in vitro and in vivo. Cultured 3T3-L1 adipocytes can be infected with high efficiency. Electron micrographs of infected cells revealed a large number of intracellular parasites that cluster around lipid droplets. Furthermore, infected adipocytes exhibited changes in expression levels of a number of different adipocyte-specific or adipocyte-enriched proteins. The adipocyte is therefore an important target cell during acute Chagas disease. Infection of adipocytes by T. cruzi profoundly influences the pattern of adipokines. During chronic infection, adipocytes may represent an important long-term reservoir for parasites from which relapse of infection can occur. We have demonstrated that acute infection has a unique metabolic profile with a high degree of local inflammation in adipose tissue, hypoadiponectinemia, hypoglycemia, and hypoinsulinemia but with relatively normal glucose disposal during an oral glucose tolerance test.

The Role of Peers in Predicting Students' Homophobic Behavior: Effects of Peer Aggression, Prejudice, and Sexual Orientation Identity Importance

Science.gov (United States)

Poteat, V. Paul; Rivers, Ian; Vecho, Olivier

2015-01-01

Drawing from an ecological framework, there has been growing attention on the role of peers in accounting for adolescents' homophobic behavior. In this study, we considered whether individuals' homophobic behavior could be attributed to their peers' collective levels of aggression, sexual prejudice, and importance placed on their sexual…

Fabricating the "Southern Belle": Assessing the Role of Imported Material Culture in the Confederacy

Science.gov (United States)

Schwalbe, Emily A.

2017-10-01

Confederate society was dependent on a rigidly defined hierarchy that assigned roles and appropriate behavior based on race, gender, and wealth. White, wealthy, southern women were dependent on material culture as a socially acceptable means of self-fashioning and making their status public. The Union naval blockade threatened this practice by preventing Confederate markets from accessing imported, status-affirming goods. The industry of blockade running rose to fill this need, often controversially prioritizing cargo space for civilian, luxury products over necessities for the military. This article examines the artifact assemblages of blockade runner sites off the coasts of Wilmington, North Carolina and Charleston, South Carolina through a theoretical framework of agency and costly signaling to make assessments about Confederate identity during the Civil War.

The role of identification in dynamic psychiatry and psychotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Corradi, Richard B

2011-01-01

Identification-a psychic process in which a person takes on characteristics of another-is a concept important to the understanding of human nature. It plays an important role in how our personalities develop, in our ability to deal with life's stresses, and in how we interact with other people. Knowledge of its manifestations is essential to dynamic psychiatry and to its applications in psychotherapy. This article defines identification and reviews its role in development and as a defense. It discusses its role in the psychopathology of disorders commonly encountered in psychotherapy practice-depression and anxiety states reactive to losses in life, and borderline states. Clinical vignettes illustrate how identification functions in these conditions, and also how identifications reveal themselves in the transference and are utilized in psychotherapy. A teaching vignette illustrates how important it is that residents learning the art of psychotherapy appreciate the therapeutic potential of identification. The article maintains that, although it often goes unrecognized, identification with the therapist is one of the most effective therapeutic devices in the transference.

Transcriptome analysis reveals key differentially expressed genes involved in wheat grain development

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Yonglong Yu

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Wheat seed development is an important physiological process of seed maturation and directly affects wheat yield and quality. In this study, we performed dynamic transcriptome microarray analysis of an elite Chinese bread wheat cultivar (Jimai 20 during grain development using the GeneChip Wheat Genome Array. Grain morphology and scanning electron microscope observations showed that the period of 11–15 days post-anthesis (DPA was a key stage for the synthesis and accumulation of seed starch. Genome-wide transcriptional profiling and significance analysis of microarrays revealed that the period from 11 to 15 DPA was more important than the 15–20 DPA stage for the synthesis and accumulation of nutritive reserves. Series test of cluster analysis of differential genes revealed five statistically significant gene expression profiles. Gene ontology annotation and enrichment analysis gave further information about differentially expressed genes, and MapMan analysis revealed expression changes within functional groups during seed development. Metabolic pathway network analysis showed that major and minor metabolic pathways regulate one another to ensure regular seed development and nutritive reserve accumulation. We performed gene co-expression network analysis to identify genes that play vital roles in seed development and identified several key genes involved in important metabolic pathways. The transcriptional expression of eight key genes involved in starch and protein synthesis and stress defense was further validated by qRT-PCR. Our results provide new insight into the molecular mechanisms of wheat seed development and the determinants of yield and quality.

Revealing Conceptual Understanding of International Business

Science.gov (United States)

Ashley, Sue; Schaap, Harmen; de Bruijn, Elly

2017-01-01

This study aims to identify an adequate approach for revealing conceptual understanding in higher professional education. Revealing students' conceptual understanding is an important step towards developing effective curricula, assessment and aligned teaching strategies to enhance conceptual understanding in higher education. Essays and concept…

Sorption of phenanthrene and benzene on differently structural kerogen: Important role of micropore-filling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Yulong; Ma, Xiaoxuan; Ran, Yong

2014-01-01

Shale was thermally treated to obtain a series of kerogen with varied maturation. Their chemical, structural and porous properties were related to the sorption and/or desorption behaviors of phenanthrene and benzene. As the treatment temperature increases, aliphatic and carbonyl carbon of the kerogen samples decrease, while their aromaticity and maturation increase. Meanwhile, the isothermal nonlinearity of phenanthrene and benzene increases whereas the sorption capacity and micropore adsorption volumes (V o,d ) initially increase and then decrease. The V o,d of benzene is significantly correlated with, but higher than that of phenanthrene, suggesting similar micropore filling mechanism and molecular sieve effect. The benzene desorption exhibits hysteresis, which is related to the pore deformation of the kerogen and the entrapment of solute in the kerogen matrix. The V o,d of phenanthrene and benzene on the kerogen samples accounts for 23–46% and 36–65% of the maximum sorption volumes, respectively, displaying the importance of the micropore filling. -- Highlights: • The microporosity estimated by benzene vapor differs greatly from that by N 2 . • The micropore volume changes with kerogen maturation. • The phenanthrene or benzene sorption is related to the microporosity of kerogen. • Higher adsorption volume for benzene than for phenanthrene suggests molecular sieve effect. • The pore-filling plays an important role in the sorption of phenanthrene and benzene. -- The sorption behaviors of benzene and phenanthrene are related to the microporosity of the differently matured kerogen, indicating the importance of pore-filling

Apprenticeship in Scholarly Publishing: A Student Perspective on Doctoral Supervisors’ Roles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jun Lei

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Although a large body of literature has suggested that doctoral supervisors play an important role in their students’ attempts at scholarly publishing, few studies have focused specifically on what roles they play. This study sought to address this gap by zooming in on the various roles a group of Chinese doctoral students found their supervisors playing in their scholarly publishing endeavors. Our analysis revealed four important roles played by the supervisors: ‘prey’ searchers, managers, manuscript correctors and masters. The results showed that the supervisors not only facilitated the doctoral students’ publishing output, but also fostered their apprenticeship in scholarly publishing and the academic community. However, the results also unveiled a general unavailability of sorely-needed detailed and specific guidance on students’ early publishing attempts and some supervisors’ limited ability to correct students’ English manuscripts. These findings underscore the important contributions doctoral supervisors can make to their students’ academic socialization. They also suggest a need for external editorial assistance with doctoral students’ English manuscripts and ample opportunities for their scaffolded initiation into the tacit conventions and practices of scholarly publishing.

Quantitative proteomic study of Aspergillus Fumigatus secretome revealed deamidation of secretory enzymes.

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Adav, Sunil S; Ravindran, Anita; Sze, Siu Kwan

2015-04-24

Aspergillus sp. plays an essential role in lignocellulosic biomass recycling and is also exploited as cell factories for the production of industrial enzymes. This study profiled the secretome of Aspergillus fumigatus when grown with cellulose, xylan and starch by high throughput quantitative proteomics using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ). Post translational modifications (PTMs) of proteins play a critical role in protein functions. However, our understanding of the PTMs in secretory proteins is limited. Here, we present the identification of PTMs such as deamidation of secreted proteins of A. fumigatus. This study quantified diverse groups of extracellular secreted enzymes and their functional classification revealed cellulases and glycoside hydrolases (32.9%), amylases (0.9%), hemicellulases (16.2%), lignin degrading enzymes (8.1%), peptidases and proteases (11.7%), chitinases, lipases and phosphatases (7.6%), and proteins with unknown function (22.5%). The comparison of quantitative iTRAQ results revealed that cellulose and xylan stimulates expression of specific cellulases and hemicellulases, and their abundance level as a function of substrate. In-depth data analysis revealed deamidation as a major PTM of key cellulose hydrolyzing enzymes like endoglucanases, cellobiohydrolases and glucosidases. Hemicellulose degrading endo-1,4-beta-xylanase, monosidases, xylosidases, lignin degrading laccase, isoamyl alcohol oxidase and oxidoreductases were also found to be deamidated. The filamentous fungi play an essential role in lignocellulosic biomass recycling and fungal strains belonging to Aspergillus were also exploited as cell factories for the production of organic acids, pharmaceuticals, and industrially important enzymes. In this study, extracellular proteins secreted by thermophilic A. fumigatus when grown with cellulose, xylan and starch were profiled using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) by

Long-Term Live Cell Imaging Reveals New Roles For Salmonella Effector Proteins SseG and SteA

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McQuate, Sarah E.; Young, Alexandra M.; Silva-Herzog, Eugenia; Bunker, Eric; Hernandez, Mateo; de Chaumont, Fabrice; Liu, Xuedong; Detweiler, Corrella S.; Palmer, Amy E.

2016-01-01

Summary Salmonella Typhimurium is an intracellular bacterial pathogen that infects both epithelial cells and macrophages. Salmonella effector proteins, which are translocated into the host cell and manipulate host cell components, control the ability to replicate and/or survive in host cells. Due to the complexity and heterogeneity of Salmonella infections, there is growing recognition of the need for single cell and live-cell imaging approaches to identify and characterize the diversity of cellular phenotypes and how they evolve over time. Here we establish a pipeline for long-term (16 hours) live-cell imaging of infected cells and subsequent image analysis methods. We apply this pipeline to track bacterial replication within the Salmonella-containing vacuole in epithelial cells, quantify vacuolar replication versus survival in macrophages, and investigate the role of individual effector proteins in mediating these parameters. This approach revealed that dispersed bacteria can coalesce at later stages of infection, that the effector protein SseG influences the propensity for cytosolic hyperreplication in epithelial cells, and that while SteA only has a subtle effect on vacuolar replication in epithelial cells, it has a profound impact on infection parameters in immunocompetent macrophages, suggesting differential roles for effector proteins in different infection models. PMID:27376507

Importance of tyrosine phosphorylation in receptor kinase complexes.

Science.gov (United States)

Macho, Alberto P; Lozano-Durán, Rosa; Zipfel, Cyril

2015-05-01

Tyrosine phosphorylation is an important post-translational modification that is known to regulate receptor kinase (RK)-mediated signaling in animals. Plant RKs are annotated as serine/threonine kinases, but recent work has revealed that tyrosine phosphorylation is also crucial for the activation of RK-mediated signaling in plants. These initial observations have paved the way for subsequent detailed studies on the mechanism of activation of plant RKs and the biological relevance of tyrosine phosphorylation for plant growth and immunity. In this Opinion article we review recent reports on the contribution of RK tyrosine phosphorylation in plant growth and immunity; we propose that tyrosine phosphorylation plays a major regulatory role in the initiation and transduction of RK-mediated signaling in plants. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Embodiment of the interpersonal nexus: revealing qualitative research findings on shoulder surgery patients

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Glass N

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Nel Glass, K Robyn OgleSchool of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine, Australian Catholic University, Fitzroy, VIC, AustraliaBackground: The paper reports on the importance of the interpersonal nexus within qualitative research processes, from a recent research project on patient experiences of shoulder surgery. Our aim is to reveal the importance of qualitative research processes and specifically the role of the interpersonal nexus in generating quality data. Literature related to the importance of human interactions and interpersonal communication processes in health-related research remains limited. Shoulder surgery has been reported to be associated with significant postoperative pain. While shoulder surgery research has investigated various analgesic techniques to determine key efficacy and minimization of adverse side effects, little has been reported from the patient perspective.Methods: Following institutional ethics approval, this project was conducted in two private hospitals in Victoria, Australia, in 2010. The methods included a survey questionnaire, semistructured interviews, and researcher-reflective journaling. Researcher-reflective journaling was utilized to highlight and discuss the interpersonal nexus.Results: This research specifically addresses the importance of the contributions of qualitative methods and processes to understanding patient experiences of analgesic efficacy and shoulder surgery. The results reveal the importance of the established research process and the interwoven interpersonal nexus between the researcher and the research participants. The interpersonal skills of presencing and empathetic engagement are particularly highlighted.Conclusion: The authors attest the significance of establishing an interpersonal nexus in order to reveal patient experiences of shoulder surgery. Interpersonal emotional engagement is particularly highlighted in data collection, in what may be otherwise understated and overlooked

New roles for Nanos in neural cell fate determination revealed by studies in a cnidarian.

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Kanska, Justyna; Frank, Uri

2013-07-15

Nanos is a pan-metazoan germline marker, important for germ cell development and maintenance. In flies, Nanos also acts in posterior and neural development, but these functions have not been demonstrated experimentally in other animals. Using the cnidarian Hydractinia we have uncovered novel roles for Nanos in neural cell fate determination. Ectopic expression of Nanos2 increased the numbers of embryonic stinging cell progenitors, but decreased the numbers of neurons. Downregulation of Nanos2 had the opposite effect. Furthermore, Nanos2 blocked maturation of committed, post-mitotic nematoblasts. Hence, Nanos2 acts as a switch between two differentiation pathways, increasing the numbers of nematoblasts at the expense of neuroblasts, but preventing nematocyte maturation. Nanos2 ectopic expression also caused patterning defects, but these were not associated with deregulation of Wnt signaling, showing that the basic anterior-posterior polarity remained intact, and suggesting that numerical imbalance between nematocytes and neurons might have caused these defects, affecting axial patterning only indirectly. We propose that the functions of Nanos in germ cells and in neural development are evolutionarily conserved, but its role in posterior patterning is an insect or arthropod innovation.

Next generation sequencing reveals the hidden diversity of zooplankton assemblages.

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Penelope K Lindeque

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Zooplankton play an important role in our oceans, in biogeochemical cycling and providing a food source for commercially important fish larvae. However, difficulties in correctly identifying zooplankton hinder our understanding of their roles in marine ecosystem functioning, and can prevent detection of long term changes in their community structure. The advent of massively parallel next generation sequencing technology allows DNA sequence data to be recovered directly from whole community samples. Here we assess the ability of such sequencing to quantify richness and diversity of a mixed zooplankton assemblage from a productive time series site in the Western English Channel. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPLE FINDINGS: Plankton net hauls (200 µm were taken at the Western Channel Observatory station L4 in September 2010 and January 2011. These samples were analysed by microscopy and metagenetic analysis of the 18S nuclear small subunit ribosomal RNA gene using the 454 pyrosequencing platform. Following quality control a total of 419,041 sequences were obtained for all samples. The sequences clustered into 205 operational taxonomic units using a 97% similarity cut-off. Allocation of taxonomy by comparison with the National Centre for Biotechnology Information database identified 135 OTUs to species level, 11 to genus level and 1 to order, <2.5% of sequences were classified as unknowns. By comparison a skilled microscopic analyst was able to routinely enumerate only 58 taxonomic groups. CONCLUSIONS: Metagenetics reveals a previously hidden taxonomic richness, especially for Copepoda and hard-to-identify meroplankton such as Bivalvia, Gastropoda and Polychaeta. It also reveals rare species and parasites. We conclude that Next Generation Sequencing of 18S amplicons is a powerful tool for elucidating the true diversity and species richness of zooplankton communities. While this approach allows for broad diversity assessments of plankton it may

Revealing the values behind convenience food consumption.

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Botonaki, Anna; Mattas, Konstadinos

2010-12-01

The increasing importance of convenience in consumer food choices has attracted researchers' interest. In the effort to understand how convenience affects consumers' food preferences, values are believed to play an important role. The present study attempts to examine the way personal values suggested by Schwartz (1992) are associated with behaviour and attitudes regarding convenience food. A number of constructs describing food related attitudes and behaviours were developed and their relationship with personal values was analyzed following the methodology proposed by Brunsø, Scholderer, and Grunert (2004). Data were collected through a questionnaire survey from a random sample of consumers in Thessaloniki city, Greece. The results reveal that convenience food consumption and convenience orientation in the food domain are mainly connected with values that motivate people to seek new experiences, act independently and enhance their own personal interests, while are in conflict with values of conservation and self-transcendence. The opposite holds for other food related attitudes and behaviours like involvement with cooking and variety in diet. The findings seem to be of particular interest not only for marketers of food products, but also for food policy makers. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Characterization of a null allelic mutant of the rice NAL1 gene reveals its role in regulating cell division.

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Dan Jiang

Full Text Available Leaf morphology is closely associated with cell division. In rice, mutations in Narrow leaf 1 (NAL1 show narrow leaf phenotypes. Previous studies have shown that NAL1 plays a role in regulating vein patterning and increasing grain yield in indica cultivars, but its role in leaf growth and development remains unknown. In this report, we characterized two allelic mutants of NARROW LEAF1 (NAL1, nal1-2 and nal1-3, both of which showed a 50% reduction in leaf width and length, as well as a dwarf culm. Longitudinal and transverse histological analyses of leaves and internodes revealed that cell division was suppressed in the anticlinal orientation but enhanced in the periclinal orientation in the mutants, while cell size remained unaltered. In addition to defects in cell proliferation, the mutants showed abnormal midrib in leaves. Map-based cloning revealed that nal1-2 is a null allelic mutant of NAL1 since both the whole promoter and a 404-bp fragment in the first exon of NAL1 were deleted, and that a 6-bp fragment was deleted in the mutant nal1-3. We demonstrated that NAL1 functions in the regulation of cell division as early as during leaf primordia initiation. The altered transcript level of G1- and S-phase-specific genes suggested that NAL1 affects cell cycle regulation. Heterogeneous expression of NAL1 in fission yeast (Schizosaccharomyces pombe further supported that NAL1 affects cell division. These results suggest that NAL1 controls leaf width and plant height through its effects on cell division.

From Metrosexual to Retrosexual: The Importance of Shifting Male Gender Roles to Feminism

OpenAIRE

Anderson, Katherine Noel

2008-01-01

The study of gender in feminism should not only concentrate on female gender roles and queer transgressions of established gender roles, but should also include an in-depth discussion on male gender roles as they exist in society. This paper focuses on the metrosexual and the retrosexual trends which have recently affected the male gender role in society. The emergence of the metrosexual in the 1990s through 2005 was a profound change in the traditional male gender role which allowed men to ...

Retail LNG handbook. Retail LNG and The Role of LNG Import Terminals. Report by the GIIGNL Technical Study Group on the possible role of LNG import terminals within the emerging Retail LNG Market

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-01-01

The natural gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) industries are changing. The influx of supply, low prices, and environmental benefits of natural gas are driving consumers to convert from other fossil fuels. Natural gas consumers on pipeline systems have the ability to benefit, but for those not connected, LNG may be the only opportunity to convert to natural gas. As this market evolves, a unique opportunity may emerge for some existing participants in the LNG market and could lead to a shift in business focus, potentially adding to or even transforming the traditional role of LNG Import Terminals. As surmised by the GIIGNL's Technical Study Group (TSG) at the outset of their endeavor, virtually every member company had historical experience with, was in the midst of expanding its services to include, or was actively engaged in the study of, Retail LNG. The market drivers, value propositions, trends and future prospects for Retail LNG that have widely been publicized were generally confirmed although in an overall more conservative outlook. As a representative body of experienced, long term LNG Import Terminal operators, GIIGNL was uniquely qualified to stress in its Handbook the importance of managing the inherent risk associated with LNG, the application of suitable codes and standards and the use of proper equipment. The study of the aspects of LNG supply and use including safety, security, staffing, equipment siting, and operations is hoped to provide an illustrative framework form which the industry can jointly move towards best practices. While Retail LNG is considered by many to be 'new' there is substantial historical experience with all aspects of the market. LNG Import Terminals, including the experience and competence of their staffing, can play a key role in not only the incubation and growth of the Retail market, but the molding and shaping of regulatory framework, applicable codes and standards and operational best practices. GIIGNL

Important roles of P2Y receptors in the inflammation and cancer of digestive system.

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Wan, Han-Xing; Hu, Jian-Hong; Xie, Rei; Yang, Shi-Ming; Dong, Hui

2016-05-10

Purinergic signaling is important for many biological processes in humans. Purinoceptors P2Y are widely distributed in human digestive system and different subtypes of P2Y receptors mediate different physiological functions from metabolism, proliferation, differentiation to apoptosis etc. The P2Y receptors are essential in many gastrointestinal functions and also involve in the occurrence of some digestive diseases. Since different subtypes of P2Y receptors are present on the same cell of digestive organs, varying subtypes of P2Y receptors may have opposite or synergetic functions on the same cell. Recently, growing lines of evidence strongly suggest the involvement of P2Y receptors in the pathogenesis of several digestive diseases. In this review, we will focus on their important roles in the development of digestive inflammation and cancer. We anticipate that as the special subtypes of P2Y receptors are studied in depth, specific modulators for them will have good potentials to become promising new drugs to treat human digestive diseases in the near future.

Comprehensive RNA Polymerase II Interactomes Reveal Distinct and Varied Roles for Each Phospho-CTD Residue

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Kevin M. Harlen

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Transcription controls splicing and other gene regulatory processes, yet mechanisms remain obscure due to our fragmented knowledge of the molecular connections between the dynamically phosphorylated RNA polymerase II (Pol II C-terminal domain (CTD and regulatory factors. By systematically isolating phosphorylation states of the CTD heptapeptide repeat (Y1S2P3T4S5P6S7, we identify hundreds of protein factors that are differentially enriched, revealing unappreciated connections between the Pol II CTD and co-transcriptional processes. These data uncover a role for threonine-4 in 3′ end processing through control of the transition between cleavage and termination. Furthermore, serine-5 phosphorylation seeds spliceosomal assembly immediately downstream of 3′ splice sites through a direct interaction with spliceosomal subcomplex U1. Strikingly, threonine-4 phosphorylation also impacts splicing by serving as a mark of co-transcriptional spliceosome release and ensuring efficient post-transcriptional splicing genome-wide. Thus, comprehensive Pol II interactomes identify the complex and functional connections between transcription machinery and other gene regulatory complexes.

Theoretical Developments In Environmental Management Accounting And The Role And Importance Of MFCA

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Doorasamy Mishelle

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Environmental Management Accounting (EMA is a broader concept of accounting which uses accounting tools and practices to support company-internal management decision making on environmental issues and its impact on company performance. Research on EMA can be divided into two broad categories: theoretical and empirical studies. The theoretical studies based on framework that aim to explain the nature of the relationship between economic and environmental performance and the adoption of Environmental Management Accounting in a business environment. The empirical studies follow two lines of research, instrumental studies aim to empirically test the relationships hypothesized in theoretical studies; descriptive studies are intended to examine the factors that encourage the adoption of EMA. This review paper examined the role of MFCA in identifying non-product output (waste and its impact on an organisations profitability. Various case studies are examined in this article that demonstrates MFCA to an important environmental management tool to ensure future sustainability of an organisation.

Transcriptome analysis of an mvp mutant reveals important changes in global gene expression and a role for methyl jasmonate in vernalization and flowering in wheat.

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Diallo, Amadou Oury; Agharbaoui, Zahra; Badawi, Mohamed A; Ali-Benali, Mohamed Ali; Moheb, Amira; Houde, Mario; Sarhan, Fathey

2014-06-01

The einkorn wheat mutant mvp-1 (maintained vegetative phase 1) has a non-flowering phenotype caused by deletions including, but not limited to, the genes CYS, PHYC, and VRN1. However, the impact of these deletions on global gene expression is still unknown. Transcriptome analysis showed that these deletions caused the upregulation of several pathogenesis-related (PR) and jasmonate-responsive genes. These results suggest that jasmonates may be involved in flowering and vernalization in wheat. To test this hypothesis, jasmonic acid (JA) and methyl jasmonate (MeJA) content in mvp and wild-type plants was measured. The content of JA was comparable in all plants, whereas the content of MeJA was higher by more than 6-fold in mvp plants. The accumulation of MeJA was also observed in vernalization-sensitive hexaploid winter wheat during cold exposure. This accumulation declined rapidly once plants were deacclimated under floral-inductive growth conditions. This suggests that MeJA may have a role in floral transition. To confirm this result, we treated vernalization-insensitive spring wheat with MeJA. The treatment delayed flowering with significant downregulation of both TaVRN1 and TaFT1 genes. These data suggest a role for MeJA in modulating vernalization and flowering time in wheat. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

An essential role for the circadian-regulated gene nocturnin in osteogenesis: the importance of local timekeeping in skeletal homeostasis.

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Guntur, Anyonya R; Kawai, Masanobu; Le, Phuong; Bouxsein, Mary L; Bornstein, Sheila; Green, Carla B; Rosen, Clifford J

2011-11-01

The role of circadian proteins in regulating whole-body metabolism and bone turnover has been studied in detail and has led to the discovery of an elemental system for timekeeping involving the core genes Clock, Bmal1, Per, and Cry. Nocturnin (Noc; Ccrn4l), a peripheral circadian-regulated gene has been shown to play a very important role in regulating adipogenesis by deadenylation of key mRNAs and intracytoplasmic transport of PPARγ. The role that it plays in osteogenesis has previously not been studied in detail. In this report we examined in vitro and in vivo osteogenesis in the presence and absence of Noc and show that loss of Noc enhances bone formation and can rescue rosiglitazone-induced bone loss in mice. The circadian rhythm of Noc is likely to be an essential element of marrow stromal cell fate. © 2011 New York Academy of Sciences.

The good, the bad and the ugly thing to do when sharing information: Revealing, concealing and lying depend on social motivation, distribution and importance of information

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Steinel, W.; Utz, S.; Koning, L.

2010-01-01

Research on information sharing in group decision-making has widely assumed a cooperative context and focused on the exchange of shared or unshared information in the hidden profile paradigm (Stasser & Titus, 1985, 1987), neglecting the role of information importance. We argue that information

The various scenarios leading to WR stars: Their relative importance and the role of mixing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeder, A.

1982-01-01

Over the last 40 years WR stars have been associated with almost all possible evolutionary stages. The author lists 7 scenarios which may be considered as most relevant in view of recent surface abundance determinations. He then considers the importance of mass loss in WR formation and discusses properties of binary WR which suggest that formation is dependent on metallicity and thus galactic location. The role of internal mixing in WR formation is also considered. Mass loss on the MS is shown only to be able to explain a minute fraction of the observed WR stars, whereas internal mixing by shear instability has, for all stellar masses, a larger effect on MS evolution than mass loss. (Auth./C.F.)

Activation of acid-sensing ion channels by localized proton transient reveals their role in proton signaling.

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Zeng, Wei-Zheng; Liu, Di-Shi; Liu, Lu; She, Liang; Wu, Long-Jun; Xu, Tian-Le

2015-09-15

Extracellular transients of pH alterations likely mediate signal transduction in the nervous system. Neuronal acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) act as sensors for extracellular protons, but the mechanism underlying ASIC activation remains largely unknown. Here, we show that, following activation of a light-activated proton pump, Archaerhodopsin-3 (Arch), proton transients induced ASIC currents in both neurons and HEK293T cells co-expressing ASIC1a channels. Using chimera proteins that bridge Arch and ASIC1a by a glycine/serine linker, we found that successful coupling occurred within 15 nm distance. Furthermore, two-cell sniffer patch recording revealed that regulated release of protons through either Arch or voltage-gated proton channel Hv1 activated neighbouring cells expressing ASIC1a channels. Finally, computational modelling predicted the peak proton concentration at the intercellular interface to be at pH 6.7, which is acidic enough to activate ASICs in vivo. Our results highlight the pathophysiological role of proton signalling in the nervous system.

An emerging role of pectic rhamnogalacturonanII for cell wall integrity

OpenAIRE

Reboul, Rebecca; Tenhaken, Raimund

2012-01-01

The plant cell wall is a complex network of different polysaccharides and glycoproteins, showing high diversity in nature. The essential components, tethering cell wall are under debate, as novel mutants challenge established models. The mutant ugd2,3 with a reduced supply of the important wall precursor UDP-glucuronic acid reveals the critical role of the pectic compound rhamnogalacturonanII for cell wall stability. This polymer seems to be more important for cell wall integrity than the pre...

Abundance, biomass production, nutrient content, and the possible role of terrestrial salamanders in Missouri Ozark forest ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

R.D. Semlitsch; K.M. O' Donnell; F.R. Thompson

2014-01-01

The transfer of energy and nutrients largely depends on the role of animals in the movement of biomass between trophic levels and ecosystems. Despite the historical recognition that amphibians could play an important role in the movement of biomass and nutrients, very few studies have provided reliable estimates of abundance and density of amphibians to reveal their...

C1 metabolism plays an important role during formaldehyde metabolism and detoxification in petunia under liquid HCHO stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wei; Tang, Lijuan; Sun, Huiqun; Han, Shuang; Wang, Xinjia; Zhou, Shengen; Li, Kunzhi; Chen, Limei

2014-10-01

Petunia hybrida is a model ornamental plant grown worldwide. To understand the HCHO-uptake efficiency and metabolic mechanism of petunia, the aseptic petunia plants were treated in HCHO solutions. An analysis of HCHO-uptake showed that petunia plants effectively removed HCHO from 2, 4 and 6 mM HCHO solutions. The (13)C NMR analyses indicated that H(13)CHO was primarily used to synthesize [5-(13)C]methionine (Met) via C1 metabolism in petunia plants treated with 2 mM H(13)CHO. Pretreatment with cyclosporin A (CSA) or l-carnitine (LC), the inhibitors of mitochondrial permeability transition pores, did not affect the synthesis of [5-(13)C]Met in petunia plants under 2 mM H(13)CHO stress, indicating that the Met-generated pathway may function in the cytoplasm. Under 4 or 6 mM liquid H(13)CHO stress, H(13)CHO metabolism in petunia plants produced considerable amount of H(13)COOH and [2-(13)C]glycine (Gly) through C1 metabolism and a small amount of [U-(13)C]Gluc via the Calvin Cycle. Pretreatment with CSA or LC significantly inhibited the production of [2-(13)C]Gly in 6 mM H(13)CHO-treated petunia plants, which suggests that chloroplasts and peroxisomes might be involved in the generation of [2-(13)C]Gly. These results revealed that the C1 metabolism played an important role, whereas the Calvin Cycle had only a small contribution during HCHO metabolism and detoxification in petunia under liquid HCHO stress. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Chief Business Officers' Functions: Responsibilities and Importance.

Science.gov (United States)

Calver, Richard A.; Vogler, Daniel E.

1985-01-01

Reports on a survey of 177 chief business officers of public community colleges regarding their responsibilities and the importance they assigned to various role functions. Highlights findings concerning the perceived importance of fiscal/financial duties; endowments as a job function; role in shared planning; and personal attention given to…

Genes Important for Catalase Activity in Enterococcus faecalis

Science.gov (United States)

Baureder, Michael; Hederstedt, Lars

2012-01-01

Little in general is known about how heme proteins are assembled from their constituents in cells. The Gram-positive bacterium Enterococcus faecalis cannot synthesize heme and does not depend on it for growth. However, when supplied with heme in the growth medium the cells can synthesize two heme proteins; catalase (KatA) and cytochrome bd (CydAB). To identify novel factors important for catalase biogenesis libraries of E. faecalis gene insertion mutants were generated using two different types of transposons. The libraries of mutants were screened for clones deficient in catalase activity using a colony zymogram staining procedure. Analysis of obtained clones identified, in addition to katA (encoding the catalase enzyme protein), nine genes distributed over five different chromosomal loci. No factors with a dedicated essential role in catalase biogenesis or heme trafficking were revealed, but the results indicate the RNA degradosome (srmB, rnjA), an ABC-type oligopeptide transporter (oppBC), a two-component signal transducer (etaR), and NADH peroxidase (npr) as being important for expression of catalase activity in E. faecalis. It is demonstrated that catalase biogenesis in E. faecalis is independent of the CydABCD proteins and that a conserved proline residue in the N-terminal region of KatA is important for catalase assembly. PMID:22590595

Role of oil imports in economic development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madduri, V.B.N.S.; Radhika, G.

1990-01-01

This paper reports that energy has a vital role to play in a developing economy. The process of industrialization calls for continuous increase in energy use. In general, the greater the use of energy, the higher the economy is placed in the order of developed countries. Countries with high per-capita income have a high consumption level of energy too. On a per-capita basis, energy consumed in U.S.A. is 51.7 barrels of oil equivalent per year while in India, it is 0.9 barrels of oil equivalent only. Therefore, energy consumption, industrial development and economic growth are interlinked. Energy became a significant part in the process of development. In the case of developing countries, any change in the price of oil has a negative effect on economic growth. It was stated in one of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission reports that a fivefold increase in the international price of oil, in real terms, over the past 15 years has had profound effects on balance of payments and growth prospects in developing countries

A thioredoxin-dependent peroxiredoxin Q from Corynebacterium glutamicum plays an important role in defense against oxidative stress.

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Tao Su

Full Text Available Peroxiredoxin Q (PrxQ that belonged to the cysteine-based peroxidases has long been identified in numerous bacteria, but the information on the physiological and biochemical functions of PrxQ remain largely lacking in Corynebacterium glutamicum. To better systematically understand PrxQ, we reported that PrxQ from model and important industrial organism C. glutamicum, encoded by the gene ncgl2403 annotated as a putative PrxQ, played important roles in adverse stress resistance. The lack of C. glutamicum prxQ gene resulted in enhanced cell sensitivity, increased ROS accumulation, and elevated protein carbonylation levels under adverse stress conditions. Accordingly, PrxQ-mediated resistance to adverse stresses mainly relied on the degradation of ROS. The physiological roles of PrxQ in resistance to adverse stresses were corroborated by its induced expression under adverse stresses, regulated directly by the stress-responsive ECF-sigma factor SigH. Through catalytical kinetic activity, heterodimer formation, and bacterial two-hybrid analysis, we proved that C. glutamicum PrxQ catalytically eliminated peroxides by exclusively receiving electrons from thioredoxin (Trx/thioredoxin reductase (TrxR system and had a broad range of oxidizing substrates, but a better efficiency for peroxynitrite and cumene hydroperoxide (CHP. Site-directed mutagenesis confirmed that the conserved Cys49 and Cys54 are the peroxide oxidation site and the resolving Cys residue, respectively. It was also discovered that C. glutamicum PrxQ mainly existed in monomer whether under its native state or functional state. Based on these results, a catalytic model of PrxQ is being proposed. Moreover, our result that C. glutamicum PrxQ can prevent the damaging effects of adverse stresses by acting as thioredoxin-dependent monomeric peroxidase could be further applied to improve the survival ability and robustness of the important bacterium during fermentation process.

Association between work role stressors and sleep quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Iwasaki, S; Deguchi, Y; Inoue, K

2018-05-17

Work-related stressors are associated with low sleep quality. However, few studies have reported an association between role stressors and sleep quality. To elucidate the association between role stressors (including role conflict and ambiguity) and sleep quality. Cross-sectional study of daytime workers whose sleep quality was assessed using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Work-related stressors, including role stressors, were assessed using the Generic Job Stress Questionnaire (GJSQ). The association between sleep quality and work-related stressors was investigated by logistic regression analysis. A total of 243 participants completed questionnaires were received (response rate 71%); 86 participants reported poor sleep quality, based on a global PSQI score ≥6. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that higher role ambiguity was associated with global PSQI scores ≥6, and that role conflict was significantly associated with sleep problems, including sleep disturbance and daytime dysfunction. These results suggest that high role stress is associated with low sleep quality, and that this association should be considered an important determinant of the health of workers.

Transcriptional profiling of Medicago truncatula under salt stress identified a novel CBF transcription factor MtCBF4 that plays an important role in abiotic stress responses

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Su Zhen

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Salt stress hinders the growth of plants and reduces crop production worldwide. However, different plant species might possess different adaptive mechanisms to mitigate salt stress. We conducted a detailed pathway analysis of transcriptional dynamics in the roots of Medicago truncatula seedlings under salt stress and selected a transcription factor gene, MtCBF4, for experimental validation. Results A microarray experiment was conducted using root samples collected 6, 24, and 48 h after application of 180 mM NaCl. Analysis of 11 statistically significant expression profiles revealed different behaviors between primary and secondary metabolism pathways in response to external stress. Secondary metabolism that helps to maintain osmotic balance was induced. One of the highly induced transcription factor genes was successfully cloned, and was named MtCBF4. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that MtCBF4, which belongs to the AP2-EREBP transcription factor family, is a novel member of the CBF transcription factor in M. truncatula. MtCBF4 is shown to be a nuclear-localized protein. Expression of MtCBF4 in M. truncatula was induced by most of the abiotic stresses, including salt, drought, cold, and abscisic acid, suggesting crosstalk between these abiotic stresses. Transgenic Arabidopsis over-expressing MtCBF4 enhanced tolerance to drought and salt stress, and activated expression of downstream genes that contain DRE elements. Over-expression of MtCBF4 in M. truncatula also enhanced salt tolerance and induced expression level of corresponding downstream genes. Conclusion Comprehensive transcriptomic analysis revealed complex mechanisms exist in plants in response to salt stress. The novel transcription factor gene MtCBF4 identified here played an important role in response to abiotic stresses, indicating that it might be a good candidate gene for genetic improvement to produce stress-tolerant plants.

Transcriptional profiling of Medicago truncatula under salt stress identified a novel CBF transcription factor MtCBF4 that plays an important role in abiotic stress responses

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Salt stress hinders the growth of plants and reduces crop production worldwide. However, different plant species might possess different adaptive mechanisms to mitigate salt stress. We conducted a detailed pathway analysis of transcriptional dynamics in the roots of Medicago truncatula seedlings under salt stress and selected a transcription factor gene, MtCBF4, for experimental validation. Results A microarray experiment was conducted using root samples collected 6, 24, and 48 h after application of 180 mM NaCl. Analysis of 11 statistically significant expression profiles revealed different behaviors between primary and secondary metabolism pathways in response to external stress. Secondary metabolism that helps to maintain osmotic balance was induced. One of the highly induced transcription factor genes was successfully cloned, and was named MtCBF4. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that MtCBF4, which belongs to the AP2-EREBP transcription factor family, is a novel member of the CBF transcription factor in M. truncatula. MtCBF4 is shown to be a nuclear-localized protein. Expression of MtCBF4 in M. truncatula was induced by most of the abiotic stresses, including salt, drought, cold, and abscisic acid, suggesting crosstalk between these abiotic stresses. Transgenic Arabidopsis over-expressing MtCBF4 enhanced tolerance to drought and salt stress, and activated expression of downstream genes that contain DRE elements. Over-expression of MtCBF4 in M. truncatula also enhanced salt tolerance and induced expression level of corresponding downstream genes. Conclusion Comprehensive transcriptomic analysis revealed complex mechanisms exist in plants in response to salt stress. The novel transcription factor gene MtCBF4 identified here played an important role in response to abiotic stresses, indicating that it might be a good candidate gene for genetic improvement to produce stress-tolerant plants. PMID:21718548

The role of the dinuclear system in the processes of nuclear fusion, quasi-fission, fission and cluster formation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Volkov, V.V.

1999-01-01

The nuclear fusion, quasi-fission, fission and cluster formation in an excited nucleus are considered as the processes of the formation and evolution of the dinuclear system. This approach allows one to reveal new aspects of nuclear fusion, to show that quasi-fission plays an important role in nuclear reactions used to synthesise superheavy elements. A qualitative picture is given of the fission process of an excited nucleus and an important role of cluster formation in this process is shown

Compartment specific importance of glutathione during abiotic and biotic stress

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Bernd eZechmann

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The tripeptide thiol glutathione (γ-L-glutamyl-L-cysteinyl-glycine is the most important sulfur containing antioxidant in plants and essential for plant defense against abiotic and biotic stress conditions. It is involved in the detoxification of reactive oxygen species, redox signaling, the modulation of defense gene expression and important for the regulation of enzymatic activities. Even though changes in glutathione contents are well documented in plants and its roles in plant defense are well established, still too little is known about its compartment specific importance during abiotic and biotic stress conditions. Due to technical advances in the visualization of glutathione and the redox state of plants through microscopical methods some progress was made in the last few years in studying the importance of subcellular glutathione contents during stress conditions in plants. This review summarizes the data available on compartment specific importance of glutathione in the protection against abiotic and biotic stress conditions such as high light stress, exposure to cadmium, drought, and pathogen attack (Pseudomonas, Botrytis, Tobacco Mosaic Virus. The data will be discussed in connection with the subcellular accumulation of ROS during these conditions and glutathione synthesis which are both highly compartment specific (e.g. glutathione synthesis takes place in chloroplasts and the cytosol. Thus this review will reveal the compartment specific importance of glutathione during abiotic and biotic stress conditions.

Interaction of Trichomonas vaginalis and Tritrichomonas foetus with keratin: an important role in parasite infection

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Ricardo Chaves Vilela

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Trichomonas vaginalis and Tritrichomonas foetus are human and bovine parasites, respectively, that provoke the sexually transmitted disease trichomoniasis. These extracellular parasites adhere to the host epithelial cell surface. Although mucinases and proteases have been described as important proteins for parasite adhesion to epithelial cells, no studies have examined the role of the keratin molecules that cornify the vaginal epithelium. Here, we investigated the interaction of T. vaginalis and T. foetus with human keratin in vitro; additionally, adherence assays were performed in cattle with T. foetus to elucidate whether trichomonads were able to interact with keratin in vivo. We demonstrated that both T. vaginalisand T. foetusinteracted directly with keratin. Additionally, the trichomonads ingested and digested keratin, shedding new light on the Trichomonas infection process.

The Arabidopsis nox mutant lacking carotene hydroxylase activity reveals a critical role for xanthophylls in photosystem I biogenesis.

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Dall'Osto, Luca; Piques, Maria; Ronzani, Michela; Molesini, Barbara; Alboresi, Alessandro; Cazzaniga, Stefano; Bassi, Roberto

2013-02-01

Carotenes, and their oxygenated derivatives xanthophylls, are essential components of the photosynthetic apparatus. They contribute to the assembly of photosynthetic complexes and participate in light absorption and chloroplast photoprotection. Here, we studied the role of xanthophylls, as distinct from that of carotenes, by characterizing a no xanthophylls (nox) mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana, which was obtained by combining mutations targeting the four carotenoid hydroxylase genes. nox plants retained α- and β-carotenes but were devoid in xanthophylls. The phenotype included depletion of light-harvesting complex (LHC) subunits and impairment of nonphotochemical quenching, two effects consistent with the location of xanthophylls in photosystem II antenna, but also a decreased efficiency of photosynthetic electron transfer, photosensitivity, and lethality in soil. Biochemical analysis revealed that the nox mutant was specifically depleted in photosystem I function due to a severe deficiency in PsaA/B subunits. While the stationary level of psaA/B transcripts showed no major differences between genotypes, the stability of newly synthesized PsaA/B proteins was decreased and translation of psaA/B mRNA was impaired in nox with respect to wild-type plants. We conclude that xanthophylls, besides their role in photoprotection and LHC assembly, are also needed for photosystem I core translation and stability, thus making these compounds indispensable for autotrophic growth.

The Role of the Transcriptional Response to DNA Replication Stress.

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Herlihy, Anna E; de Bruin, Robertus A M

2017-03-02

During DNA replication many factors can result in DNA replication stress. The DNA replication stress checkpoint prevents the accumulation of replication stress-induced DNA damage and the potential ensuing genome instability. A critical role for post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, in the replication stress checkpoint response has been well established. However, recent work has revealed an important role for transcription in the cellular response to DNA replication stress. In this review, we will provide an overview of current knowledge of the cellular response to DNA replication stress with a specific focus on the DNA replication stress checkpoint transcriptional response and its role in the prevention of replication stress-induced DNA damage.

The Role of the Transcriptional Response to DNA Replication Stress

Science.gov (United States)

Herlihy, Anna E.; de Bruin, Robertus A.M.

2017-01-01

During DNA replication many factors can result in DNA replication stress. The DNA replication stress checkpoint prevents the accumulation of replication stress-induced DNA damage and the potential ensuing genome instability. A critical role for post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, in the replication stress checkpoint response has been well established. However, recent work has revealed an important role for transcription in the cellular response to DNA replication stress. In this review, we will provide an overview of current knowledge of the cellular response to DNA replication stress with a specific focus on the DNA replication stress checkpoint transcriptional response and its role in the prevention of replication stress-induced DNA damage. PMID:28257104

Balancing the seen and unseen: Nurse educator as role model for critical thinking.

Science.gov (United States)

Raymond, Christy; Profetto-McGrath, Joanne; Myrick, Florence; Strean, William B

2018-05-04

Critical thinking is an important indicator of student learning and is an essential outcome of baccalaureate nursing education. The role of nurse educators in the development of students' critical thinking has been overlooked despite the importance of their actions to facilitate critical thinking in nursing education. We used a constructivist grounded theory approach within a larger mixed methods triangulation study to explore how nurse educators revealed their critical thinking in practice. From the grounded theory approach, a model emerged from our research, outlining the important aspects of nurse educators' critical thinking and how it is revealed in the clinical setting. The important categories of this model include: a) fostering the student-educator relationship; b) role modeling critical thinking; c) mobilizing and operationalizing resources; as well as d) balancing factors that impact nurse educators' critical thinking. Our findings inform what is known about nurse educators' critical thinking and how it can be implemented in nurse educators' teaching practice. Given our findings, we offer recommendations for future nursing education practice and research, including the need to apply our findings in additional settings and further develop nurse educators' awareness of their own critical thinking. Crown Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genetic factors may play a prominent role in the development of coronary heart disease dependent on important environmental factors

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Song, C; Chang, Z; Magnusson, P K E; Ingelsson, E; Pedersen, N L

2014-01-01

Astract Song C, Chang Z, Magnusson PKE, Ingelsson E, Pedersen NL (Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Uppsala University, Uppsala; Sweden). Genetic factors may play a prominent role in the developmentofcoronary heart diseasedependenton important environmental factors. J InternMed2014; 275: 631–639. Objective The aim of the study was to examine whether various lifestyle factors modify genetic influences on coronary heart disease (CHD). Design The effect of lifestyle factors [including smoking, sedentary lifestyle, alcohol intake and body mass index (BMI)] on risk of CHD was evaluated via Cox regression models in a twin study of gene–environment interaction. Using structure equation modelling, we estimated genetic variance of CHD dependent on lifestyle factors. Subjects In total, 51 065 same-sex twins from 25 715 twin pairs born before 1958 and registered in the Swedish Twin Registry were eligible for this study. During the 40-year follow-up, 7264 incident CHD events were recorded. Results Smoking, sedentary lifestyle and above average BMI were significantly associated with increased CHD incidence. The heritability of CHD decreased with increasing age, as well as with increasing levels of BMI, in both men and women. Conclusions The difference in the genetic component of CHD as a function of BMI suggests that genetic factors may play a more prominent role for disease development in the absence of important environmental factors. Increased knowledge of gene–environment interactions will be important for a full understanding of the aetiology of CHD. PMID:24330166

THE IMPORTANCE OF MONEY MARKET INTEREST FORMATION AND ITS ROLE IN CREDIT COST

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Medar Lucian-Ion

2013-04-01

Full Text Available In the contemporary period the place and role of banks in economy is very well defined, they mainly acting as main intermediary in savings-investment relationship, critical relationship to economic growth. Although the current financial crisis demonstrates that the banking system is no longer the foundation of the economic system, yet banks continue to be the most important institutions that intermediate monetary affairs. Through bank credit institutions in our country continues to attract large sums of money from the public and offer banking products and services. Banking market is dominated both by opening accounts for all the people who do acts of trade, debt collection and debt repayment, and especially the provision of services on product placement credit institutions. Each institution has its own strategy and is constantly concerned about cost sources of credit drawn and placed. This cost is calculated based on the interest rate plus any fees. This study attempts to make an analysis of how the interest rate is fixed at the products offered by bank to customers.

Role and importance of accounting and audit in corporate governance

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Lovre Ivan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The current economic crisis and the financial scandals of the early XXI century led to the discrediting and compromising the accounting and auditing profession. The assumption of efficient growth and development of a company is an introduction of corporate governance and protection of the interests of creditors. In order to regain public confidence in financial reporting, it is necessary to examine the role of accounting and auditing profession and align it with international standards. It is necessary to take into account The OECD Principles of Corporate Governance, which are accepted by all international financial and accounting organizations, with the aim of rehabilitation of confidence in the audit. Taking into account The OECD Principles, it becomes necessary for accounting and auditing practices to be directed towards the fulfillment of the basic role of protecting the interests of stakeholders and providing information for the functioning of the administration.

Matrix factorization reveals aging-specific co-expression gene modules in the fat and muscle tissues in nonhuman primates

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Wang, Yongcui; Zhao, Weiling; Zhou, Xiaobo

2016-10-01

Accurate identification of coherent transcriptional modules (subnetworks) in adipose and muscle tissues is important for revealing the related mechanisms and co-regulated pathways involved in the development of aging-related diseases. Here, we proposed a systematically computational approach, called ICEGM, to Identify the Co-Expression Gene Modules through a novel mathematical framework of Higher-Order Generalized Singular Value Decomposition (HO-GSVD). ICEGM was applied on the adipose, and heart and skeletal muscle tissues in old and young female African green vervet monkeys. The genes associated with the development of inflammation, cardiovascular and skeletal disorder diseases, and cancer were revealed by the ICEGM. Meanwhile, genes in the ICEGM modules were also enriched in the adipocytes, smooth muscle cells, cardiac myocytes, and immune cells. Comprehensive disease annotation and canonical pathway analysis indicated that immune cells, adipocytes, cardiomyocytes, and smooth muscle cells played a synergistic role in cardiac and physical functions in the aged monkeys by regulation of the biological processes associated with metabolism, inflammation, and atherosclerosis. In conclusion, the ICEGM provides an efficiently systematic framework for decoding the co-expression gene modules in multiple tissues. Analysis of genes in the ICEGM module yielded important insights on the cooperative role of multiple tissues in the development of diseases.

Perceived cultural importance and actual self-importance of values in cultural identification.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Ching; Chiu, Chi-yue; Tam, Kim-pong; Lee, Sau-lai; Lau, Ivy Yee-man; Peng, Siqing

2007-02-01

Cross-cultural psychologists assume that core cultural values define to a large extent what a culture is. Typically, core values are identified through an actual self-importance approach, in which core values are those that members of the culture as a group strongly endorse. In this article, the authors propose a perceived cultural importance approach to identifying core values, in which core values are values that members of the culture as a group generally believe to be important in the culture. In 5 studies, the authors examine the utility of the perceived cultural importance approach. Results consistently showed that, compared with values of high actual self-importance, values of high perceived cultural importance play a more important role in cultural identification. These findings have important implications for conceptualizing and measuring cultures. ((c) 2007 APA, all rights reserved).

Cerebral ischemic stroke: is gender important?

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Gibson, Claire L

2013-09-01

Cerebral stroke continues to be a major cause of death and the leading cause of long-term disability in developed countries. Evidence reviewed here suggests that gender influences various aspects of the clinical spectrum of ischemic stroke, in terms of influencing how a patients present with ischemic stroke through to how they respond to treatment. In addition, this review focuses on discussing the various pathologic mechanisms of ischemic stroke that may differ according to gender and compares how intrinsic and hormonal mechanisms may account for such gender differences. All clinical trials to date investigating putative neuroprotective treatments for ischemic stroke have failed, and it may be that our understanding of the injury cascade initiated after ischemic injury is incomplete. Revealing aspects of the pathophysiological consequences of ischemic stroke that are gender specific may enable gender relevant and effective neuroprotective strategies to be identified. Thus, it is possible to conclude that gender does, in fact, have an important role in ischemic stroke and must be factored into experimental and clinical investigations of ischemic stroke.

Phosphorylation of CaMKII in the rat dorsal raphe nucleus plays an important role in sleep-wake regulation.

Science.gov (United States)

Cui, Su-Ying; Li, Sheng-Jie; Cui, Xiang-Yu; Zhang, Xue-Qiong; Yu, Bin; Sheng, Zhao-Fu; Huang, Yuan-Li; Cao, Qing; Xu, Ya-Ping; Lin, Zhi-Ge; Yang, Guang; Song, Jin-Zhi; Ding, Hui; Wang, Zi-Jun; Zhang, Yong-He

2016-02-01

The Ca(2+) modulation in the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) plays an important role in sleep-wake regulation. Calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII) is an important signal-transducing molecule that is activated by Ca(2+) . This study investigated the effects of intracellular Ca(2+) /CaMKII signaling in the DRN on sleep-wake states in rats. Maximum and minimum CaMKII phosphorylation was detected at Zeitgeber time 21 (ZT 21; wakefulness state) and ZT 3 (sleep state), respectively, across the light-dark rhythm in the DRN in rats. Six-hour sleep deprivation significantly reduced CaMKII phosphorylation in the DRN. Microinjection of the CAMKII activation inhibitor KN-93 (5 or 10 nmol) into the DRN suppressed wakefulness and enhanced rapid-eye-movement sleep (REMS) and non-REM sleep (NREMS). Application of a high dose of KN-93 (10 nmol) increased slow-wave sleep (SWS) time, SWS bouts, the mean duration of SWS, the percentage of SWS relative to total sleep, and delta power density during NREMS. Microinjection of CaCl2 (50 nmol) in the DRN increased CaMKII phosphorylation and decreased NREMS, SWS, and REMS. KN-93 abolished the inhibitory effects of CaCl2 on NREMS, SWS, and REMS. These data indicate a novel wake-promoting and sleep-suppressing role for the Ca(2+) /CaMKII signaling pathway in DRN neurons. We propose that the intracellular Ca(2+) /CaMKII signaling in the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) plays wake-promoting and sleep-suppressing role in rats. Intra-DRN application of KN-93 (CaMKII activation inhibitor) suppressed wakefulness and enhanced rapid-eye-movement sleep (REMS) and non-REMS (NREMS). Intra-DRN application of CaCl2 attenuated REMS and NREMS. We think these findings should provide a novel cellular and molecular mechanism of sleep-wake regulation. © 2015 International Society for Neurochemistry.

Physiological roles revealed by ghrelin and ghrelin receptor deficient mice

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Ghrelin is a hormone made in the stomach and known primarily for its growth hormone releasing and orexigenic properties. Nevertheless, ghrelin through its receptor, the GHS-R1a, has been shown to exert many roles including regulation of glucose homeostasis, memory & learning, food addiction and neur...

Farmers' perception of the role of veterinary surgeons in vaccination strategies on British dairy farms.

Science.gov (United States)

Richens, I F; Hobson-West, P; Brennan, M L; Lowton, R; Kaler, J; Wapenaar, W

2015-11-07

There is limited research investigating the motivators and barriers to vaccinating dairy cattle. Veterinary surgeons have been identified as important sources of information for farmers making vaccination and disease control decisions, as well as being farmers' preferred vaccine suppliers. Vets' perception of their own role and communication style can be at odds with farmers' reported preferences. The objective of this study was to investigate how dairy farmers perceived the role of vets in implementing vaccination strategies on their farm. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 dairy farmers from across Britain. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. Analysis revealed that farmers perceive vets to have an important role in facilitating decision-making in all aspects of vaccination, including the aspects of vaccine distribution and advice on implementation. This important role is acknowledged by farmers who have regular veterinary contact, but also farmers with solely emergency veterinary contact. Given this finding, future work should investigate the attitudes of vets towards vaccination and how they perceive their role. Combining this knowledge will enable optimisation of vaccination strategies on British dairy farms. British Veterinary Association.

Adaptation and Factorial Validation of the Attitudes Toward Gender Roles Scale

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Claudia Andrade

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Attitudes toward gender roles result from a social construction process that has implications for the accepted gender role models for men and women. This study aims at the adaptation and factorial validation of a measurement scale for attitudes toward gender roles. The sample consisted of 746 college students and young professionals. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to check the scale's structure. A two-factor structure was found for the Attitudes toward Gender Roles Scale: the first factor reflects a traditional division of gender roles, and the second factor reflects an egalitarian division of gender roles. A preliminary study using the scale was conducted on 101 families with adult children (each family included a father, a mother, and an adult child with a university degree. The results revealed the importance of the scale in assessing the attitudes of different generations toward gender roles.

Phylogeographic structure of the commercially important tropical tree species Dryobalanops aromatica Gaertn. F. (Dipterocarpaceae revealed by microsatellite markers

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Fifi Gus Dwiyanti

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Dryobalanops aromatica Gaertn. F. (Kapur is an economically important timber     species in Southeast Asia that can serve as a good model for studying the impact of the Pleistocene glaciations on the genetic diversity and distribution of species in tropical regions. Seven polymorphic microsatellite markers were        analyzed in five natural populations of D. aromatica (N = 120 individuals: Gunung Panti in Malay Peninsula, Lingga Island in Lingga Archipelago, Lambir Hills National Park, Limbang and Similajau National Park in Borneo. The level of gene diversity (HE for the five populations was relatively high with a range from 0.571 (Similajau to 0.729 (Gunung Panti. The high genetic diversity in the present study could be attributed to the larger refugia population sizes of D. aromatica than that of other species. The population genetic structure revealed two distinct groups: the Malay Peninsula-Lingga Archipelago and Borneo. This pattern suggests that populations in each geographical area might be the consequence of post-glacial expansion from one or two refugia, but that gene flow between different glacial refugia was fairly restricted. 

Role of Stat in Skin Carcinogenesis: Insights Gained from Relevant Mouse Models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Macias, E.; Rao, D.; DiGiovanni, J.; DiGiovanni, J.; DiGiovanni, J.

2013-01-01

Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (Stat) is a cytoplasmic protein that is activated in response to cytokines and growth factors and acts as a transcription factor. Stat plays critical roles in various biological activities including cell proliferation, migration, and survival. Studies using keratinocyte-specific Stat-deficient mice have revealed that Stat plays an important role in skin homeostasis including keratinocyte migration, wound healing, and hair follicle growth. Use of both constitutive and inducible keratinocyte-specific Stat-deficient mouse models has demonstrated that Stat is required for both the initiation and promotion stages of multistage skin carcinogenesis. Further studies using a transgenic mouse model with a gain of function mutant of Stat (Stat3C) expressed in the basal layer of the epidermis revealed a novel role for Stat in skin tumor progression. Studies using similar Stat-deficient and gain-of-function mouse models have indicated its similar roles in ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation-mediated skin carcinogenesis. This paper summarizes the use of these various mouse models for studying the role and underlying mechanisms for the function of Stat in skin carcinogenesis. Given its significant role throughout the skin carcinogenesis process, Stat is an attractive target for skin cancer prevention and treatment.

78 FR 55772 - Culturally Significant Object Imported for Exhibition Determinations: “Beauty Revealed: Images of...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-11

..., 1965 (79 Stat. 985; 22 U.S.C. 2459), Executive Order 12047 of March 27, 1978, the Foreign Affairs...). The mailing address is U.S. Department of State, SA-5, L/PD, Fifth Floor (Suite 5H03), Washington, DC... Determinations: ``Beauty Revealed: Images of Women in Qing Dynasty Chinese Painting'' SUMMARY: Notice is hereby...

Genetic activation, inactivation and deletion reveal a limited and nuanced role for somatostatin-containing basal forebrain neurons in behavioral state control.

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Anaclet, Christelle; De Luca, Roberto; Venner, Anne; Malyshevskaya, Olga; Lazarus, Michael; Arrigoni, Elda; Fuller, Patrick M

2018-05-07

Recent studies have identified an especially important role for basal forebrain GABAergic (BF VGAT ) neurons in the regulation of behavioral waking and fast cortical rhythms associated with cognition. However, BF VGAT neurons comprise several neurochemically and anatomically distinct sub-populations, including parvalbumin- and somatostatin-containing BF VGAT neurons (BF Parv and BF SOM ), and it was recently reported that optogenetic activation of BF SOM neurons increases the probability of a wakefulness to non-rapid-eye movement (NREM) sleep transition when stimulated during the animal's rest period. This finding was unexpected given that most BF SOM neurons are not NREM sleep active and that central administration of the synthetic SOM analog, octreotide, suppresses NREM sleep or increases REM sleep. Here we employed a combination of genetically-driven chemogenetic and optogenetic activation, chemogenetic inhibition and ablation approaches to further explore the in vivo role of BF SOM neurons in arousal control. Our findings indicate that acute activation or inhibition of BF SOM neurons is neither wakefulness- nor NREM sleep-promoting, is without significant effect on the EEG, and that chronic loss of these neurons is without effect on total 24h sleep amounts, although a small but significant increase in waking was observed in the lesioned mice during the early active period. Our in vitro cell recordings further reveal electrophysiological heterogeneity in BF SOM neurons, specifically suggesting at least two distinct sub-populations. Taken together our data support the more nuanced view that BF SOM are electrically heterogeneous and are not NREM sleep- or wake-promoting per se , but may exert, in particular during the early active period, a modest inhibitory influence on arousal circuitry. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The cellular basal forebrain (BF) is a highly complex area of the brain that is implicated in a wide-range of higher-level neurobiological processes

Importance of the gas phase role to the prediction of energetic material behavior: An experimental study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ali, A.N.; Son, S.F.; Asay, B.W.; Sander, R.K.

2005-01-01

Various thermal (radiative, conductive, and convective) initiation experiments are performed to demonstrate the importance of the gas phase role in combustion modeling of energetic materials (EM). A previously published condensed phase model that includes a predicted critical irradiance above which ignition is not possible is compared to experimental laser ignition results for octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX) and 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT). Experimental results conflict with the predicted critical irradiance concept. The failure of the model is believed to result from a misconception about the role of the gas phase in the ignition process of energetic materials. The model assumes that ignition occurs at the surface and that evolution of gases inhibits ignition. High speed video of laser ignition, oven cook-off and hot wire ignition experiments captures the ignition of HMX and TNT in the gas phase. A laser ignition gap test is performed to further evaluate the effect of gas phase laser absorption and gas phase disruption on the ignition process. Results indicate that gas phase absorption of the laser energy is probably not the primary factor governing the gas phase ignition observations. It is discovered that a critical gap between an HMX pellet and a salt window of 6 mm±0.4 mm exists below which ignition by CO 2 laser is not possible at the tested irradiances of 29 W/cm 2 and 38 W/cm 2 for HMX ignition. These observations demonstrate that a significant disruption of the gas phase, in certain scenarios, will inhibit ignition, independent of any condensed phase processes. These results underscore the importance of gas phase processes and illustrate that conditions can exist where simple condensed phase models are inadequate to accurately predict the behavior of energetic materials

Importance of the gas phase role to the prediction of energetic material behavior: An experimental study

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, A. N.; Son, S. F.; Asay, B. W.; Sander, R. K.

2005-03-01

Various thermal (radiative, conductive, and convective) initiation experiments are performed to demonstrate the importance of the gas phase role in combustion modeling of energetic materials (EM). A previously published condensed phase model that includes a predicted critical irradiance above which ignition is not possible is compared to experimental laser ignition results for octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX) and 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT). Experimental results conflict with the predicted critical irradiance concept. The failure of the model is believed to result from a misconception about the role of the gas phase in the ignition process of energetic materials. The model assumes that ignition occurs at the surface and that evolution of gases inhibits ignition. High speed video of laser ignition, oven cook-off and hot wire ignition experiments captures the ignition of HMX and TNT in the gas phase. A laser ignition gap test is performed to further evaluate the effect of gas phase laser absorption and gas phase disruption on the ignition process. Results indicate that gas phase absorption of the laser energy is probably not the primary factor governing the gas phase ignition observations. It is discovered that a critical gap between an HMX pellet and a salt window of 6mm±0.4mm exists below which ignition by CO2 laser is not possible at the tested irradiances of 29W /cm2 and 38W/cm2 for HMX ignition. These observations demonstrate that a significant disruption of the gas phase, in certain scenarios, will inhibit ignition, independent of any condensed phase processes. These results underscore the importance of gas phase processes and illustrate that conditions can exist where simple condensed phase models are inadequate to accurately predict the behavior of energetic materials.

How cancer cells dictate their microenvironment: present roles of extracellular vesicles.

Science.gov (United States)

Naito, Yutaka; Yoshioka, Yusuke; Yamamoto, Yusuke; Ochiya, Takahiro

2017-02-01

Intercellular communication plays an important role in cancer initiation and progression through secretory molecules, including growth factors and cytokines. Recent advances have revealed that small membrane vesicles, termed extracellular vesicles (EVs), served as a regulatory agent in the intercellular communication of cancer. EVs enable the transfer of functional molecules, including proteins, mRNA and microRNAs (miRNAs), into recipient cells. Cancer cells utilize EVs to dictate the unique phenotype of surrounding cells, thereby promoting cancer progression. Against such "education" by cancer cells, non-tumoral cells suppress cancer initiation and progression via EVs. Therefore, researchers consider EVs to be important cues to clarify the molecular mechanisms of cancer biology. Understanding the functions of EVs in cancer progression is an important aspect of cancer biology that has not been previously elucidated. In this review, we summarize experimental data that indicate the pivotal roles of EVs in cancer progression.

The novel zinc cluster regulator Tog1 plays important roles in oleate utilization and oxidative stress response in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Thepnok, Piyasuda; Ratanakhanokchai, Khanok; Soontorngun, Nitnipa, E-mail: nitnipa.soo@kmutt.ac.th

2014-08-08

Highlights: • TOG1 deletion results in defective growth on non-fermentable carbon sources. • Removal of TOG1 sensitizes cells to oxidative stress. • Tog1 directly binds and activates expression of oleate utilizing genes. • The Δtog1 cells display reduced peroxisomal content in oleate culture. • S. cerevisiae zinc cluster Tog1 is a novel activator of oleate utilization. - Abstract: Many zinc cluster proteins have been shown to play a role in the transcriptional regulation of glucose-repressible genes during glucose exhaustion and diauxic shift. Here, we studied an additional member of this family called Yer184c (herein called Tog1) for transcriptional regulator of oleate. Our results showed that a Δtog1 strain displays impaired growth with several non-fermentable carbons. Tog1 is also implicated in oxidative stress tolerance. Importantly, during the glucose–oleate shift, combined results from quantitative real time-PCR and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) experiments showed that Tog1 acts as a direct activator of oleate utilizing genes, encoded key enzymes in β-Oxidation and NADPH regeneration (POX1, FOX2, POT1 and IDP2), the glyoxylate shunt (MLS1 and ICL1), and gluconeogenesis (PCK1 and FBP1). A transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis of the Δtog1 strain assayed with oleate also revealed a substantial decrease in peroxisome abundance that is vital for fatty acid oxidation. Overall, our results clearly demonstrated that Tog1 is a newly characterized zinc cluster regulator that functions in the complex network of non-fermentable carbon metabolism in Saccharomycescerevisiae.

On the Beneficial Role of Silicon to Organisms : A Case Study on the Importance of Silicon Chemistry to Metal Accumulation in Yeast

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brasser, H.J.; Krijger, G.C.; Wolterbeek, H.T.

2008-01-01

Silicon is involved in numerous important structural and functional roles in a wide range of organisms, including diatoms, plants, and humans, but clear mechanisms have been discovered only in diatoms and sponges. Silicate availability influences metal concentrations within various cell- and

The Ethics of Ambiguity: Rethinking the Role and Importance of Uncertainty in Medical Education and Practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Domen, Ronald E

2016-01-01

Understanding and embracing uncertainty are critical for effective teacher-learner relationships as well as for shared decision-making in the physician-patient relationship. However, ambiguity has not been given serious consideration in either the undergraduate or graduate medical curricula or in the role it plays in patient-centered care. In this article, the author examines the ethics of ambiguity and argues for a pedagogy that includes education in the importance of, and tolerance of, ambiguity that is inherent in medical education and practice. Common threads running through the ethics of ambiguity are the virtue of respect, and the development of a culture of respect is required for the successful understanding and implementation of a pedagogy of ambiguity.

The elastic network model reveals a consistent picture on intrinsic functional dynamics of type II restriction endonucleases

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uyar, A; Kurkcuoglu, O; Doruker, P; Nilsson, L

2011-01-01

The vibrational dynamics of various type II restriction endonucleases, in complex with cognate/non-cognate DNA and in the apo form, are investigated with the elastic network model in order to reveal common functional mechanisms in this enzyme family. Scissor-like and tong-like motions observed in the slowest modes of all enzymes and their complexes point to common DNA recognition and cleavage mechanisms. Normal mode analysis further points out that the scissor-like motion has an important role in differentiating between cognate and non-cognate sequences at the recognition site, thus implying its catalytic relevance. Flexible regions observed around the DNA-binding site of the enzyme usually concentrate on the highly conserved β-strands, especially after DNA binding. These β-strands may have a structurally stabilizing role in functional dynamics for target site recognition and cleavage. In addition, hot spot residues based on high-frequency modes reveal possible communication pathways between the two distant cleavage sites in the enzyme family. Some of these hot spots also exist on the shortest path between the catalytic sites and are highly conserved

Inequalities in Educational Outcomes: How Important is the Family?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smith, Nina; Bredtmann, Julia

In this paper, we investigate sibling correlations in educational outcomes, which serve as a broad measure of the importance of family and community background. Making use of rich longitudinal survey and register data for Denmark, our main aim is to identify the parental background characteristics...... that are able to explain the resemblance in educational outcomes among siblings. We find sibling correlations in educational outcomes in the range of 15 to 33 percent, suggesting that up to a third of the variation in educational achievement can be explained by family and community background. Our results...... further reveal that parents' socio-economic background can account for a large part of the sibling correlation. Other family characteristics such as family structure, the incidence of social problems, and parents' educational preferences also play a role, though these factors only contribute to explaining...

Embedding the assistant practitioner role within the clinical department: A qualitative study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bennion, Colette M.; Irvine, Fiona

2011-01-01

Aim: To evaluate the Assistant Practitioner (AP) role in terms of service delivery and gain insight into the improvements that could be made in embedding this role effectively. This evaluation was timely as the role had been established in radiography for several years and there was limited research which explored its success in practice. Method: A qualitative approach was used to examine the perceptions of radiology managers using a regional focus group (n = 10) and follow up interviews (n = 4). These were designed to gain an understanding of the managers' views. Focus groups and interviews were audio recorded and transcribed. Data were analysed using a framework analysis approach to reveal salient issues. Results: Three main themes representing the perceptions of the role were uncovered and these related to organisational issues, the educational perspective and the individual perspective. This paper is restricted to in depth reporting and analyses of the organisational and individual perspectives only. Analysis revealed several factors facilitated the role in practice but equally other factors inhibited its effectiveness. Conclusions: There is potential for the AP role to support the work of radiographers and more importantly enhance the care of patients. However, certain individual views should be addressed and the identified changes in departmental organisation attended to, if the role is to develop successfully and become firmly embedded in the radiography service structure.

Pathogenesis of Congenital Rubella Virus Infection in Human Fetuses: Viral Infection in the Ciliary Body Could Play an Important Role in Cataractogenesis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Thong Van Nguyen

2015-01-01

Interpretation: Our study based on the pathological examination demonstrated that the rubella virus infection occurred via systemic organs of human fetuses. This fact was confirmed by immunohistochemistry and direct detection of viral RNA in multiple organs. To the best of our knowledge, this study is the first report demonstrating that the rubella virus infection occurred via systemic organs of the human body. Importantly, virus infection of the ciliary body could play an important role in cataractogenesis.

A Tempest in A Ladle: The Debate about the Roles of General and Specific Abilities in Predicting Important Outcomes

OpenAIRE

Wendy Johnson

2018-01-01

The debate about the roles of general and specific abilities in predicting important outcomes is a tempest in a ladle because we cannot measure abilities without also measuring skills. Skills always develop through exposure, are specific rather than general, and are executed using different strategies by different people, thus tapping into varied specific abilities. Relative predictive validities of measurement formats depend on the purpose: the more general and long-term the purpose, the bet...

Revealing the programming process

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bennedsen, Jens; Caspersen, Michael Edelgaard

2005-01-01

One of the most important goals of an introductory programming course is that the students learn a systematic approach to the development of computer programs. Revealing the programming process is an important part of this; however, textbooks do not address the issue -- probably because...... the textbook medium is static and therefore ill-suited to expose the process of programming. We have found that process recordings in the form of captured narrated programming sessions are a simple, cheap, and efficient way of providing the revelation.We identify seven different elements of the programming...

Third Year Medical School Students' Experiences of Revealing Patients' Stories through Role Playing.

Science.gov (United States)

Cansever, Zeliha; Avsar, Zeynep; Tastan, Kenan

2015-02-01

Studying medicine is hard and it takes longer time compared to other majors. In addition, medical students find medical education boring. It is now necessary to turn medical education into an enjoyable and interesting way. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of an educational program related to how to learn taking medical history and how an effective patient-doctor interview should be. The program is structured in various scenarios, on the students learning skills, by the "role playing" method. A scenario prepared by the lecturer was employed in this study. While one of the students acted in a doctor role, the other one played in the role of patient's relative. The lecturer always played in the role of patient. After performing the role playing, students' written and oral feedbacks were gathered. Data were analysed by using SPSS 20.0 program. A total of 470 feedbacks (51.3% were given by the female students) were taken from the students. Thirty-three volunteer students, nineteen of them were male, took part in the role playing. In the patient-doctor interview, the field that students were best were greeting the patients and dealing only with patients during the examination. The mean scores were 3.81±0.95 and 3.79±0.94 respectively. The ability to "summarize" and to "address the patient with his/her name" had the lowest scores; the mean scores of the students in these areas were 2.94±1.11 and 2.70±1.31, respectively. Medical education is a long and tough process. Therefore, it should be interesting, attention getting and cheerful. Role playing can be effective in meeting that need.

Genetic Disruption of 2-Arachidonoylglycerol Synthesis Reveals a Key Role for Endocannabinoid Signaling in Anxiety Modulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Brian C. Shonesy

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Summary: Endocannabinoid (eCB signaling has been heavily implicated in the modulation of anxiety and depressive behaviors and emotional learning. However, the role of the most-abundant endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG in the physiological regulation of affective behaviors is not well understood. Here, we show that genetic deletion of the 2-AG synthetic enzyme diacylglycerol lipase α (DAGLα in mice reduces brain, but not circulating, 2-AG levels. DAGLα deletion also results in anxiety-like and sex-specific anhedonic phenotypes associated with impaired activity-dependent eCB retrograde signaling at amygdala glutamatergic synapses. Importantly, acute pharmacological normalization of 2-AG levels reverses both phenotypes of DAGLα-deficient mice. These data suggest 2-AG deficiency could contribute to the pathogenesis of affective disorders and that pharmacological normalization of 2-AG signaling could represent an approach for the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders. : The role of the primary endogenous cannabinoid 2-AG in mood and anxiety regulation is not well understood. Shonesy et al. show that deletion of a primary 2-AG synthetic enzyme, DAGLα, results in anxiety and sex-specific depressive phenotypes, which can be rapidly reversed by pharmacological normalization of endocannabinoid levels.

An Investigation of the Attitudes of the National Teams’ Coaches Towards the Role and Importance of Information Technology in Sport

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nasim Salehi

2011-01-01

Full Text Available In order to investigate the attitude of elite coaches of the team and individual sports towards the role and importance of information technology in sport, 132 coaches were chosen as a sample and answered to the questionnaire of the role of information technology in sport organised by Liebermann and Katz that consisted of 3 different sections: A General attitude of the coaches towards computer and technology; B The importance of science and technology in achieving coaching experience; C Understanding science and technology in sport. Descriptive and inferential statistics (CFA and independent t - test were used in order to analyse the data. The findings demonstrated that elite coaches selected two aims as their chief ones: 1 - Winning medals in competitions; 2- Having a good relationship with the athletes. There was not any significant relationship between the attitudes of the men and women and the coaches of the individual and team sports on science and technology. It seems that elite coaches are aware on the general importance of sport sciences and have a positive attitude towards the use of sport technologies. But they do not practically transfer this positive attitude to competitive sport environments even when they use information technology for other purposes. Eventually it can be stated that the attitude of the coaches towards technology is very positive and consequently it is a must to find strategies in order to encourage them to use current technology and science practically.

Roles of TRPM8 Ion Channels in Cancer: Proliferation, Survival, and Invasion

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Nelson S. Yee

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The goal of this article is to provide a critical review of the transient receptor potential melastatin-subfamily member 8 (TRPM8 in cancers, with an emphasis on its roles in cellular proliferation, survival, and invasion. The TRPM8 ion channels regulate Ca²⁺ homeostasis and function as a cellular sensor and transducer of cold temperature. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that TRPM8 is aberrantly expressed in a variety of malignant solid tumors. Clinicopathological analysis has shown that over-expression of TRPM8 correlates with tumor progression. Experimental data have revealed important roles of TRPM8 channels in cancer cells proliferation, survival, and invasion, which appear to be dependent on the cancer type. Recent reports have begun to reveal the signaling mechanisms that mediate the biological roles of TRPM8 in tumor growth and metastasis. Determining the mechanistic roles of TRPM8 in cancer is expected to elucidate the impact of thermal and chemical stimuli on the formation and progression of neoplasms. Translational research and clinical investigation of TRPM8 in malignant diseases will help exploit these ion channels as molecular biomarkers and therapeutic targets for developing precision cancer medicine.

Identification of Nucleolus-Associated Chromatin Domains Reveals a Role for the Nucleolus in 3D Organization of the A. thaliana Genome

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Frédéric Pontvianne

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The nucleolus is the site of rRNA gene transcription, rRNA processing, and ribosome biogenesis. However, the nucleolus also plays additional roles in the cell. We isolated nucleoli using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS and identified nucleolus-associated chromatin domains (NADs by deep sequencing, comparing wild-type plants and null mutants for the nucleolar protein NUCLEOLIN 1 (NUC1. NADs are primarily genomic regions with heterochromatic signatures and include transposable elements (TEs, sub-telomeric regions, and mostly inactive protein-coding genes. However, NADs also include active rRNA genes and the entire short arm of chromosome 4 adjacent to them. In nuc1 null mutants, which alter rRNA gene expression and overall nucleolar structure, NADs are altered, telomere association with the nucleolus is decreased, and telomeres become shorter. Collectively, our studies reveal roles for NUC1 and the nucleolus in the spatial organization of chromosomes as well as telomere maintenance.

Identification of nucleolus-associated chromatin domains reveals the role of the nucleolus in the 3D organisation of the A. thaliana genome

Science.gov (United States)

Pontvianne, Frédéric; Carpentier, Marie-Christine; Durut, Nathalie; Pavlištová, Veronika; Jaške, Karin; Schořová, Šárka; Parrinello, Hugues; Rohmer, Marine; Pikaard, Craig S; Fojtová, Miloslava; Fajkus, Jiří; Saez-Vasquez, Julio

2017-01-01

The nucleolus is the site of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene transcription, rRNA processing and ribosome biogenesis. However, the nucleolus also plays additional roles in the cell. We isolated nucleoli by Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS) and identified Nucleolus-Associated Chromatin Domains (NADs) by deep sequencing, comparing wild-type plants and null mutants for the nucleolar protein, NUCLEOLIN 1 (NUC1). NADs are primarily genomic regions with heterochromatic signatures and include transposable elements (TEs), sub-telomeric regions and mostly inactive protein-coding genes. However, NADs also include active ribosomal RNA genes, and the entire short arm of chromosome 4 adjacent to them. In nuc1 null mutants, which alter rRNA gene expression and overall nucleolar structure, NADs are altered, telomere association with the nucleolus is decreased and telomeres become shorter. Collectively, our studies reveal roles for NUC1 and the nucleolus in the spatial organization of chromosomes as well as telomere maintenance. PMID:27477271

Identification of Nucleolus-Associated Chromatin Domains Reveals a Role for the Nucleolus in 3D Organization of the A. thaliana Genome.

Science.gov (United States)

Pontvianne, Frédéric; Carpentier, Marie-Christine; Durut, Nathalie; Pavlištová, Veronika; Jaške, Karin; Schořová, Šárka; Parrinello, Hugues; Rohmer, Marine; Pikaard, Craig S; Fojtová, Miloslava; Fajkus, Jiří; Sáez-Vásquez, Julio

2016-08-09

The nucleolus is the site of rRNA gene transcription, rRNA processing, and ribosome biogenesis. However, the nucleolus also plays additional roles in the cell. We isolated nucleoli using fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) and identified nucleolus-associated chromatin domains (NADs) by deep sequencing, comparing wild-type plants and null mutants for the nucleolar protein NUCLEOLIN 1 (NUC1). NADs are primarily genomic regions with heterochromatic signatures and include transposable elements (TEs), sub-telomeric regions, and mostly inactive protein-coding genes. However, NADs also include active rRNA genes and the entire short arm of chromosome 4 adjacent to them. In nuc1 null mutants, which alter rRNA gene expression and overall nucleolar structure, NADs are altered, telomere association with the nucleolus is decreased, and telomeres become shorter. Collectively, our studies reveal roles for NUC1 and the nucleolus in the spatial organization of chromosomes as well as telomere maintenance. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The important role of energy taxation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Austvik, Ole Gunnar

2003-01-01

This is a discussion of the importance of energy taxation in EU countries. Although natural gas is the most environmentally friendly of the fossil fuels, its use may be taxed far harder in the future. The price effects of such a development are discussed. The increasing taxes on oil products which has taken place in the OECD area may come to slow down if competing economies elsewhere do not follow the same policy. The challenge is particularly coming from the new economies in Asia, included the giants China and India, which now have far larger economic growth than the OECD area with a corresponding increased energy consumption. Strong competition may develop both in the markets for products and in the market for factor inputs (energy), so that taxes within the OECD area no longer can be increased but must be lowered. This may also happen if the oil price is high over some time. As far as taxes on natural gas in the European gas market is concerned, the large industrial users will face a regional competitive situation for natural gas as an input factor, while they are globally in a competitive situation for oil as an input factor. In product markets, this industry competes globally in the same way, as does industry that uses oil. This may lead to European countries wishing to tax the use of natural gas in the consumer sector harder than gas for industry and the production of electricity

Importance of demographic characteristics and nurses' role in women's perceptions and experiences of gynaecological examination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dušanka Zaić

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Gynaecological examination is crucial for protecting the reproductive health of women. The purpose of the study was to explore the perception of women towards gynaecological examination, the importance of some demographic characteristics and the role of a nurse. Methods: A quantitative methodology was used for study purposes. A structured web questionnaire was applied on a non-random, convenience sample of women (n = 476. The questionnaire was published on the most popular Slovenian web forums. Prior to the main research project, a pilot study was conducted on a sample of 10 women. The statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, t-test, Pearson's and Spearman's correlation coefficient. Results: Results of the study show a statistically significant correlation between the respondents' residential environment (t = -2.436, p = 0.015, the level of educational attainment (rs=-0.153, p = 0.001 and the presence of discomfort and fear before the gynaecological examination. The role of a nurse in reducing the level of discomfort and fear before (t = -0.931, p = 0.352 and during (t = -0.888, p = 0.375 the gynaecological examination was not proven statistically significant. Discussion and conclusions: Besides the demographic characteristics, a number of personal and societal factors influence women's attitudes towards gynaecological examination and the associated discomfort and fear. The study suggests that further qualitative studies are needed to gain a deeper understanding of how women experience a pelvic examination.

Role models and professional development in dentistry: an important resource: The views of early career stage dentists at one academic health science centre in England.

Science.gov (United States)

Mohamed Osama, O; Gallagher, J E

2018-02-01

The importance of role models, and their differing influence in early, mid- and late careers, has been identified in the process of professional development of medical doctors. There is a paucity of evidence within dentistry on role models and their attributes. To explore the views of early career dentists on positive and negative role models across key phases of professional development, together with role models' attributes and perceived influence. This is a phenomenological study collecting qualitative data through semi-structured interviews based on a topic guide. Dentists in junior (core training) hospital posts in one academic health science centre were all invited to participate. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using framework analysis. Twelve early career stage dentists, 10 of whom were female, reported having role models, mainly positive, in their undergraduate and early career phases. Participants defined role models' attributes in relation to three distinct domains: clinical attributes, personal qualities and teaching skills. Positive role models were described as "prioritising the patient's best interests", "delivering learner-centred teaching and training" and "exhibiting a positive personality", whilst negative role models demonstrated the converse. Early career dentists reported having largely positive dentist role models during- and post-dental school and report their impact on professional values and aspirations, learning outcomes and career choice. The findings suggest that these early career dentists in junior hospital posts have largely experienced and benefitted from positive role models, notably dentists, perceived as playing an important and creative influence promoting professionalism and shaping the career choices of early career stage dentists. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Role of School and Community-Based Programs in Aiding Latina/o High School Persistence

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Donna M.; Kiyama, Judy Marquez

2015-01-01

This study documents the important role school and community-based programs have for sustaining the persistence of Latina/o high school students in an urban, low achieving school district. Consensus among student participants revealed these programs provided a safe space where students were able to develop "confianza" (mutual trust) with…

Liver BCATm transgenic mouse model reveals the important role of the liver in maintaining BCAA homeostasis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ananieva, Elitsa A; Van Horn, Cynthia G; Jones, Meghan R; Hutson, Susan M

2017-02-01

Unlike other amino acids, the branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) largely bypass first-pass liver degradation due to a lack of hepatocyte expression of the mitochondrial branched-chain aminotransferase (BCATm). This sets up interorgan shuttling of BCAAs and liver-skeletal muscle cooperation in BCAA catabolism. To explore whether complete liver catabolism of BCAAs may impact BCAA shuttling in peripheral tissues, the BCATm gene was stably introduced into mouse liver. Two transgenic mouse lines with low and high hepatocyte expression of the BCATm transgene (LivTg-LE and LivTg-HE) were created and used to measure liver and plasma amino acid concentrations and determine whether the first two BCAA enzymatic steps in liver, skeletal muscle, heart and kidney were impacted. Expression of the hepatic BCATm transgene lowered the concentrations of hepatic BCAAs while enhancing the concentrations of some nonessential amino acids. Extrahepatic BCAA metabolic enzymes and plasma amino acids were largely unaffected, and no growth rate or body composition differences were observed in the transgenic animals as compared to wild-type mice. Feeding the transgenic animals a high-fat diet did not reverse the effect of the BCATm transgene on the hepatic BCAA catabolism, nor did the high-fat diet cause elevation in plasma BCAAs. However, the high-fat-diet-fed BCATm transgenic animals experienced attenuation in the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway in the liver and had impaired blood glucose tolerance. These results suggest that complete liver BCAA metabolism influences the regulation of glucose utilization during diet-induced obesity. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

FIP1 Plays an Important Role in Nitrate Signaling and Regulates CIPK8 and CIPK23 Expression in Arabidopsis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Wang

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Unraveling the molecular mechanisms of nitrate regulation and deciphering the underlying genetic network is vital for elucidating nitrate uptake and utilization in plants. Such knowledge could lead to the improvement of nitrogen-use efficiency in agriculture. Here, we report that the FIP1 gene (factor interacting with poly(A polymerase 1 plays an important role in nitrate signaling in Arabidopsis thaliana. FIP1 encodes a putative core component of the polyadenylation factor complex. We found that FIP1 interacts with the cleavage and polyadenylation specificity factor 30-L (CPSF30-L, which is also an essential player in nitrate signaling. The induction of nitrate-responsive genes following nitrate treatment was inhibited in the fip1 mutant. The nitrate content was also reduced in fip1 seedlings due to their decreased nitrate uptake activity. Furthermore, the nitrate content was higher in the roots but lower in the roots of fip1, which may result from the downregulation of NRT1.8 and the upregulation of the nitrate assimilation genes. In addition, qPCR analyses revealed that FIP1 negatively regulated the expression of CIPK8 and CIPK23, two protein kinases involved in nitrate signaling. In the fip1 mutant, the increased expression of CIPK23 may affect nitrate uptake, resulting in its lower nitrate content. Genetic and molecular evidence suggests that FIP1 and CPSF30-L function in the same nitrate-signaling pathway, with FIP1 mediating signaling through its interaction with CPSF30-L and its regulation of CIPK8 and CIPK23. Analysis of the 3′-UTR of NRT1.1 showed that the pattern of polyadenylation sites was altered in the fip1 mutant. These findings add a novel component to the nitrate regulation network and enhance our understanding of the underlying mechanisms for nitrate signaling.

Investigation into the role of endogenous abscisic acid during ripening of imported avocado cv. Hass.

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, Marjolaine D; Chope, Gemma A; Terry, Leon A

2017-08-01

The importance of ethylene in avocado ripening has been extensively studied. In contrast, little is known about the possible role of abscisic acid (ABA). The present work studied the effect of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) (0.3 μL L -1 ), e+® Ethylene Remover and the combination thereof on the quality of imported avocado cv. Hass fruit stored for 7 days at 12 °C. Ethylene production, respiration, firmness, colour, heptose (C7) sugars and ABA concentrations in mesocarp tissue were measured throughout storage. Treatment with e+® Ethylene Remover reduced ethylene production, respiration rate and physiological ripening compared with controls. Fruit treated with 1-MCP + e+® Ethylene Remover and, to a lesser extent 1-MCP alone, had the lowest ethylene production and respiration rate and hence the best quality. Major sugars measured in mesocarp tissue were mannoheptulose and perseitol, and their content was not correlated with ripening parameters. Mesocarp ABA concentration, as determined by mass spectrometry, increased as fruit ripened and was negatively correlated with fruit firmness. Results suggest a relationship between ABA and ethylene metabolism since blocking ethylene, and to a larger extent blocking and removing ethylene, resulted in lower ABA concentrations. Whether ABA influences avocado fruit ripening needs to be determined in future research. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

SUMO modification through rapamycin-mediated heterodimerization reveals a dual role for Ubc9 in targeting RanGAP1 to nuclear pore complexes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu Shanshan; Zhang Hong; Matunis, Michael J.

2006-01-01

SUMOs (small ubiquitin-related modifiers) are eukaryotic proteins that are covalently conjugated to other proteins and thereby regulate a wide range of important cellular processes. The molecular mechanisms by which SUMO modification influences the functions of most target proteins and cellular processes, however, remain poorly defined. A major obstacle to investigating the effects of SUMO modification is the availability of a system for selectively inducing the modification or demodification of an individual protein. To address this problem, we have developed a procedure using the rapamycin heterodimerizer system. This procedure involves co-expression of rapamycin-binding domain fusion proteins of SUMO and candidate SUMO substrates in living cells. Treating cells with rapamycin induces a tight association between SUMO and a single SUMO substrate, thereby allowing specific downstream effects to be analyzed. Using RanGAP1 as a model SUMO substrate, the heterodimerizer system was used to investigate the molecular mechanism by which SUMO modification targets RanGAP1 from the cytoplasm to nuclear pore complexes (NPCs). Our results revealed a dual role for Ubc9 in targeting RanGAP1 to NPCs: In addition to conjugating SUMO-1 to RanGAP1, Ubc9 is also required to form a stable ternary complex with SUMO-1 modified RanGAP1 and Nup358. As illustrated by our studies, the rapamycin heterodimerizer system represents a novel tool for studying the molecular effects of SUMO modification

The glossyhead1 allele of acc1 reveals a principal role for multidomain acetyl-coenzyme a carboxylase in the biosynthesis of cuticular waxes by Arabidopsis

KAUST Repository

Lu, Shiyou

2011-09-23

A novel mutant of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), having highly glossy inflorescence stems, postgenital fusion in floral organs, and reduced fertility, was isolated from an ethyl methanesulfonate-mutagenized population and designated glossyhead1 (gsd1). The gsd1 locus was mapped to chromosome 1, and the causal gene was identified as a new allele of Acetyl-Coenzyme A Carboxylase1 (ACC1), a gene encoding the main enzyme in cytosolic malonyl-coenzyme A synthesis. This, to our knowledge, is the first mutant allele of ACC1 that does not cause lethality at the seed or early germination stage, allowing for the first time a detailed analysis of ACC1 function in mature tissues. Broad lipid profiling of mature gsd1 organs revealed a primary role for ACC1 in the biosynthesis of the very-long-chain fatty acids (C 20:0 or longer) associated with cuticular waxes and triacylglycerols. Unexpectedly, transcriptome analysis revealed that gsd1 has limited impact on any lipid metabolic networks but instead has a large effect on environmental stress-responsive pathways, especially senescence and ethylene synthesis determinants, indicating a possible role for the cytosolic malonyl-coenzyme A-derived lipids in stress response signaling. © 2011 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Calcium-independent phospholipase A2 regulates retinal pigment epithelium proliferation and may be important in the pathogenesis of retinal diseases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kolko, M; Kiilgaard, J F; Wang, J

2009-01-01

Calcium-independent phospholipase A2, group VIA (iPLA2-VIA) is involved in cell proliferation. This study aimed to evaluate the role of iPLA2-VIA in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cell proliferation and in retinal diseases involving RPE proliferation. A human RPE cell line (ARPE-19) was used...... the expression of iPLA2-VIA in proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). PVR membranes revealed nuclear expression of iPLA2-VIA in the RPE cells which had migrated and participated in the formation of the membranes. Overall, the present results point to an important role of iPLA2-VIA in the regulation of RPE...

The Important Role of Carbohydrates in the Flavor, Function, and Formulation of Oral Nutritional Supplements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smaro Kokkinidou

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Patients who are malnourished or at-risk for malnutrition often benefit from the consumption of oral nutritional supplements (ONS. ONS supply a range of micro- and macro-nutrients, and they can be used to supplement a diet or provide total nutrition. Since ONS are specially formulated products, all ONS ingredients—including carbohydrates—are added ingredients. This may seem to be at odds with the growing public health discourse on the need to reduce “added sugars” in the diet. However, carbohydrate is an essential nutrient for human health and is a critical ingredient in ONS. Helping to educate patients on the value of “added sugars” in ONS may be useful to improve compliance with nutritional recommendations when ONS are indicated. This perspective paper reviews the important roles of “added sugars” in ONS, in terms of flavor, function, and product formulation.

Attitude Importance and the False Consensus Effect.

Science.gov (United States)

Fabrigar, Leandre R.; Krosnick, Jon A.

1995-01-01

Explores the possibility that importance may regulate the magnitude of the false consensus effect. Analysis revealed a strong false consensus effect but no reliable relation between its magnitude and attitude importance. Results contradict assumptions that the false consensus effect arises from attitudes that directly or indirectly influence…

IRMM Certified Reference Materials and k0-NAA: an important role for the future

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robouch, P.; Arana, G.; Pauwels, J.; Pomm, S.

1998-01-01

The k 0 -Neutron Activation Analysis method was introduced at the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) and the Belgian nuclear research centre (SCK CEN) in 1994. This analytical technique is routinely used at IRMM for the production control, homogeneity and stability tests and/or for certification of metallic, biological and environmental reference materials. The successful implementation of k 0 -NAA was proven at several certification exercises - such as ISS Antarctic Sediment, BCR Mussel Tissue and BCR Bovine Liver, SMU Bovine Blood - where all our results were accepted for certification. Responding to regulatory and/or scientific demands, IRMM is collaborating with national institutes to develop new high quality reference materials: (i) in the field of Neutron dosimetry: high purity nickel, Al-Ag or Zr-Au-Lu alloys; (ii) for environmental and industrial monitoring: Antarctic krill, doped plastics or catalytic converters; (iii) synthetic multi-element standard for the accreditation of k 0 -NAA laboratories. Far from being exhaustive, this list highlights the important role that k 0 -NAA will play in the certification of reference materials in the years 2000. (author)

Identification of Novel Proteins Co-Purifying with Cockayne Syndrome Group B (CSB Reveals Potential Roles for CSB in RNA Metabolism and Chromatin Dynamics.

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Serena Nicolai

Full Text Available The CSB protein, a member of the SWI/SNF ATP dependent chromatin remodeling family of proteins, plays a role in a sub-pathway of nucleotide excision repair (NER known as transcription coupled repair (TCR. CSB is frequently mutated in Cockayne syndrome group B, a segmental progeroid human autosomal recessive disease characterized by growth failure and degeneration of multiple organs. Though initially classified as a DNA repair protein, recent studies have demonstrated that the loss of CSB results in pleiotropic effects. Identification of novel proteins belonging to the CSB interactome may be useful not only for predicting the molecular basis for diverse pathological symptoms of CS-B patients but also for unraveling the functions of CSB in addition to its authentic role in DNA repair. In this study, we performed tandem affinity purification (TAP technology coupled with mass spectrometry and co-immunoprecipitation studies to identify and characterize the proteins that potentially interact with CSB-TAP. Our approach revealed 33 proteins that were not previously known to interact with CSB. These newly identified proteins indicate potential roles for CSB in RNA metabolism involving repression and activation of transcription process and in the maintenance of chromatin dynamics and integrity.

The Role of Perceived Maternal Favoritism in Sibling Relations in Midlife

OpenAIRE

Suitor, J. Jill; Sechrist, Jori; Plikuhn, Mari; Pardo, Seth T.; Gilligan, Megan; Pillemer, Karl

2009-01-01

Data were collected from 708 adult children nested within 274 later-life families from the Within-Family Differences Study to explore the role of perceived maternal favoritism in the quality of sibling relations in midlife. Mixed-model analyses revealed that regardless of which sibling was favored, perceptions of current favoritism and recollections of favoritism in childhood reduced closeness among siblings. Recollections of maternal favoritism in childhood were more important than perceptio...

The importance of thinking styles in predicting binge eating.

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Nikčević, A V; Marino, C; Caselli, G; Spada, M M

2017-08-01

Impulsivity, Body Mass Index, negative emotions and irrational food beliefs are often reported as predictors of binge eating. In the current study we explored the role played by two thinking styles, namely food thought suppression and desire thinking, in predicting binge eating among young adults controlling for established predictors of this condition. A total of 338 university students (268 females) participated in this study by completing a battery of questionnaires measuring the study variables. Path analysis revealed that impulsivity was not associated with binge eating, that Body Mass Index and negative emotions predicted binge eating, and that irrational food beliefs only influenced binge eating via food thought suppression and desire thinking. In conclusion, thinking styles appear an important predictor of binge eating and they should be taken into consideration when developing clinical interventions for binge eating. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Proteome-metabolome profiling of ovarian cancer ascites reveals novel components involved in intercellular communication.

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Shender, Victoria O; Pavlyukov, Marat S; Ziganshin, Rustam H; Arapidi, Georgij P; Kovalchuk, Sergey I; Anikanov, Nikolay A; Altukhov, Ilya A; Alexeev, Dmitry G; Butenko, Ivan O; Shavarda, Alexey L; Khomyakova, Elena B; Evtushenko, Evgeniy; Ashrafyan, Lev A; Antonova, Irina B; Kuznetcov, Igor N; Gorbachev, Alexey Yu; Shakhparonov, Mikhail I; Govorun, Vadim M

2014-12-01

Ovarian cancer ascites is a native medium for cancer cells that allows investigation of their secretome in a natural environment. This medium is of interest as a promising source of potential biomarkers, and also as a medium for cell-cell communication. The aim of this study was to elucidate specific features of the malignant ascites metabolome and proteome. In order to omit components of the systemic response to ascites formation, we compared malignant ascites with cirrhosis ascites. Metabolome analysis revealed 41 components that differed significantly between malignant and cirrhosis ascites. Most of the identified cancer-specific metabolites are known to be important signaling molecules. Proteomic analysis identified 2096 and 1855 proteins in the ovarian cancer and cirrhosis ascites, respectively; 424 proteins were specific for the malignant ascites. Functional analysis of the proteome demonstrated that the major differences between cirrhosis and malignant ascites were observed for the cluster of spliceosomal proteins. Additionally, we demonstrate that several splicing RNAs were exclusively detected in malignant ascites, where they probably existed within protein complexes. This result was confirmed in vitro using an ovarian cancer cell line. Identification of spliceosomal proteins and RNAs in an extracellular medium is of particular interest; the finding suggests that they might play a role in the communication between cancer cells. In addition, malignant ascites contains a high number of exosomes that are known to play an important role in signal transduction. Thus our study reveals the specific features of malignant ascites that are associated with its function as a medium of intercellular communication. © 2014 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Medication Safety Systems and the Important Role of Pharmacists.

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Mansur, Jeannell M

2016-03-01

Preventable medication-related adverse events continue to occur in the healthcare setting. While the Institute of Medicine's To Err is Human, published in 2000, highlighted the prevalence of medical and medication-related errors in patient morbidity and mortality, there has not been significant documented progress in addressing system contributors to medication errors. The lack of progress may be related to the myriad of pharmaceutical options now available and the nuances of optimizing drug therapy to achieve desired outcomes and prevent undesirable outcomes. However, on a broader scale, there may be opportunities to focus on the design and performance of the many processes that are part of the medication system. Errors may occur in the storage, prescribing, transcription, preparation and dispensing, or administration and monitoring of medications. Each of these nodes of the medication system, with its many components, is prone to failure, resulting in harm to patients. The pharmacist is uniquely trained to be able to impact medication safety at the individual patient level through medication management skills that are part of the clinical pharmacist's role, but also to analyze the performance of medication processes and to lead redesign efforts to mitigate drug-related outcomes that may cause harm. One population that can benefit from a focus on medication safety through clinical pharmacy services and medication safety programs is the elderly, who are at risk for adverse drug events due to their many co-morbidities and the number of medications often used. This article describes the medication safety systems and provides a blueprint for creating a foundation for medication safety programs within healthcare organizations. The specific role of pharmacists and clinical pharmacy services in medication safety is also discussed here and in other articles in this Theme Issue.

Protecting knowledge : How legal requirements to reveal information affect the importance of secrecy

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sofka, Wolfgang; de Faria, Pedro; Shehu, Edlira

2018-01-01

Most firms use secrecy to protect their knowledge from potential imitators. However, the theoretical foundations for secrecy have not been well explored. We extend knowledge protection literature and propose theoretical mechanisms explaining how information visibility influences the importance of

Importance of Pulmonary Vein Preferential Fibrosis for Atrial Fibrillation Promotion in Hypertensive Rat Hearts.

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Iwasaki, Yu-Ki; Yamashita, Takeshi; Sekiguchi, Akiko; Hayami, Noriyuki; Shimizu, Wataru

2016-06-01

Hypertension is one of the independent risk factors for atrial fibrillation (AF). Pulmonary veins (PVs) play an important role as the substrate for AF and triggers of AF. The purpose of this study was to determine the structural remodelling of the PVs and its effect on promoting AF in hypertensive (HT) rat hearts. Eighteen-week-old Dahl salt-sensitive HT rats and their controls were used for histological and immunohistological analyses, and electrophysiological studies were performed in Langendorff perfused hearts. Masson-trichrome staining revealed that hypertension significantly increased the fibrosis in the PVs, particularly in subendocardial and perivascular areas, compared with that in control rats, however, at this early stage of hypertension, left atrial fibrosis was not prominent. In the HT rat hearts with PVs, electrical stimulation significantly increased the number of repetitive atrial firing and atrial tachycardia inducibility, which significantly diminished after the excision of the PVs. An immunofluorescent analysis revealed that HT rats had PV specific endocardial smooth muscle actin (αSMA)-positive cells with remarkable proliferation of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-C and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which was lacking in the left atrial structures of the control and the HT rats. Pretreatment with imatinib, a PDGF receptor activity blocker, in HT rats reduced the αSMA-positive cell proliferation and fibrosis in the PVs and also induced a significant reduction in VEGF expression. Also, the drug pretreatment effectively prevented repetitive atrial firing promotion without affecting the blood pressure. PV preferential fibrosis might play an important role in the arrhythmogenic substrate of AF in HT rat hearts. Copyright © 2016 Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Current Research of the Roles of IL-35 in Tumor Progression

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Chongbiao HUANG

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Interleukin(IL-35 is a new member of the interleukin-12 superfamily. Since its first report in 2007, IL-35 rapidly became a research highlight in the field of immunology. Like other IL-12 superfamily members, IL-35 was a heterodimer which was composed of an α chain P35 and a β chain Epstein-Barr virus induced gene 3 (EBI3. Recent research work revealed two distinct roles of IL-35. Firstly, IL-35 is highly expressed in some kinds of inflammatory diseases and autoimmune diseases and plays import roles in the pathogenesis. Secondly, IL-35 is positively expressed in some cancers and plays some roles in the process of tumor progression. Here we demonstrate the structure and the signalling of IL-35. We reviewed the the roles of IL-35 in promoting tumor progression.

Comparative Genomics Reveals High Genomic Diversity in the Genus Photobacterium.

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Machado, Henrique; Gram, Lone

2017-01-01

Vibrionaceae is a large marine bacterial family, which can constitute up to 50% of the prokaryotic population in marine waters. Photobacterium is the second largest genus in the family and we used comparative genomics on 35 strains representing 16 of the 28 species described so far, to understand the genomic diversity present in the Photobacterium genus. Such understanding is important for ecophysiology studies of the genus. We used whole genome sequences to evaluate phylogenetic relationships using several analyses (16S rRNA, MLSA, fur , amino-acid usage, ANI), which allowed us to identify two misidentified strains. Genome analyses also revealed occurrence of higher and lower GC content clades, correlating with phylogenetic clusters. Pan- and core-genome analysis revealed the conservation of 25% of the genome throughout the genus, with a large and open pan-genome. The major source of genomic diversity could be traced to the smaller chromosome and plasmids. Several of the physiological traits studied in the genus did not correlate with phylogenetic data. Since horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is often suggested as a source of genetic diversity and a potential driver of genomic evolution in bacterial species, we looked into evidence of such in Photobacterium genomes. Genomic islands were the source of genomic differences between strains of the same species. Also, we found transposase genes and CRISPR arrays that suggest multiple encounters with foreign DNA. Presence of genomic exchange traits was widespread and abundant in the genus, suggesting a role in genomic evolution. The high genetic variability and indications of genetic exchange make it difficult to elucidate genome evolutionary paths and raise the awareness of the roles of foreign DNA in the genomic evolution of environmental organisms.

The embodied energy in trade: What role does specialization play?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gasim, Anwar A.

2015-01-01

Many industrialized countries are net importers of embodied energy and emissions, while many developing countries are net exporters. We examine the role of specialization in driving these trade patterns by conducting a spatial index decomposition analysis on the embodied energy in net exports for 41 economies. The results reveal that industrialized countries have generally offshored energy intensive production, which many developing countries specialize in. We find that specialization, on average, makes the biggest contribution, accounting for roughly 50% of a country's embodied energy in net exports. However, other factors, namely energy intensity and the trade balance, combine to make an equally important contribution. In summary, specialization, despite its significant role, is not the only cause of the embodied energy trade patterns observed between industrialized and developing countries. - Highlights: • The embodied energy in net exports is decomposed into three contributors. • The three contributors are intensity, specialization, and the trade balance. • On average, specialization accounts for roughly 50% of embodied energy flows. • The combination of intensity and trade balance effects is equally important.

IL-15 deficient tax mice reveal a role for IL-1α in tumor immunity.

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Daniel A Rauch

Full Text Available IL-15 is recognized as a promising candidate for tumor immunotherapy and has been described as both a promoter of cancer and a promoter of anti-cancer immunity. IL-15 was discovered in cells transformed by HTLV-1, the etiologic agent of adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL and the human retrovirus that carries the Tax oncogene. We have developed the TAX-LUC mouse model of ATL in which Tax expression drives both malignant transformation and luciferase expression, enabling non-invasive imaging of tumorigenesis in real time. To identify the role of IL-15 in spontaneous development of lymphoma in vivo, an IL-15(-/- TAX-LUC strain was developed and examined. The absence of IL-15 resulted in aggressive tumor growth and accelerated mortality and demonstrated that IL-15 was not required for Tax-mediated lymphoma but was essential for anti-tumor immunity. Further analysis revealed a unique transcriptional profile in tumor cells that arise in the absence of IL-15 that included a significant increase in the expression of IL-1α and IL-1α-regulated cytokines. Moreover, anti-IL-1α antibodies and an IL-1 receptor antagonist (Anakinra were used to interrogate the potential of IL-1α targeted therapies in this model. Taken together, these findings identify IL-15 and IL-1α as therapeutic targets in lymphoma.

miR-132/212 knockout mice reveal roles for these miRNAs in regulating cortical synaptic transmission and plasticity.

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Judit Remenyi

Full Text Available miR-132 and miR-212 are two closely related miRNAs encoded in the same intron of a small non-coding gene, which have been suggested to play roles in both immune and neuronal function. We describe here the generation and initial characterisation of a miR-132/212 double knockout mouse. These mice were viable and fertile with no overt adverse phenotype. Analysis of innate immune responses, including TLR-induced cytokine production and IFNβ induction in response to viral infection of primary fibroblasts did not reveal any phenotype in the knockouts. In contrast, the loss of miR-132 and miR-212, while not overtly affecting neuronal morphology, did affect synaptic function. In both hippocampal and neocortical slices miR-132/212 knockout reduced basal synaptic transmission, without affecting paired-pulse facilitation. Hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP induced by tetanic stimulation was not affected by miR-132/212 deletion, whilst theta burst LTP was enhanced. In contrast, neocortical theta burst-induced LTP was inhibited by loss of miR-132/212. Together these results indicate that miR-132 and/or miR-212 play a significant role in synaptic function, possibly by regulating the number of postsynaptic AMPA receptors under basal conditions and during activity-dependent synaptic plasticity.

Landowners' perspectives on the rural future and the role of forests across Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Elands, Birgit; Præstholm, Søren

2007-01-01

countries perceive future development. Landowners' prospects for change are investigated on both the locality and enterprise level. Special attention is given to the role of forestry as a potential future development perspective. The results reveal that both restructuring and modernisation perspectives...... are important to many landowners. Moreover, a polarisation seems to be developing between a minority of full-time farmers with progressive farming prospects and the vast majority of landowners with declining prospects or little dependency on primary production. More importantly, the research reveals a third...... employment perspective, which did not have any specific content apart from the social security of having employment opportunities in the locality. Also at the enterprise level, farmers anticipate both restructuring and modernisation practices, even on the very same property. The study proves...

Continental cichlid radiations: functional diversity reveals the role of changing ecological opportunity in the Neotropics.

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Arbour, Jessica Hilary; López-Fernández, Hernán

2016-08-17

Adaptive radiations have been hypothesized to contribute broadly to the diversity of organisms. Models of adaptive radiation predict that ecological opportunity and ecological release, the availability of empty ecological niches and the response by adapting lineages to occupy them, respectively, drive patterns of phenotypic and lineage diversification. Adaptive radiations driven by 'ecological opportunity' are well established in island systems; it is less clear if ecological opportunity influences continent-wide diversification. We use Neotropical cichlid fishes to test if variation in rates of functional evolution is consistent with changing ecological opportunity. Across a functional morphological axis associated with ram-suction feeding traits, evolutionary rates declined through time as lineages diversified in South America. Evolutionary rates of ram-suction functional morphology also appear to have accelerated as cichlids colonized Central America and encountered renewed opportunity. Our results suggest that ecological opportunity may play an important role in shaping patterns of morphological diversity of even broadly distributed lineages like Neotropical cichlids. © 2016 The Author(s).

Motivation to comply with task rules and multitasking performance: The role of need for cognitive closure and goal importance.

Science.gov (United States)

Szumowska, Ewa; Kossowska, Małgorzata; Roets, Arne

2018-01-01

In three studies, we examined the role task rules play in multitasking performance. We postulated that rules should be especially important for individuals highly motivated to have structure and clear answers, i.e., those high on need for cognitive closure (NFC). High NFC should thus be related to greater compliance with task rules. Specifically, given high goal importance, NFC should be more strongly related to a multitasking strategy when multitasking is imposed by the rules, and to a mono-tasking strategy when monotasking is imposed by the rules. This should translate into better multitasking or mono-tasking performance, depending on condition. Overall, the results were supportive as NFC was related to a more mono-tasking strategy in the mono-tasking condition (Studies 1 and 2 only) and more dual-tasking strategy in the dual-tasking condition (Studies 1-3). This translated into respective differences in performance. The effects were significant only when goal importance was high (Study 1) and held when cognitive ability was controlled for (Study 2).

"Making a good time": the role of friendship in living successfully with aphasia.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Kyla; Davidson, Bronwyn; Worrall, Linda E; Howe, Tami

2013-04-01

Loss of friendship post-onset of aphasia is well documented, with reduced social network size and social isolation commonly reported. Because friendship has strong links to psychological well-being and health, increased knowledge about friendships of individuals with aphasia will have important clinical implications. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of 25 community dwelling individuals with chronic aphasia on the role of friendship in living successfully with aphasia. Thematic analysis of transcripts from semi-structured in-depth interviews revealed three over-arching themes relating to the role of friendship in participants' experience of life with aphasia: living with changes in friendships, good times together and support from friends, and the importance of stroke and aphasia friends. Overall, findings highlighted the valued role of friendship in living successfully with aphasia, while also providing evidence of how friendships change and evolve in both negative and positive ways following onset of aphasia. Clinicians are challenged to work creatively to address the role of friendship in life post-stroke in partnership with individuals with aphasia, their families, and friends.

The role of CD103+ Dendritic cells in the intestinal mucosal immune system.

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Darren Thomas Ruane

2011-07-01

Full Text Available While dendritic cells (DC are central to the induction and regulation of adaptive immunity, these cells are very heterogenous and specific subsets can be characterized based on the expression of cell surface markers and functional properties. Intestinal CD103+ DCs are the subject of particular interest due to their role in regulating mucosal immunity. Since the epithelial surfaces are constantly exposed to a high antigenic load, tight regulation of innate and adaptive intestinal immune responses is vital as intestinal inflammation can have detrimental consequences for the host. Strategically positioned within the lamina propria, CD103+ DCs play an important role in maintaining intestinal immune homeostasis. These cells are required for the induction of tolerogenic immune responses and imprinting gut homing phenotypic changes on antigen-specific T cells. Recent insights into their development and regulatory properties have revealed additional immunoregulatory roles and further highlighted their importance for intestinal immunity. In this review we discuss the nature of the intestinal CD103+ DC population and the emerging roles of these cells in the regulation of mucosal immunity.

Importance of Choline as Essential Nutrient and Its Role in Prevention of Various Toxicities

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Somava Biswas

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Choline is a water-soluble essential nutrient included as a member of the vitamin B12 group owing to its structural similarities with that of the other members of the group. Its roles and functions, however, extend much wider than that of the vitamins with which it is grouped. Choline is vital for maintenance of various key metabolic processes which play a role in the prevention or progression of various health impairments. The occurrence of diseases like neural tube defect (NTD and Alzheimer’s is prevented by the metabolic role of choline. It is also indispensable for mitigation of various forms of toxic contamination. While adequate level of choline in the body is essential, an excess of choline can result in various forms of disorder. To maintain the optimal level of choline in the body can be a challenge. The vital roles played by choline together with the range of contradictions and problems that choline presents make choline an interesting area of study. This paper attempts to summarize and review some recent publications on choline that have opened up new prospect in understanding the multiple role played by choline and in throwing light on the role played by this wonder essential nutrient in mitigating various forms of toxic contamination.

The importance of plasma effects on electron-cyclotron maser-emission from flaring loops

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma, R. R.; Vlahos, L.; Papadopoulos, K.

1982-01-01

Electron cyclotron maser instability has been suggested as the cause of the observed short (10-20 msec), intense (an approximate brightness temperature of 10 to the 15th K) and up to 100% polarized microwave solar emission. It is shown that plasma effects and thermal cyclotron damping, ignored in previous theories, play an important role in controlling the frequency range of the emission. The radio emission is suppressed for ratios of the plasma frequency to the cyclotron frequency smaller than 0.4. An examination of the cyclotron damping, reveals that the maser action is suppressed unless a large fraction (i.e., over 10%) of the accelerated electrons participates in the emission process.

Complex analyses of inverted repeats in mitochondrial genomes revealed their importance and variability.

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Cechová, Jana; Lýsek, Jirí; Bartas, Martin; Brázda, Václav

2018-04-01

The NCBI database contains mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genomes from numerous species. We investigated the presence and locations of inverted repeat sequences (IRs) in these mtDNA sequences, which are known to be important for regulating nuclear genomes. IRs were identified in mtDNA in all species. IR lengths and frequencies correlate with evolutionary age and the greatest variability was detected in subgroups of plants and fungi and the lowest variability in mammals. IR presence is non-random and evolutionary favoured. The frequency of IRs generally decreased with IR length, but not for IRs 24 or 30 bp long, which are 1.5 times more abundant. IRs are enriched in sequences from the replication origin, followed by D-loop, stem-loop and miscellaneous sequences, pointing to the importance of IRs in regulatory regions of mitochondrial DNA. Data were produced using Palindrome analyser, freely available on the web at http://bioinformatics.ibp.cz. vaclav@ibp.cz. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

The Relationship Between Parental Abuse with Parental and Marital Roles Attitude in Girls.

Science.gov (United States)

Nekuei, Nafisehsadat; Zirakidana, Akram; Kazemi, Ashraf; Beigi, Nastaran Mohhamad Ali; Alijanpoor, Masoomeh

2017-01-01

Gender role attitude pertains to individuals' attitude toward proper role activities for men and women. Most of the factors relevant to family and society may affect individuals' attitudes toward their role. Meanwhile, parents' behaviors can act as an important factor in formation of different dimensions of children's personality. Accordingly, the present study was aimed to investigate the relationship between maltreatment and girls' attitudes toward parental and marital roles. This cross-sectional correlational study was conducted in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2013 with 190 female students as the sample. Participants were selected using the random-proportional sampling method. A demographic questionnaire, researcher-made maltreatment questionnaire, and Homami's gender role attitudes questionnaire were used as the data collection instruments. Data were analyzed using Chi-square, Kruskal-Wallis, and Mann-Whitney tests. Results indicated that the feminine attitude was the dominant attitude in gender roles. Findings also revealed no significant correlation between the type of gender role attitude in parental role and maltreatment. However, the correlation was meaningful in marital role of sexual and fertility affairs ( P = 0.02). Results revealed that participants had traditional female attitudes toward their gender roles in two aspects. First, taking the cultural domination on attitudes into account, that type of attitude is appreciated in which the individual feels relaxed and has an acceptable performance in the society. Furthermore, to promote certain types of attitudes, the entire socio-cultural and economic dimensions of the society must be taken into account. Family and social policy makings are regarded as starting points for different attitudes toward maltreatment.

Setting a good example: supervisors as work-life-friendly role models within the context of boundary management.

Science.gov (United States)

Koch, Anna R; Binnewies, Carmen

2015-01-01

This multisource, multilevel study examined the importance of supervisors as work-life-friendly role models for employees' boundary management. Particularly, we tested whether supervisors' work-home segmentation behavior represents work-life-friendly role modeling for their employees. Furthermore, we tested whether work-life-friendly role modeling is positively related to employees' work-home segmentation behavior. Also, we examined whether work-life-friendly role modeling is positively related to employees' well-being in terms of feeling less exhausted and disengaged. In total, 237 employees and their 75 supervisors participated in our study. Results from hierarchical linear models revealed that supervisors who showed more segmentation behavior to separate work and home were more likely perceived as work-life-friendly role models. Employees with work-life-friendly role models were more likely to segment between work and home, and they felt less exhausted and disengaged. One may conclude that supervisors as work-life-friendly role models are highly important for employees' work-home segmentation behavior and gatekeepers to implement a work-life-friendly organizational culture. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

Medical physics in radiotherapy: The importance of preserving clinical responsibilities and expanding the profession's role in research, education, and quality control.

Science.gov (United States)

Malicki, Julian

2015-01-01

Medical physicists have long had an integral role in radiotherapy. In recent decades, medical physicists have slowly but surely stepped back from direct clinical responsibilities in planning radiotherapy treatments while medical dosimetrists have assumed more responsibility. In this article, I argue against this gradual withdrawal from routine therapy planning. It is essential that physicists be involved, at least to some extent, in treatment planning and clinical dosimetry for each and every patient; otherwise, physicists can no longer be considered clinical specialists. More importantly, this withdrawal could negatively impact treatment quality and patient safety. Medical physicists must have a sound understanding of human anatomy and physiology in order to be competent partners to radiation oncologists. In addition, they must possess a thorough knowledge of the physics of radiation as it interacts with body tissues, and also understand the limitations of the algorithms used in radiotherapy. Medical physicists should also take the lead in evaluating emerging challenges in quality and safety of radiotherapy. In this sense, the input of physicists in clinical audits and risk assessment is crucial. The way forward is to proactively take the necessary steps to maintain and advance our important role in clinical medicine.

Medical physics in radiotherapy: The importance of preserving clinical responsibilities and expanding the profession's role in research, education, and quality control

Science.gov (United States)

Malicki, Julian

2015-01-01

Medical physicists have long had an integral role in radiotherapy. In recent decades, medical physicists have slowly but surely stepped back from direct clinical responsibilities in planning radiotherapy treatments while medical dosimetrists have assumed more responsibility. In this article, I argue against this gradual withdrawal from routine therapy planning. It is essential that physicists be involved, at least to some extent, in treatment planning and clinical dosimetry for each and every patient; otherwise, physicists can no longer be considered clinical specialists. More importantly, this withdrawal could negatively impact treatment quality and patient safety. Medical physicists must have a sound understanding of human anatomy and physiology in order to be competent partners to radiation oncologists. In addition, they must possess a thorough knowledge of the physics of radiation as it interacts with body tissues, and also understand the limitations of the algorithms used in radiotherapy. Medical physicists should also take the lead in evaluating emerging challenges in quality and safety of radiotherapy. In this sense, the input of physicists in clinical audits and risk assessment is crucial. The way forward is to proactively take the necessary steps to maintain and advance our important role in clinical medicine. PMID:25949219

LCM-seq reveals the crucial role of LsSOC1 in heat-promoted bolting of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Zijing; Zhao, Wensheng; Ge, Danfeng; Han, Yingyan; Ning, Kang; Luo, Chen; Wang, Shenglin; Liu, Renyi; Zhang, Xiaolan; Wang, Qian

2018-05-17

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is one of the most economically important vegetables. The floral transition in lettuce is accelerated under high temperatures, which can significantly decrease yields. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the floral tranition in lettuce is poorly known. Using laser capture microdissection coupled with RNA sequencing, we isolated shoot apical meristem cells from the bolting-sensitive lettuce line S39 at four critical stages of development. Subsequently, we screened specifically for the flowering-related gene LsSOC1 during the floral transition through comparative transcriptomic analysis. Molecular biology, developmental biology, and biochemical tools were combined to investigate the biological function of LsSOC1 in lettuce. LsSOC1 knockdown by RNA interference resulted in a significant delay in the timing of bolting and insensitivity to high temperature, which indicated that LsSOC1 functions as an activator during heat-promoted bolting in lettuce. We determined that two heat-shock transcription factors, HsfA1e and HsfA4c, bound to the promoter of LsSOC1 to confirm that LsSOC1 played an important role in heat-promoted bolting. This study indicates that LsSOC1 plays a crucial role in the heat-promoted bolting process in lettuce. Further investigation of LsSOC1 may be useful for clarification of the bolting mechanism in lettuce. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Role and impact of [18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography in recurrent breast cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grahek, D.; Montravers, F.; Aide, N.; Kerrou, K.; Talbot, J.N.

2004-01-01

[18F]-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography is widely used in oncology to detect malignant tissue, assess the extent of the disease and follow up treatment. In breast cancer, recurrence detection seems to be the leading indication of [18F] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography. This review, including recent publications, aims to evaluate its role to detect the recurrent malignant. tissue when tumour marker levels are isolatedly rising and to evaluate the extent of-the disease. The first impact studies reveal its important role in the management of the patients suspected of breast cancer recurrence. (author)

Characterization of WRKY transcription factors in Solanum lycopersicum reveals collinearity and their expression patterns under cold treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Lin; Yang, Yang; Liu, Can; Zheng, Yanyan; Xu, Mingshuang; Wu, Na; Sheng, Jiping; Shen, Lin

2015-08-28

WRKY transcription factors play an important role in cold defense of plants. However, little information is available about the cold-responsive WRKYs in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). In the present study, a complete characterization of this gene family was described. Eighty WRKY genes in the tomato genome were identified. Almost all WRKY genes contain putative stress-responsive cis-elements in their promoter regions. Segmental duplications contributed significantly to the expansion of the SlWRKY gene family. Transcriptional analysis revealed notable differential expression in tomato tissues and expression patterns under cold stress, which indicated wide functional divergence in this family. Ten WRKYs in tomato were strongly induced more than 2-fold during cold stress. These genes represented candidate genes for future functional analysis of WRKYs involved in the cold-related signal pathways. Our data provide valuable information about tomato WRKY proteins and form a foundation for future studies of these proteins, especially for those that play an important role in response to cold stress. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Genetic regulation of salt stress tolerance revealed by RNA-Seq in cotton diploid wild species, Gossypium davidsonii.

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Zhang, Feng; Zhu, Guozhong; Du, Lei; Shang, Xiaoguang; Cheng, Chaoze; Yang, Bing; Hu, Yan; Cai, Caiping; Guo, Wangzhen

2016-02-03

Cotton is an economically important crop throughout the world, and is a pioneer crop in salt stress tolerance research. Investigation of the genetic regulation of salinity tolerance will provide information for salt stress-resistant breeding. Here, we employed next-generation RNA-Seq technology to elucidate the salt-tolerant mechanisms in cotton using the diploid cotton species Gossypium davidsonii which has superior stress tolerance. A total of 4744 and 5337 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were found to be involved in salt stress tolerance in roots and leaves, respectively. Gene function annotation elucidated salt overly sensitive (SOS) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling pathways. Furthermore, we found that photosynthesis pathways and metabolism play important roles in ion homeostasis and oxidation balance. Moreover, our studies revealed that alternative splicing also contributes to salt-stress responses at the posttranscriptional level, implying its functional role in response to salinity stress. This study not only provides a valuable resource for understanding the genetic control of salt stress in cotton, but also lays a substantial foundation for the genetic improvement of crop resistance to salt stress.

ROLE AND IMPORTANCE OF KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS MEASUREMENT

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Rade Stanković

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Key performance indicators are financial and non financial indicators that organizations use inorder to estimate and fortify how successful they are, aiming previously established long lastinggoals. Appropriate selection of indicators that will be used for measuring is of a greatest importance.Process organization of business is necessary to be constitute in order to realize such effective andefficient system or performance measuring via KPI. Process organization also implies customerorientation and necessary flexibility in nowadays condition of global competition.Explanation of process organization, the way of KPI selection, and practical example of KPImeasuring in Toyota dealerships are presented in this paper.

The role of probability arguments in the history of science.

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Weinert, Friedel

2010-03-01

The paper examines Wesley Salmon's claim that the primary role of plausibility arguments in the history of science is to impose constraints on the prior probability of hypotheses (in the language of Bayesian confirmation theory). A detailed look at Copernicanism and Darwinism and, more briefly, Rutherford's discovery of the atomic nucleus reveals a further and arguably more important role of plausibility arguments. It resides in the consideration of likelihoods, which state how likely a given hypothesis makes a given piece of evidence. In each case the likelihoods raise the probability of one of the competing hypotheses and diminish the credibility of its rival, and this may happen either on the basis of 'old' or 'new' evidence.

[The importance of local and general factors in development of inflammatory periodontal diseases in children and adolescents].

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Shishinashvili, T E; Tsagareli, Z G; Khimshiashvili, N B

2012-10-01

The aim of the study was to investigate the influence of local and general adverse risk factors and their role in the development of inflammatory periodontal diseases in children and adolescents. The study of the dental status among 618 school children, 9 to 15 years of age has been performed. The obtained results revealed an ambiguous influence of general and local risk factors on the development of inflammatory periodontal diseases. Namely, among the general risk factors the main role is given to hormonal functioning state of juvenile age (26.5%) - (arhythmia formation of hormonal activity). Among the local risk factors inducing inflammatory periodontal diseases at young age, the most significant are tooth-jaw anomalies (32.2%), especially - dental occlusion pathology, lips' bridle attachment anomalies, absence of interdental contacts, small vestibule of the mouth and so on. Poor oral hygiene, however, is also a significant factor in all age groups. Definition of the role and importance of general and local risk factors, taking into consideration patient's age, is of great importance in organization of early prevention, giving the possibility to predict disease possible development, choose most appropriate way to treat the specific situation, reduce the need of complex treatment and improve treatment outcomes.

Identification of genes important for cutaneous function revealed by a large scale reverse genetic screen in the mouse.

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Tia DiTommaso

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The skin is a highly regenerative organ which plays critical roles in protecting the body and sensing its environment. Consequently, morbidity and mortality associated with skin defects represent a significant health issue. To identify genes important in skin development and homeostasis, we have applied a high throughput, multi-parameter phenotype screen to the conditional targeted mutant mice generated by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute's Mouse Genetics Project (Sanger-MGP. A total of 562 different mouse lines were subjected to a variety of tests assessing cutaneous expression, macroscopic clinical disease, histological change, hair follicle cycling, and aberrant marker expression. Cutaneous lesions were associated with mutations in 23 different genes. Many of these were not previously associated with skin disease in the organ (Mysm1, Vangl1, Trpc4ap, Nom1, Sparc, Farp2, and Prkab1, while others were ascribed new cutaneous functions on the basis of the screening approach (Krt76, Lrig1, Myo5a, Nsun2, and Nf1. The integration of these skin specific screening protocols into the Sanger-MGP primary phenotyping pipelines marks the largest reported reverse genetic screen undertaken in any organ and defines approaches to maximise the productivity of future projects of this nature, while flagging genes for further characterisation.

MiR-378 Plays an Important Role in the Differentiation of Bovine Preadipocytes.

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Liu, Si-Yuan; Zhang, Yang-Yang; Gao, Yan; Zhang, Lian-Jiang; Chen, Hong-Yan; Zhou, Qian; Chai, Meng-Long; Li, Qing-Ying; Jiang, Hao; Yuan, Bao; Dai, Li-Sheng; Zhang, Jia-Bao

2015-01-01

Adipocyte, the main cellular component of white adipose tissue, plays a vital role in energy balance in higher eukaryotes. In recent years, adipocytes have also been identified as a major endocrine organ involved in immunological responses, vascular diseases, and appetite regulation. In farm animals, fat content and categories are closely correlated with meat quality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of endogenous single-stranded non-coding RNA molecules, participate in the regulation of adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis through regulating the transcription or translation of target mRNAs. MiR-378 plays an important role in a number of biological processes, including cell growth, cell differentiation, tumor cell survival and angiogenesis. In the present study, bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assay were used to identify and validate the target genes of miR-378. In vitro cell transfection, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR), western blot analysis, Oil Red O staining, and triglyceride content measurement were conducted to analyze the effects of miR-378 on bovine preadipocyte differentiation. MiR-378 was induced during adipocyte differentiation. In the differentiated adipocytes overexpressing miR- 378, the volume of lipid droplets was enlarged, and the triglyceride content was increased. Moreover, the mRNA expression levels of the adipocyte differentiation marker genes, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) and sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP), were significantly elevated in the differentiated, mature adipocytes. In contrast, the mRNA expression level of preadipocyte factor 1 (Pref-1) was markedly reduced. E2F transcription factor 2 (E2F2) and Ras-related nuclear (RAN)-binding protein 10 (RANBP10) were the two target genes of miR-378. The mRNA expression levels of E2F2 and RANBP10 did not significantly change in bovine preadipocytes overexpressing miR-378. However, the

MiR-378 Plays an Important Role in the Differentiation of Bovine Preadipocytes

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Si-Yuan Liu

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Background: Adipocyte, the main cellular component of white adipose tissue, plays a vital role in energy balance in higher eukaryotes. In recent years, adipocytes have also been identified as a major endocrine organ involved in immunological responses, vascular diseases, and appetite regulation. In farm animals, fat content and categories are closely correlated with meat quality. MicroRNAs (miRNAs, a class of endogenous single-stranded non-coding RNA molecules, participate in the regulation of adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis through regulating the transcription or translation of target mRNAs. MiR-378 plays an important role in a number of biological processes, including cell growth, cell differentiation, tumor cell survival and angiogenesis. Methods: In the present study, bioinformatics analysis and dual-luciferase reporter assay were used to identify and validate the target genes of miR-378. In vitro cell transfection, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR, western blot analysis, Oil Red O staining, and triglyceride content measurement were conducted to analyze the effects of miR-378 on bovine preadipocyte differentiation. Results: MiR-378 was induced during adipocyte differentiation. In the differentiated adipocytes overexpressing miR-378, the volume of lipid droplets was enlarged, and the triglyceride content was increased. Moreover, the mRNA expression levels of the adipocyte differentiation marker genes, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ and sterol regulatory element-binding protein (SREBP, were significantly elevated in the differentiated, mature adipocytes. In contrast, the mRNA expression level of preadipocyte factor 1 (Pref-1 was markedly reduced. E2F transcription factor 2 (E2F2 and Ras-related nuclear (RAN-binding protein 10 (RANBP10 were the two target genes of miR-378. The mRNA expression levels of E2F2 and RANBP10 did not significantly change in bovine preadipocytes

Epigenetic modifications: An important mechanism in diabetic disturbances.

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Rorbach-Dolata, Anna; Kubis, Adriana; Piwowar, Agnieszka

2017-11-29

In the search for explanations of diabetes pathomechanisms, especially the development of its vascular complications (micro- and macrovascular ), although current, good metabolic control of diabetes, attention was drawn to the role of epigenetic inheritance associated with epigenetic modifications of histone proteins and DNA in hyperglycemia conditions. This study showed the significant role of DNA methylation and histone epigenetic modifications (a different nature and a different degree) in the transmission of information that is not connected with gene inheritance but concerns the persistent changes induced by hyperglycemia..Attention was paid to the role of DNA methylation of pancreatic cells in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes, but also type 2. The important role of DNA methylation changes in a so-called intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) as reason of subsequent development of diabetes was particularly emphasized. In the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and its complications, especially microvascular complications, the greatest share and importance of epigenetic modifications on mitochondrial DNA metylation are the most important. The multidirectionality Complicaand complexity of epigenetic modifications of histone proteins indicate their importance in the development of diabetic disturbances. An especially important role is attributed to methylation and acetylation of histone proteins, in particular on arginine and lysine, whose changes occur most frequently. Moreover, epigenetic modifications of the enzymes, especially methylases, responsible for these processes are the underlying. It has been indicated that the identification of epigenetic differences within the DNA or histone proteins may be a useful prognostic biomarker of susceptibility to the disease development in the future. Moreover, they may become a potential target for future therapeutic interventions for clinical disorders in diabetes.

The Arabidopsis ppi1 Mutant Is Specifically Defective in the Expression, Chloroplast Import, and Accumulation of Photosynthetic ProteinsW⃞

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Kubis, Sybille; Baldwin, Amy; Patel, Ramesh; Razzaq, Azam; Dupree, Paul; Lilley, Kathryn; Kurth, Joachim; Leister, Dario; Jarvis, Paul

2003-01-01

The import of nucleus-encoded proteins into chloroplasts is mediated by translocon complexes in the envelope membranes. A component of the translocon in the outer envelope membrane, Toc34, is encoded in Arabidopsis by two homologous genes, atTOC33 and atTOC34. Whereas atTOC34 displays relatively uniform expression throughout development, atTOC33 is strongly upregulated in rapidly growing, photosynthetic tissues. To understand the reason for the existence of these two related genes, we characterized the atTOC33 knockout mutant ppi1. Immunoblotting and proteomics revealed that components of the photosynthetic apparatus are deficient in ppi1 chloroplasts and that nonphotosynthetic chloroplast proteins are unchanged or enriched slightly. Furthermore, DNA array analysis of 3292 transcripts revealed that photosynthetic genes are moderately, but specifically, downregulated in ppi1. Proteome differences in ppi1 could be correlated with protein import rates: ppi1 chloroplasts imported the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase small subunit and 33-kD oxygen-evolving complex precursors at significantly reduced rates, but the import of a 50S ribosomal subunit precursor was largely unaffected. The ppi1 import defect occurred at the level of preprotein binding, which is consistent with a role for atToc33 during preprotein recognition. The data suggest that atToc33 is involved preferentially in the import of photosynthetic proteins and, by extension, that atToc34 is involved in the import of nonphotosynthetic chloroplast proteins. PMID:12897258

Prominent Role of Spin-Orbit Coupling in FeSe Revealed by Inelastic Neutron Scattering

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Mingwei Ma

2017-05-01

Full Text Available In most existing theories for iron-based superconductors, spin-orbit coupling (SOC has been assumed to be insignificant. Here, we use spin-polarized inelastic neutron scattering to show that collective low-energy spin excitations in the orthorhombic (or “nematic” phase of FeSe possess nearly no in-plane component. Such spin-space anisotropy is present over an energy range greater than the superconducting gap 2Δ_{sc} and gets fully inherited in the superconducting state, resulting in a c-axis polarized “spin resonance” without any noticeable isotropic spectral-weight rearrangement related to the superconductivity, which is distinct from observations in the superconducting iron pnictides. The contrast between the strong suppression of long-range magnetic order in FeSe and the persisting large spin-space anisotropy, which cannot be explained microscopically by introducing single-ion anisotropy into local-moment spin models, demonstrates the importance of SOC in an itinerant-electron description of the low-energy spin excitations. Our result helps to elucidate the nearby magnetic instabilities and the debated interplay between spin and orbital degrees of freedom in FeSe. The prominent role of SOC also implies a possible unusual nature of the superconducting state.

Potential Role of the Last Half Repeat in TAL Effectors Revealed by a Molecular Simulation Study

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Hua Wan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available TAL effectors (TALEs contain a modular DNA-binding domain that is composed of tandem repeats. In all naturally occurring TALEs, the end of tandem repeats is invariantly a truncated half repeat. To investigate the potential role of the last half repeat in TALEs, we performed comparative molecular dynamics simulations for the crystal structure of DNA-bound TALE AvrBs3 lacking the last half repeat and its modeled structure having the last half repeat. The structural stability analysis indicates that the modeled system is more stable than the nonmodeled system. Based on the principle component analysis, it is found that the AvrBs3 increases its structural compactness in the presence of the last half repeat. The comparison of DNA groove parameters of the two systems implies that the last half repeat also causes the change of DNA major groove binding efficiency. The following calculation of hydrogen bond reveals that, by stabilizing the phosphate binding with DNA at the C-terminus, the last half repeat helps to adopt a compact conformation at the protein-DNA interface. It further mediates more contacts between TAL repeats and DNA nucleotide bases. Finally, we suggest that the last half repeat is required for the high-efficient recognition of DNA by TALE.

The epidemiology and public health importance of toxocariasis: a zoonosis of global importance.

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Macpherson, Calum N L

2013-11-01

Toxocariasis, caused by infection with larvae of Toxocara canis, and to a lesser extent by Toxocara cati and other ascaridoid species, manifests in humans in a range of clinical syndromes. These include visceral and ocular larva migrans, neurotoxocariasis and covert or common toxocariasis. Toxocara canis is one of the most widespread public health and economically important zoonotic parasitic infections humans share with dogs, cats and wild canids, particularly foxes. This neglected disease has been shown through seroprevalence studies to be especially prevalent among children from socio-economically disadvantaged populations both in the tropics and sub-tropics and in industrialised nations. Human infection occurs by the accidental ingestion of embryonated eggs or larvae from a range of wild and domestic paratenic hosts. Most infections remain asymptomatic. Clinically overt infections may go undiagnosed, as diagnostic tests are expensive and can require serological, molecular and/or imaging tests, which may not be affordable or available. Treatment in humans varies according to symptoms and location of the larvae. Anthelmintics, including albendazole, thiabendazole and mebendazole may be given together with anti-inflammatory corticosteroids. The development of molecular tools should lead to new and improved strategies for the treatment, diagnosis and control of toxocariasis and the role of other ascaridoid species in the epidemiology of Toxocara spp. Molecular technologies may also help to reveal the public health importance of T. canis, providing new evidence to support the implementation of national control initiatives which have yet to be developed for Toxocara spp. A number of countries have implemented reproductive control programs in owned and stray dogs to reduce the number of young dogs in the population. These programs would positively impact upon T. canis transmission since the parasite is most fecund and prevalent in puppies. Other control measures for T

Gender role attitudes, relationship efficacy, and self-disclosure in intimate relationships.

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Horne, Rebecca M; Johnson, Matthew D

2018-01-01

Drawing from the intimacy process model and data from 5,042 individuals who remained partnered across Waves 1 and 2 of the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics (pairfam), this study examined the contributions of traditional gender role attitudes and relationship efficacy in predicting levels of self-disclosure within an intimate relationship. Independent samples t-tests demonstrated females scored higher than males on self-disclosure and relationship efficacy measures but lower on traditional gender role attitudes. An ordinary least squares regression analysis revealed relationship efficacy was a stronger predictor of self-disclosure compared to traditional gender role attitudes, which were not associated with self-disclosure. The findings suggest attitudes with an interpersonal motivational system may be especially important for setting the intimacy process into motion within an intimate union.

Phylogeny and expression analyses reveal important roles for plant PKS III family during the conquest of land by plants and angiosperm diversification

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Lulu Xie

2016-08-01

diversification of plant type III PKS enzymes played a critical role in the ancient conquest of the land by early plants and angiosperm diversification.Keywords PKS III multigene family, CHS, STS, phylogenetic reconstruction, functional diversification, gene expression, cis-elements

Lipidomics profiling reveals the role of glycerophospholipid metabolism in psoriasis.

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Zeng, Chunwei; Wen, Bo; Hou, Guixue; Lei, Li; Mei, Zhanlong; Jia, Xuekun; Chen, Xiaomin; Zhu, Wu; Li, Jie; Kuang, Yehong; Zeng, Weiqi; Su, Juan; Liu, Siqi; Peng, Cong; Chen, Xiang

2017-10-01

Psoriasis is a common and chronic inflammatory skin disease that is complicated by gene-environment interactions. Although genomic, transcriptomic, and proteomic analyses have been performed to investigate the pathogenesis of psoriasis, the role of metabolites in psoriasis, particularly of lipids, remains unclear. Lipids not only comprise the bulk of the cellular membrane bilayers but also regulate a variety of biological processes such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, immunity, angiogenesis, and inflammation. In this study, an untargeted lipidomics approach was used to study the lipid profiles in psoriasis and to identify lipid metabolite signatures for psoriasis through ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry. Plasma samples from 90 participants (45 healthy and 45 psoriasis patients) were collected and analyzed. Statistical analysis was applied to find different metabolites between the disease and healthy groups. In addition, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed to validate differentially expressed lipids in psoriatic patient plasma. Finally, we identified differential expression of several lipids including lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylcholine (PC), and phosphatidic acid (PA); among these metabolites, LPA, LysoPC, and PA were significantly increased, while PC and PI were down-regulated in psoriasis patients. We found that elements of glycerophospholipid metabolism such as LPA, LysoPC, PA, PI, and PC were significantly altered in the plasma of psoriatic patients; this study characterizes the circulating lipids in psoriatic patients and provides novel insight into the role of lipids in psoriasis. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

Virus evolution reveals an exclusive role for LEDGF/p75 in chromosomal tethering of HIV.

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Anneleen Hombrouck

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Retroviruses by definition insert their viral genome into the host cell chromosome. Although the key player of retroviral integration is viral integrase, a role for cellular cofactors has been proposed. Lentiviral integrases use the cellular protein LEDGF/p75 to tether the preintegration complex to the chromosome, although the existence of alternative host proteins substituting for the function of LEDGF/p75 in integration has been proposed. Truncation mutants of LEDGF/p75 lacking the chromosome attachment site strongly inhibit HIV replication by competition for the interaction with integrase. In an attempt to select HIV strains that can overcome the inhibition, we now have used T-cell lines that stably express a C-terminal fragment of LEDGF/p75. Despite resistance development, the affinity of integrase for LEDGF/p75 is reduced and replication kinetics in human primary T cells is impaired. Detection of the integrase mutations A128T and E170G at key positions in the LEDGF/p75-integrase interface provides in vivo evidence for previously reported crystallographic data. Moreover, the complementary inhibition by LEDGF/p75 knockdown and mutagenesis at the integrase-LEDGF/p75 interface points to the incapability of HIV to circumvent LEDGF/p75 function during proviral integration. Altogether, the data provide a striking example of the power of viral molecular evolution. The results underline the importance of the LEDGF/p75 HIV-1 interplay as target for innovative antiviral therapy. Moreover, the role of LEDGF/p75 in targeting integration will stimulate research on strategies to direct gene therapy vectors into safe landing sites.

Central dopaminergic neurotransmission plays an important role in thermoregulation and performance during endurance exercise.

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Zheng, Xinyan; Hasegawa, Hiroshi

2016-10-01

Dopamine (DA) has been widely investigated for its potential role in determining exercise performance. It was originally thought that DA's ergogenic effect was by mediating psychological responses. Recently, some studies have also suggested that DA may regulate physiological responses, such as thermoregulation. Hyperthermia has been demonstrated as an important limiting factor during endurance exercise. DA is prominent in the thermoregulatory centre, and changes in DA concentration have been shown to affect core temperature regulation during exercise. Some studies have proposed that DA or DA/noradrenaline (NA) reuptake inhibitors can improve exercise performance, despite hyperthermia during exercise in the heat. DA/NA reuptake inhibitors also increase catecholamine release in the thermoregulatory centre. Intracerebroventricularly injected DA has been shown to improve exercise performance through inhibiting hyperthermia-induced fatigue, even at normal ambient temperatures. Further, caffeine has been reported to increase DA release in the thermoregulatory centre and improves endurance exercise performance despite increased core body temperature. Taken together, DA has been shown to have ergogenic effects and increase heat storage and hyperthermia tolerance. The mechanisms underlying these effects seem to involve limiting/overriding the inhibitory signals from the central nervous system that result in cessation of exercise due to hyperthermia.

CEBPA exerts a specific and biologically important proapoptotic role in pancreatic β cells through its downstream network targets

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Barbagallo, Davide; Condorelli, Angelo Giuseppe; Piro, Salvatore; Parrinello, Nunziatina; Fløyel, Tina; Ragusa, Marco; Rabuazzo, Agata Maria; Størling, Joachim; Purrello, Francesco; Di Pietro, Cinzia; Purrello, Michele

2014-01-01

Transcription factor CEBPA has been widely studied for its involvement in hematopoietic cell differentiation and causal role in hematological malignancies. We demonstrate here that it also performs a causal role in cytokine-induced apoptosis of pancreas β cells. Treatment of two mouse pancreatic α and β cell lines (αTC1-6 and βTC1) with proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IFN-γ, and TNF-α at doses that specifically induce apoptosis of βTC1 significantly increased the amount of mRNA and protein encoded by Cebpa and its proapoptotic targets, Arl6ip5 and Tnfrsf10b, in βTC1 but not in αTC1-6. Cebpa knockdown in βTC1 significantly decreased cytokine-induced apoptosis, together with the amount of Arl6ip5 and Tnfrsf10b. Analysis of the network comprising CEBPA, its targets, their first interactants, and proteins encoded by genes known to regulate cytokine-induced apoptosis in pancreatic β cells (genes from the apoptotic machinery and from MAPK and NFkB pathways) revealed that CEBPA, ARL6IP5, TNFRSF10B, TRAF2, and UBC are the top five central nodes. In silico analysis further suggests TRAF2 as trait d'union node between CEBPA and the NFkB pathway. Our results strongly suggest that Cebpa is a key regulator within the apoptotic network activated in pancreatic β cells during insulitis, and Arl6ip5, Tnfrsf10b, Traf2, and Ubc are key executioners of this program. PMID:24943845

Role of Pex21p for Piggyback Import of Gpd1p and Pnc1p into Peroxisomes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae*

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Effelsberg, Daniel; Cruz-Zaragoza, Luis Daniel; Tonillo, Jason; Schliebs, Wolfgang; Erdmann, Ralf

2015-01-01

Proteins designated for peroxisomal protein import harbor one of two common peroxisomal targeting signals (PTS). In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the oleate-induced PTS2-dependent import of the thiolase Fox3p into peroxisomes is conducted by the soluble import receptor Pex7p in cooperation with the auxiliary Pex18p, one of two supposedly redundant PTS2 co-receptors. Here, we report on a novel function for the co-receptor Pex21p, which cannot be fulfilled by Pex18p. The data establish Pex21p as a general co-receptor in PTS2-dependent protein import, whereas Pex18p is especially important for oleate-induced import of PTS2 proteins. The glycerol-producing PTS2 protein glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase Gpd1p shows a tripartite localization in peroxisomes, in the cytosol, and in the nucleus under osmotic stress conditions. We show the following: (i) Pex21p is required for peroxisomal import of Gpd1p as well as a key enzyme of the NAD+ salvage pathway, Pnc1p; (ii) Pnc1p, a nicotinamidase without functional PTS2, is co-imported into peroxisomes by piggyback transport via Gpd1p. Moreover, the specific transport of these two enzymes into peroxisomes suggests a novel regulatory role for peroxisomes under various stress conditions. PMID:26276932

Metaproteomics and metabolomics analyses of chronically petroleum-polluted sites reveal the importance of general anaerobic processes uncoupled with degradation.

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Bargiela, Rafael; Herbst, Florian-Alexander; Martínez-Martínez, Mónica; Seifert, Jana; Rojo, David; Cappello, Simone; Genovese, María; Crisafi, Francesca; Denaro, Renata; Chernikova, Tatyana N; Barbas, Coral; von Bergen, Martin; Yakimov, Michail M; Ferrer, Manuel; Golyshin, Peter N

2015-10-01

Crude oil is one of the most important natural assets for humankind, yet it is a major environmental pollutant, notably in marine environments. One of the largest crude oil polluted areas in the word is the semi-enclosed Mediterranean Sea, in which the metabolic potential of indigenous microbial populations towards the large-scale chronic pollution is yet to be defined, particularly in anaerobic and micro-aerophilic sites. Here, we provide an insight into the microbial metabolism in sediments from three chronically polluted marine sites along the coastline of Italy: the Priolo oil terminal/refinery site (near Siracuse, Sicily), harbour of Messina (Sicily) and shipwreck of MT Haven (near Genoa). Using shotgun metaproteomics and community metabolomics approaches, the presence of 651 microbial proteins and 4776 metabolite mass features have been detected in these three environments, revealing a high metabolic heterogeneity between the investigated sites. The proteomes displayed the prevalence of anaerobic metabolisms that were not directly related with petroleum biodegradation, indicating that in the absence of oxygen, biodegradation is significantly suppressed. This suppression was also suggested by examining the metabolome patterns. The proteome analysis further highlighted the metabolic coupling between methylotrophs and sulphate reducers in oxygen-depleted petroleum-polluted sediments. © 2015 The Authors. PROTEOMICS published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Metaproteomics and metabolomics analyses of chronically petroleum‐polluted sites reveal the importance of general anaerobic processes uncoupled with degradation

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Bargiela, Rafael; Herbst, Florian‐Alexander; Martínez‐Martínez, Mónica; Seifert, Jana; Rojo, David; Cappello, Simone; Genovese, María; Crisafi, Francesca; Denaro, Renata; Chernikova, Tatyana N.; Barbas, Coral; von Bergen, Martin; Yakimov, Michail M.; Golyshin, Peter N.

2015-01-01

Crude oil is one of the most important natural assets for humankind, yet it is a major environmental pollutant, notably in marine environments. One of the largest crude oil polluted areas in the word is the semi‐enclosed Mediterranean Sea, in which the metabolic potential of indigenous microbial populations towards the large‐scale chronic pollution is yet to be defined, particularly in anaerobic and micro‐aerophilic sites. Here, we provide an insight into the microbial metabolism in sediments from three chronically polluted marine sites along the coastline of Italy: the Priolo oil terminal/refinery site (near Siracuse, Sicily), harbour of Messina (Sicily) and shipwreck of MT Haven (near Genoa). Using shotgun metaproteomics and community metabolomics approaches, the presence of 651 microbial proteins and 4776 metabolite mass features have been detected in these three environments, revealing a high metabolic heterogeneity between the investigated sites. The proteomes displayed the prevalence of anaerobic metabolisms that were not directly related with petroleum biodegradation, indicating that in the absence of oxygen, biodegradation is significantly suppressed. This suppression was also suggested by examining the metabolome patterns. The proteome analysis further highlighted the metabolic coupling between methylotrophs and sulphate reducers in oxygen‐depleted petroleum‐polluted sediments. PMID:26201687

The Roles of Dyadic Appraisal and Coping in Couples With Lung Cancer.

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Lyons, Karen S; Miller, Lyndsey M; McCarthy, Michael J

2016-11-01

Given the high symptom burden and low survivability of lung cancer, patients and their spouses have been found to experience poor mental health. The current study examined the roles of dyadic appraisal and dyadic coping on the mental health of 78 couples living with non-small cell lung cancer. Multilevel modeling revealed that spouses, on average, reported significantly worse mental health than patients. Dyadic appraisal and dyadic coping played important roles in predicting mental health, controlling for known developmental and contextual covariates. Dyadic appraisal of the patient's pain and fatigue was significantly associated with spouse mental health, albeit in opposite directions. Dyadic coping significantly predicted patient mental health. The study underlines the need to incorporate routine screening of both patient and spouse mental health, and highlights the complex role of appraisal within the couple in a life-threatening context. Viewing the couple as a unit, rather than separate individuals, raises important awareness about the role of disparate illness appraisals and coping strategies within the dyad on the health of both members. Nurses are particularly well situated to engage in a collaborative family-focused approach to the couple with cancer that promotes communication and health. © The Author(s) 2016.

A novel role for the NLRC4 inflammasome in mucosal defenses against the fungal pathogen Candida albicans.

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Jeffrey Tomalka

2011-12-01

Full Text Available Candida sp. are opportunistic fungal pathogens that colonize the skin and oral cavity and, when overgrown under permissive conditions, cause inflammation and disease. Previously, we identified a central role for the NLRP3 inflammasome in regulating IL-1β production and resistance to dissemination from oral infection with Candida albicans. Here we show that mucosal expression of NLRP3 and NLRC4 is induced by Candida infection, and up-regulation of these molecules is impaired in NLRP3 and NLRC4 deficient mice. Additionally, we reveal a role for the NLRC4 inflammasome in anti-fungal defenses. NLRC4 is important for control of mucosal Candida infection and impacts inflammatory cell recruitment to infected tissues, as well as protects against systemic dissemination of infection. Deficiency in either NLRC4 or NLRP3 results in severely attenuated pro-inflammatory and antimicrobial peptide responses in the oral cavity. Using bone marrow chimeric mouse models, we show that, in contrast to NLRP3 which limits the severity of infection when present in either the hematopoietic or stromal compartments, NLRC4 plays an important role in limiting mucosal candidiasis when functioning at the level of the mucosal stroma. Collectively, these studies reveal the tissue specific roles of the NLRP3 and NLRC4 inflammasome in innate immune responses against mucosal Candida infection.

Mexican American Adolescents’ Gender Role Attitude Development: The Role of Adolescents’ Gender and Nativity and Parents’ Gender Role Attitudes

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Updegraff, Kimberly A.; McHale, Susan M.; Zeiders, Katharine H.; Umaña-Taylor, Adriana J.; Perez-Brena, Norma J.; Wheeler, Lorey A.; Rodríguez De Jesús, Sue A.

2014-01-01

Gender development has long term implications for education and career endeavors and family formation behaviors, but we know very little about the role of sociocultural factors in developmental and individual differences. In this study, we investigated one domain of gender development, gender role attitudes, in Mexican American adolescents (N = 246; 51% female), using four phases of longitudinal data across eight years. Data were collected when adolescents averaged 12.51 years (SD = 0.58), 14.64 years (SD = 0.59), 17.72 years (SD = 0.57), and 19.60 years of age (SD = 0.66). Mothers’ and fathers’ gender role attitudes also were assessed in Phases 1, 3, and 4. Findings revealed that gender attitude development varied as a function of the interaction between adolescents’ nativity and gender. Among Mexico-born adolescents, females exhibited significant declines in traditional attitudes from early to late adolescence, but males’ attitudes were stable over time. U.S.-born females and males, in contrast, did not differ in their gender attitude trajectories. Examining the links between mothers’, fathers’, and adolescents’ gender role attitudes revealed within-person associations between mothers’ and adolescents’ gender role attitudes: on occasions when mothers reported more traditional attitudes relative to their own cross-time average, adolescents also reported more traditional attitudes than usual. In addition, fathers’ more traditional gender role attitudes were associated with daughters’, but not sons’, more traditional gender role attitudes at the between-person level. The discussion focuses on the interpretation of Mexican American adolescents’ gender role attitude development from a cultural ecological perspective. PMID:24777649

Genome-Wide Survey of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14 Reveals a Role for the Glyoxylate Pathway and Extracellular Proteases in the Utilization of Mucin

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Flynn, Jeffrey M.; Phan, Chi

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Chronic airway infections by the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa are a major cause of mortality in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. Although this bacterium has been extensively studied for its virulence determinants, biofilm growth, and immune evasion mechanisms, comparatively little is known about the nutrient sources that sustain its growth in vivo. Respiratory mucins represent a potentially abundant bioavailable nutrient source, although we have recently shown that canonical pathogens inefficiently use these host glycoproteins as a growth substrate. However, given that P. aeruginosa, particularly in its biofilm mode of growth, is thought to grow slowly in vivo, the inefficient use of mucin glycoproteins may be relevant to its persistence within the CF airways. To this end, we used whole-genome fitness analysis, combining transposon mutagenesis with high-throughput sequencing, to identify genetic determinants required for P. aeruginosa growth using intact purified mucins as a sole carbon source. Our analysis reveals a biphasic growth phenotype, during which the glyoxylate pathway and amino acid biosynthetic machinery are required for mucin utilization. Secondary analyses confirmed the simultaneous liberation and consumption of acetate during mucin degradation and revealed a central role for the extracellular proteases LasB and AprA. Together, these studies describe a molecular basis for mucin-based nutrient acquisition by P. aeruginosa and reveal a host-pathogen dynamic that may contribute to its persistence within the CF airways. PMID:28507068

Metabolomic profiling reveals a role for CPT1c in neuronal oxidative metabolism.

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Lee, Jieun; Wolfgang, Michael J

2012-10-25

Carnitine Palmitoyltransferase-1c (CPT1c) is a neuron specific homologue of the carnitine acyltransferase family of enzymes. CPT1 isoenzymes transfer long chain acyl groups to carnitine. This constitutes a rate setting step for mitochondrial fatty acid beta-oxidation by facilitating the initial step in acyl transfer to the mitochondrial matrix. In general, neurons do not heavily utilize fatty acids for bioenergetic needs and definitive enzymatic activity has been unable to be demonstrated for CPT1c. Although there are studies suggesting an enzymatic role of CPT1c, its role in neurochemistry remains elusive. In order to better understand how CPT1c functions in neural metabolism, we performed unbiased metabolomic profiling on wild-type (WT) and CPT1c knockout (KO) mouse brains. Consistent with the notion that CPT1c is not involved in fatty acid beta-oxidation, there were no changes in metabolites associated with fatty acid oxidation. Endocannabinoids were suppressed in the CPT1c KO, which may explain the suppression of food intake seen in CPT1c KO mice. Although products of beta-oxidation were unchanged, small changes in carnitine and carnitine metabolites were observed. Finally, we observed changes in redox homeostasis including a greater than 2-fold increase in oxidized glutathione. This indicates that CPT1c may play a role in neural oxidative metabolism. Steady-state metabolomic analysis of CPT1c WT and KO mouse brains identified a small number of metabolites that differed between CPT1c WT and KO mice. The subtle changes in a broad range of metabolites in vivo indicate that CPT1c does not play a significant or required role in fatty acid oxidation; however, it could play an alternative role in neuronal oxidative metabolism.

Metabolomic profiling reveals a role for CPT1c in neuronal oxidative metabolism

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Lee Jieun

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Carnitine Palmitoyltransferase-1c (CPT1c is a neuron specific homologue of the carnitine acyltransferase family of enzymes. CPT1 isoenzymes transfer long chain acyl groups to carnitine. This constitutes a rate setting step for mitochondrial fatty acid beta-oxidation by facilitating the initial step in acyl transfer to the mitochondrial matrix. In general, neurons do not heavily utilize fatty acids for bioenergetic needs and definitive enzymatic activity has been unable to be demonstrated for CPT1c. Although there are studies suggesting an enzymatic role of CPT1c, its role in neurochemistry remains elusive. Results In order to better understand how CPT1c functions in neural metabolism, we performed unbiased metabolomic profiling on wild-type (WT and CPT1c knockout (KO mouse brains. Consistent with the notion that CPT1c is not involved in fatty acid beta-oxidation, there were no changes in metabolites associated with fatty acid oxidation. Endocannabinoids were suppressed in the CPT1c KO, which may explain the suppression of food intake seen in CPT1c KO mice. Although products of beta-oxidation were unchanged, small changes in carnitine and carnitine metabolites were observed. Finally, we observed changes in redox homeostasis including a greater than 2-fold increase in oxidized glutathione. This indicates that CPT1c may play a role in neural oxidative metabolism. Conclusions Steady-state metabolomic analysis of CPT1c WT and KO mouse brains identified a small number of metabolites that differed between CPT1c WT and KO mice. The subtle changes in a broad range of metabolites in vivo indicate that CPT1c does not play a significant or required role in fatty acid oxidation; however, it could play an alternative role in neuronal oxidative metabolism.

SNP analyses of growth factor genes EGF, TGFβ-1, and HGF reveal haplotypic association of EGF with autism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toyoda, Takao; Nakamura, Kazuhiko; Yamada, Kazuo; Thanseem, Ismail; Anitha, Ayyappan; Suda, Shiro; Tsujii, Masatsugu; Iwayama, Yoshimi; Hattori, Eiji; Toyota, Tomoko; Miyachi, Taishi; Iwata, Yasuhide; Suzuki, Katsuaki; Matsuzaki, Hideo; Kawai, Masayoshi; Sekine, Yoshimoto; Tsuchiya, Kenji; Sugihara, Gen-ichi; Ouchi, Yasuomi; Sugiyama, Toshiro; Takei, Nori; Yoshikawa, Takeo; Mori, Norio

2007-01-01

Autism is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder diagnosed in early childhood. Growth factors have been found to play a key role in the cellular differentiation and proliferation of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is detected in several regions of the developing and adult brain, where, it enhances the differentiation, maturation, and survival of a variety of neurons. Transforming growth factor-β (TGFβ) isoforms play an important role in neuronal survival, and the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to exhibit neurotrophic activity. We examined the association of EGF, TGFβ1, and HGF genes with autism, in a trio association study, using DNA samples from families recruited to the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange; 252 trios with a male offspring scored for autism were selected for the study. Transmission disequilibrium test revealed significant haplotypic association of EGF with autism. No significant SNP or haplotypic associations were observed for TGFβ1 or HGF. Given the role of EGF in brain and neuronal development, we suggest a possible role of EGF in the pathogenesis of autism

In situ proteo-metabolomics reveals metabolite secretion by the acid mine drainage bio-indicator, Euglena mutabilis

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Halter, David; Goulhen-Chollet, Florence; Gallien, Sébastien; Casiot, Corinne; Hamelin, Jérôme; Gilard, Françoise; Heintz, Dimitri; Schaeffer, Christine; Carapito, Christine; Van Dorsselaer, Alain; Tcherkez, Guillaume; Arsène-Ploetze, Florence; Bertin, Philippe N

2012-01-01

Euglena mutabilis is a photosynthetic protist found in acidic aquatic environments such as peat bogs, volcanic lakes and acid mine drainages (AMDs). Through its photosynthetic metabolism, this protist is supposed to have an important role in primary production in such oligotrophic ecosystems. Nevertheless, the exact contribution of E. mutabilis in organic matter synthesis remains unclear and no evidence of metabolite secretion by this protist has been established so far. Here we combined in situ proteo-metabolomic approaches to determine the nature of the metabolites accumulated by this protist or potentially secreted into an AMD. Our results revealed that the secreted metabolites are represented by a large number of amino acids, polyamine compounds, urea and some sugars but no fatty acids, suggesting a selective organic matter contribution in this ecosystem. Such a production may have a crucial impact on the bacterial community present on the study site, as it has been suggested previously that prokaryotes transport and recycle in situ most of the metabolites secreted by E. mutabilis. Consequently, this protist may have an indirect but important role in AMD ecosystems but also in other ecological niches often described as nitrogen-limited. PMID:22237547

Roles of Communication Problems and Communication Strategies on Resident-Related Role Demand and Role Satisfaction.

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Savundranayagam, Marie Y; Lee, Christopher

2017-03-01

This study investigated the impact of dementia-related communication difficulties and communication strategies used by staff on resident-related indicators of role demand and role satisfaction. Formal/paid long-term care staff caregivers (N = 109) of residents with dementia completed questionnaires on dementia-related communication difficulties, communication strategies, role demand (ie, residents make unreasonable demands), and role satisfaction (measured by relationship closeness and influence over residents). Three types of communication strategies were included: (a) effective repair strategies, (b) completing actions by oneself, and (c) tuning out or ignoring the resident. Analyses using structural equation modeling revealed that communication problems were positively linked with role demand. Repair strategies were positively linked with relationship closeness and influence over residents. Completing actions by oneself was positively linked to role demand and influence over residents, whereas tuning out was negatively linked with influence over residents. The findings underscore that effective caregiver communication skills are essential in enhancing staff-resident relationships.

Assessing the role of informal sector in WEEE management systems: A System Dynamics approach.

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Ardi, Romadhani; Leisten, Rainer

2016-11-01

Generally being ignored by academia and regulators, the informal sector plays important roles in Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management systems, especially in developing countries. This study aims: (1) to capture and model the variety of informal operations in WEEE management systems, (2) to capture the dynamics existing within the informal sector, and (3) to assess the role of the informal sector as the key player in the WEEE management systems, influencing both its future operations and its counterpart, the formal sector. By using System Dynamics as the methodology and India as the reference system, this study is able to explain the reasons behind, on the one hand, the superiority of the informal sector in WEEE management systems and, on the other hand, the failure of the formal systems. Additionally, this study reveals the important role of the second-hand market as the determinant of the rise and fall of the informal sector in the future. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Petunia Homeodomain-Leucine Zipper Protein, PhHD-Zip, Plays an Important Role in Flower Senescence

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Chang, Xiaoxiao; Donnelly, Linda; Sun, Daoyang; Rao, Jingping; Reid, Michael S.; Jiang, Cai-Zhong

2014-01-01

Flower senescence is initiated by developmental and environmental signals, and regulated by gene transcription. A homeodomain-leucine zipper transcription factor, PhHD-Zip, is up-regulated during petunia flower senescence. Virus-induced gene silencing of PhHD-Zip extended flower life by 20% both in unpollinated and pollinated flowers. Silencing PhHD-Zip also dramatically reduced ethylene production and the abundance of transcripts of genes involved in ethylene (ACS, ACO), and ABA (NCED) biosynthesis. Abundance of transcripts of senescence-related genes (SAG12, SAG29) was also dramatically reduced in the silenced flowers. Over-expression of PhHD-Zip accelerated petunia flower senescence. Furthermore, PhHD-Zip transcript abundance in petunia flowers was increased by application of hormones (ethylene, ABA) and abiotic stresses (dehydration, NaCl and cold). Our results suggest that PhHD-Zip plays an important role in regulating petunia flower senescence. PMID:24551088

A Petunia homeodomain-leucine zipper protein, PhHD-Zip, plays an important role in flower senescence.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Xiaoxiao; Donnelly, Linda; Sun, Daoyang; Rao, Jingping; Reid, Michael S; Jiang, Cai-Zhong

2014-01-01

Flower senescence is initiated by developmental and environmental signals, and regulated by gene transcription. A homeodomain-leucine zipper transcription factor, PhHD-Zip, is up-regulated during petunia flower senescence. Virus-induced gene silencing of PhHD-Zip extended flower life by 20% both in unpollinated and pollinated flowers. Silencing PhHD-Zip also dramatically reduced ethylene production and the abundance of transcripts of genes involved in ethylene (ACS, ACO), and ABA (NCED) biosynthesis. Abundance of transcripts of senescence-related genes (SAG12, SAG29) was also dramatically reduced in the silenced flowers. Over-expression of PhHD-Zip accelerated petunia flower senescence. Furthermore, PhHD-Zip transcript abundance in petunia flowers was increased by application of hormones (ethylene, ABA) and abiotic stresses (dehydration, NaCl and cold). Our results suggest that PhHD-Zip plays an important role in regulating petunia flower senescence.

A Petunia homeodomain-leucine zipper protein, PhHD-Zip, plays an important role in flower senescence.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoxiao Chang

Full Text Available Flower senescence is initiated by developmental and environmental signals, and regulated by gene transcription. A homeodomain-leucine zipper transcription factor, PhHD-Zip, is up-regulated during petunia flower senescence. Virus-induced gene silencing of PhHD-Zip extended flower life by 20% both in unpollinated and pollinated flowers. Silencing PhHD-Zip also dramatically reduced ethylene production and the abundance of transcripts of genes involved in ethylene (ACS, ACO, and ABA (NCED biosynthesis. Abundance of transcripts of senescence-related genes (SAG12, SAG29 was also dramatically reduced in the silenced flowers. Over-expression of PhHD-Zip accelerated petunia flower senescence. Furthermore, PhHD-Zip transcript abundance in petunia flowers was increased by application of hormones (ethylene, ABA and abiotic stresses (dehydration, NaCl and cold. Our results suggest that PhHD-Zip plays an important role in regulating petunia flower senescence.

Interactions between Metal-binding Domains Modulate Intracellular Targeting of Cu(I)-ATPase ATP7B, as Revealed by Nanobody Binding*

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Huang, Yiping; Nokhrin, Sergiy; Hassanzadeh-Ghassabeh, Gholamreza; Yu, Corey H.; Yang, Haojun; Barry, Amanda N.; Tonelli, Marco; Markley, John L.; Muyldermans, Serge; Dmitriev, Oleg Y.; Lutsenko, Svetlana

2014-01-01

The biologically and clinically important membrane transporters are challenging proteins to study because of their low level of expression, multidomain structure, and complex molecular dynamics that underlies their activity. ATP7B is a copper transporter that traffics between the intracellular compartments in response to copper elevation. The N-terminal domain of ATP7B (N-ATP7B) is involved in binding copper, but the role of this domain in trafficking is controversial. To clarify the role of N-ATP7B, we generated nanobodies that interact with ATP7B in vitro and in cells. In solution NMR studies, nanobodies revealed the spatial organization of N-ATP7B by detecting transient functionally relevant interactions between metal-binding domains 1–3. Modulation of these interactions by nanobodies in cells enhanced relocalization of the endogenous ATP7B toward the plasma membrane linking molecular and cellular dynamics of the transporter. Stimulation of ATP7B trafficking by nanobodies in the absence of elevated copper provides direct evidence for the important role of N-ATP7B structural dynamics in regulation of ATP7B localization in a cell. PMID:25253690

The relationship between parental abuse with parental and marital roles attitude in girls

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Nafisehsadat Nekuei

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Gender role attitude pertains to individuals' attitude toward proper role activities for men and women. Most of the factors relevant to family and society may affect individuals' attitudes toward their role. Meanwhile, parents' behaviors can act as an important factor in formation of different dimensions of children's personality. Accordingly, the present study was aimed to investigate the relationship between maltreatment and girls' attitudes toward parental and marital roles. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional correlational study was conducted in Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2013 with 190 female students as the sample. Participants were selected using the random-proportional sampling method. A demographic questionnaire, researcher-made maltreatment questionnaire, and Homami's gender role attitudes questionnaire were used as the data collection instruments. Data were analyzed using Chi-square, Kruskal–Wallis, and Mann–Whitney tests. Results: Results indicated that the feminine attitude was the dominant attitude in gender roles. Findings also revealed no significant correlation between the type of gender role attitude in parental role and maltreatment. However, the correlation was meaningful in marital role of sexual and fertility affairs (P = 0.02. Conclusions: Results revealed that participants had traditional female attitudes toward their gender roles in two aspects. First, taking the cultural domination on attitudes into account, that type of attitude is appreciated in which the individual feels relaxed and has an acceptable performance in the society. Furthermore, to promote certain types of attitudes, the entire socio-cultural and economic dimensions of the society must be taken into account. Family and social policy makings are regarded as starting points for different attitudes toward maltreatment.

In-Depth Temporal Transcriptome Profiling Reveals a Crucial Developmental Switch with Roles for RNA Processing and Organelle Metabolism That Are Essential for Germination in Arabidopsis1[W][OA

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Narsai, Reena; Law, Simon R.; Carrie, Chris; Xu, Lin; Whelan, James

2011-01-01

Germination represents a rapid transition from dormancy to a high level of metabolic activity. In-depth transcriptomic profiling at 10 time points in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), including fresh seed, ripened seed, during stratification, germination, and postgermination per se, revealed specific temporal expression patterns that to our knowledge have not previously been identified. Over 10,000 transcripts were differentially expressed during cold stratification, with subequal numbers up-regulated as down-regulated, revealing an active period in preparing seeds for germination, where transcription and RNA degradation both play important roles in regulating the molecular sequence of events. A previously unidentified transient expression pattern was observed for a group of genes, whereby a significant rise in expression was observed at the end of stratification and significantly lower expression was observed 6 h later. These genes were further defined as germination specific, as they were most highly expressed at this time in germination, in comparison with all developmental tissues in the AtGenExpress data set. Functional analysis of these genes using genetic inactivation revealed that they displayed a significant enrichment for embryo-defective or -arrested phenotype. This group was enriched in genes encoding mitochondrial and nuclear RNA-processing proteins, including more than 45% of all pentatricopeptide domain-containing proteins expressed during germination. The presence of mitochondrial DNA replication factors and RNA-processing functions in this germination-specific subset represents the earliest events in organelle biogenesis, preceding any changes associated with energy metabolism. Green fluorescent protein analysis also confirmed organellar localization for 65 proteins, largely showing germination-specific expression. These results suggest that mitochondrial biogenesis involves a two-step process to produce energetically active organelles: an

Genome-Wide Association and Functional Follow-Up Reveals New Loci for Kidney Function

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Fuchsberger, Christian; Olden, Matthias; Chen, Ming-Huei; Tin, Adrienne; Taliun, Daniel; Li, Man; Gao, Xiaoyi; Gorski, Mathias; Yang, Qiong; Hundertmark, Claudia; Foster, Meredith C.; O'Seaghdha, Conall M.; Glazer, Nicole; Isaacs, Aaron; Liu, Ching-Ti; Smith, Albert V.; O'Connell, Jeffrey R.; Struchalin, Maksim; Tanaka, Toshiko; Li, Guo; Johnson, Andrew D.; Gierman, Hinco J.; Feitosa, Mary; Hwang, Shih-Jen; Atkinson, Elizabeth J.; Lohman, Kurt; Cornelis, Marilyn C.; Johansson, Åsa; Tönjes, Anke; Dehghan, Abbas; Chouraki, Vincent; Holliday, Elizabeth G.; Sorice, Rossella; Kutalik, Zoltan; Lehtimäki, Terho; Esko, Tõnu; Deshmukh, Harshal; Ulivi, Sheila; Chu, Audrey Y.; Murgia, Federico; Trompet, Stella; Imboden, Medea; Kollerits, Barbara; Pistis, Giorgio; Harris, Tamara B.; Launer, Lenore J.; Aspelund, Thor; Eiriksdottir, Gudny; Mitchell, Braxton D.; Boerwinkle, Eric; Schmidt, Helena; Cavalieri, Margherita; Rao, Madhumathi; Hu, Frank B.; Demirkan, Ayse; Oostra, Ben A.; de Andrade, Mariza; Turner, Stephen T.; Ding, Jingzhong; Andrews, Jeanette S.; Freedman, Barry I.; Koenig, Wolfgang; Illig, Thomas; Döring, Angela; Wichmann, H.-Erich; Kolcic, Ivana; Zemunik, Tatijana; Boban, Mladen; Minelli, Cosetta; Wheeler, Heather E.; Igl, Wilmar; Zaboli, Ghazal; Wild, Sarah H.; Wright, Alan F.; Campbell, Harry; Ellinghaus, David; Nöthlings, Ute; Jacobs, Gunnar; Biffar, Reiner; Endlich, Karlhans; Ernst, Florian; Homuth, Georg; Kroemer, Heyo K.; Nauck, Matthias; Stracke, Sylvia; Völker, Uwe; Völzke, Henry; Kovacs, Peter; Stumvoll, Michael; Mägi, Reedik; Hofman, Albert; Uitterlinden, Andre G.; Rivadeneira, Fernando; Aulchenko, Yurii S.; Polasek, Ozren; Hastie, Nick; Vitart, Veronique; Helmer, Catherine; Wang, Jie Jin; Ruggiero, Daniela; Bergmann, Sven; Kähönen, Mika; Viikari, Jorma; Nikopensius, Tiit; Province, Michael; Ketkar, Shamika; Colhoun, Helen; Doney, Alex; Robino, Antonietta; Giulianini, Franco; Krämer, Bernhard K.; Portas, Laura; Ford, Ian; Buckley, Brendan M.; Adam, Martin; Thun, Gian-Andri; Paulweber, Bernhard; Haun, Margot; Sala, Cinzia; Metzger, Marie; Mitchell, Paul; Ciullo, Marina; Kim, Stuart K.; Vollenweider, Peter; Raitakari, Olli; Metspalu, Andres; Palmer, Colin; Gasparini, Paolo; Pirastu, Mario; Jukema, J. Wouter; Probst-Hensch, Nicole M.; Kronenberg, Florian; Toniolo, Daniela; Gudnason, Vilmundur; Shuldiner, Alan R.; Coresh, Josef; Schmidt, Reinhold; Ferrucci, Luigi; Siscovick, David S.; van Duijn, Cornelia M.; Borecki, Ingrid; Kardia, Sharon L. R.; Liu, Yongmei; Curhan, Gary C.; Rudan, Igor; Gyllensten, Ulf; Wilson, James F.; Franke, Andre; Pramstaller, Peter P.; Rettig, Rainer; Prokopenko, Inga; Witteman, Jacqueline C. M.; Hayward, Caroline; Ridker, Paul; Parsa, Afshin; Bochud, Murielle; Heid, Iris M.; Goessling, Wolfram; Chasman, Daniel I.; Kao, W. H. Linda; Fox, Caroline S.

2012-01-01

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an important public health problem with a genetic component. We performed genome-wide association studies in up to 130,600 European ancestry participants overall, and stratified for key CKD risk factors. We uncovered 6 new loci in association with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), the primary clinical measure of CKD, in or near MPPED2, DDX1, SLC47A1, CDK12, CASP9, and INO80. Morpholino knockdown of mpped2 and casp9 in zebrafish embryos revealed podocyte and tubular abnormalities with altered dextran clearance, suggesting a role for these genes in renal function. By providing new insights into genes that regulate renal function, these results could further our understanding of the pathogenesis of CKD. PMID:22479191

Genome-wide association and functional follow-up reveals new loci for kidney function.

Science.gov (United States)

Pattaro, Cristian; Köttgen, Anna; Teumer, Alexander; Garnaas, Maija; Böger, Carsten A; Fuchsberger, Christian; Olden, Matthias; Chen, Ming-Huei; Tin, Adrienne; Taliun, Daniel; Li, Man; Gao, Xiaoyi; Gorski, Mathias; Yang, Qiong; Hundertmark, Claudia; Foster, Meredith C; O'Seaghdha, Conall M; Glazer, Nicole; Isaacs, Aaron; Liu, Ching-Ti; Smith, Albert V; O'Connell, Jeffrey R; Struchalin, Maksim; Tanaka, Toshiko; Li, Guo; Johnson, Andrew D; Gierman, Hinco J; Feitosa, Mary; Hwang, Shih-Jen; Atkinson, Elizabeth J; Lohman, Kurt; Cornelis, Marilyn C; Johansson, Åsa; Tönjes, Anke; Dehghan, Abbas; Chouraki, Vincent; Holliday, Elizabeth G; Sorice, Rossella; Kutalik, Zoltan; Lehtimäki, Terho; Esko, Tõnu; Deshmukh, Harshal; Ulivi, Sheila; Chu, Audrey Y; Murgia, Federico; Trompet, Stella; Imboden, Medea; Kollerits, Barbara; Pistis, Giorgio; Harris, Tamara B; Launer, Lenore J; Aspelund, Thor; Eiriksdottir, Gudny; Mitchell, Braxton D; Boerwinkle, Eric; Schmidt, Helena; Cavalieri, Margherita; Rao, Madhumathi; Hu, Frank B; Demirkan, Ayse; Oostra, Ben A; de Andrade, Mariza; Turner, Stephen T; Ding, Jingzhong; Andrews, Jeanette S; Freedman, Barry I; Koenig, Wolfgang; Illig, Thomas; Döring, Angela; Wichmann, H-Erich; Kolcic, Ivana; Zemunik, Tatijana; Boban, Mladen; Minelli, Cosetta; Wheeler, Heather E; Igl, Wilmar; Zaboli, Ghazal; Wild, Sarah H; Wright, Alan F; Campbell, Harry; Ellinghaus, David; Nöthlings, Ute; Jacobs, Gunnar; Biffar, Reiner; Endlich, Karlhans; Ernst, Florian; Homuth, Georg; Kroemer, Heyo K; Nauck, Matthias; Stracke, Sylvia; Völker, Uwe; Völzke, Henry; Kovacs, Peter; Stumvoll, Michael; Mägi, Reedik; Hofman, Albert; Uitterlinden, Andre G; Rivadeneira, Fernando; Aulchenko, Yurii S; Polasek, Ozren; Hastie, Nick; Vitart, Veronique; Helmer, Catherine; Wang, Jie Jin; Ruggiero, Daniela; Bergmann, Sven; Kähönen, Mika; Viikari, Jorma; Nikopensius, Tiit; Province, Michael; Ketkar, Shamika; Colhoun, Helen; Doney, Alex; Robino, Antonietta; Giulianini, Franco; Krämer, Bernhard K; Portas, Laura; Ford, Ian; Buckley, Brendan M; Adam, Martin; Thun, Gian-Andri; Paulweber, Bernhard; Haun, Margot; Sala, Cinzia; Metzger, Marie; Mitchell, Paul; Ciullo, Marina; Kim, Stuart K; Vollenweider, Peter; Raitakari, Olli; Metspalu, Andres; Palmer, Colin; Gasparini, Paolo; Pirastu, Mario; Jukema, J Wouter; Probst-Hensch, Nicole M; Kronenberg, Florian; Toniolo, Daniela; Gudnason, Vilmundur; Shuldiner, Alan R; Coresh, Josef; Schmidt, Reinhold; Ferrucci, Luigi; Siscovick, David S; van Duijn, Cornelia M; Borecki, Ingrid; Kardia, Sharon L R; Liu, Yongmei; Curhan, Gary C; Rudan, Igor; Gyllensten, Ulf; Wilson, James F; Franke, Andre; Pramstaller, Peter P; Rettig, Rainer; Prokopenko, Inga; Witteman, Jacqueline C M; Hayward, Caroline; Ridker, Paul; Parsa, Afshin; Bochud, Murielle; Heid, Iris M; Goessling, Wolfram; Chasman, Daniel I; Kao, W H Linda; Fox, Caroline S

2012-01-01

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an important public health problem with a genetic component. We performed genome-wide association studies in up to 130,600 European ancestry participants overall, and stratified for key CKD risk factors. We uncovered 6 new loci in association with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), the primary clinical measure of CKD, in or near MPPED2, DDX1, SLC47A1, CDK12, CASP9, and INO80. Morpholino knockdown of mpped2 and casp9 in zebrafish embryos revealed podocyte and tubular abnormalities with altered dextran clearance, suggesting a role for these genes in renal function. By providing new insights into genes that regulate renal function, these results could further our understanding of the pathogenesis of CKD.

Genome-wide association and functional follow-up reveals new loci for kidney function.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristian Pattaro

Full Text Available Chronic kidney disease (CKD is an important public health problem with a genetic component. We performed genome-wide association studies in up to 130,600 European ancestry participants overall, and stratified for key CKD risk factors. We uncovered 6 new loci in association with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR, the primary clinical measure of CKD, in or near MPPED2, DDX1, SLC47A1, CDK12, CASP9, and INO80. Morpholino knockdown of mpped2 and casp9 in zebrafish embryos revealed podocyte and tubular abnormalities with altered dextran clearance, suggesting a role for these genes in renal function. By providing new insights into genes that regulate renal function, these results could further our understanding of the pathogenesis of CKD.

The Role of Higher Harmonics In Musical Interval Perception

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Krantz, Richard; Douthett, Jack

2011-10-01

Using an alternative parameterization of the roughness curve we make direct use of critical band results to investigate the role of higher harmonics on the perception of tonal consonance. We scale the spectral amplitudes in the complex home tone and complex interval tone to simulate acoustic signals of constant energy. Our analysis reveals that even with a relatively small addition of higher harmonics the perfect fifth emerges as a consonant interval with more, musically important, just intervals emerging as consonant as more and more energy is shifted into higher frequencies.

THE ROLE AND THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION IN THE MANAGER ACTIVITY

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ANCA JARMILA GUŢĂ

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the role that the communication activity has as a tool for implementing change, redesign internal processes and establishing the organization's strategy in the work of an organization manager.Starting from emergence of communication as inseparable part of social life and to the identification of managerial communication as a factor of competitiveness and strategic advantage of the organization.

The importance of 1,2-dithiolane structure in α-lipoic acid for the downregulation of cell surface β1-integrin expression of human bladder cancer cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Yamasaki, Masao; Soda, Shozen; Sakakibara, Yoichi; Suiko, Masahito; Nishiyama, Kazuo

2014-01-01

Here, we show that cell surface β1-integrin expression, cell adhesion to fibronectin, migration, and invasion were all significantly inhibited by α-lipoic acid. These effects were not observed when cells were treated with dihydrolipoic acid or caprylic acid. These data reveal that the 1,2-dithiolane structure plays an important role in the action of α-lipoic acid.

Transcriptional Activities of the Microbial Consortium Living with the Marine Nitrogen-Fixing Cyanobacterium Trichodesmium Reveal Potential Roles in Community-Level Nitrogen Cycling.

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Lee, Michael D; Webb, Eric A; Walworth, Nathan G; Fu, Fei-Xue; Held, Noelle A; Saito, Mak A; Hutchins, David A

2018-01-01

Trichodesmium is a globally distributed cyanobacterium whose nitrogen-fixing capability fuels primary production in warm oligotrophic oceans. Like many photoautotrophs, Trichodesmium serves as a host to various other microorganisms, yet little is known about how this associated community modulates fluxes of environmentally relevant chemical species into and out of the supraorganismal structure. Here, we utilized metatranscriptomics to examine gene expression activities of microbial communities associated with Trichodesmium erythraeum (strain IMS101) using laboratory-maintained enrichment cultures that have previously been shown to harbor microbial communities similar to those of natural populations. In enrichments maintained under two distinct CO 2 concentrations for ∼8 years, the community transcriptional profiles were found to be specific to the treatment, demonstrating a restructuring of overall gene expression had occurred. Some of this restructuring involved significant increases in community respiration-related transcripts under elevated CO 2 , potentially facilitating the corresponding measured increases in host nitrogen fixation rates. Particularly of note, in both treatments, community transcripts involved in the reduction of nitrate, nitrite, and nitrous oxide were detected, suggesting the associated organisms may play a role in colony-level nitrogen cycling. Lastly, a taxon-specific analysis revealed distinct ecological niches of consistently cooccurring major taxa that may enable, or even encourage, the stable cohabitation of a diverse community within Trichodesmium consortia. IMPORTANCE Trichodesmium is a genus of globally distributed, nitrogen-fixing marine cyanobacteria. As a source of new nitrogen in otherwise nitrogen-deficient systems, these organisms help fuel carbon fixation carried out by other more abundant photoautotrophs and thereby have significant roles in global nitrogen and carbon cycling. Members of the Trichodesmium genus tend to

Peroxisome protein import: a complex journey.

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Alison; Lanyon-Hogg, Thomas; Warriner, Stuart L

2016-06-15

The import of proteins into peroxisomes possesses many unusual features such as the ability to import folded proteins, and a surprising diversity of targeting signals with differing affinities that can be recognized by the same receptor. As understanding of the structure and function of many components of the protein import machinery has grown, an increasingly complex network of factors affecting each step of the import pathway has emerged. Structural studies have revealed the presence of additional interactions between cargo proteins and the PEX5 receptor that affect import potential, with a subtle network of cargo-induced conformational changes in PEX5 being involved in the import process. Biochemical studies have also indicated an interdependence of receptor-cargo import with release of unloaded receptor from the peroxisome. Here, we provide an update on recent literature concerning mechanisms of protein import into peroxisomes. © 2016 The Author(s).

ISC1-dependent metabolic adaptation reveals an indispensable role for mitochondria in induction of nuclear genes during the diauxic shift in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Science.gov (United States)

Kitagaki, Hiroshi; Cowart, L Ashley; Matmati, Nabil; Montefusco, David; Gandy, Jason; de Avalos, Silvia Vaena; Novgorodov, Sergei A; Zheng, Jim; Obeid, Lina M; Hannun, Yusuf A

2009-04-17

Growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae following glucose depletion (the diauxic shift) depends on a profound metabolic adaptation accompanied by a global reprogramming of gene expression. In this study, we provide evidence for a heretofore unsuspected role for Isc1p in mediating this reprogramming. Initial studies revealed that yeast cells deleted in ISC1, the gene encoding inositol sphingolipid phospholipase C, which resides in mitochondria in the post-diauxic phase, showed defective aerobic respiration in the post-diauxic phase but retained normal intrinsic mitochondrial functions, including intact mitochondrial DNA, normal oxygen consumption, and normal mitochondrial polarization. Microarray analysis revealed that the Deltaisc1 strain failed to up-regulate genes required for nonfermentable carbon source metabolism during the diauxic shift, thus suggesting a mechanism for the defective supply of respiratory substrates into mitochondria in the post-diauxic phase. This defect in regulating nuclear gene induction in response to a defect in a mitochondrial enzyme raised the possibility that mitochondria may initiate diauxic shift-associated regulation of nucleus-encoded genes. This was established by demonstrating that in respiratory-deficient petite cells these genes failed to be up-regulated across the diauxic shift in a manner similar to the Deltaisc1 strain. Isc1p- and mitochondrial function-dependent genes significantly overlapped with Adr1p-, Snf1p-, and Cat8p-dependent genes, suggesting some functional link among these factors. However, the retrograde response was not activated in Deltaisc1, suggesting that the response of Deltaisc1 cannot be simply attributed to mitochondrial dysfunction. These results suggest a novel role for Isc1p in allowing the reprogramming of gene expression during the transition from anaerobic to aerobic metabolism.

The Arabidopsis nox Mutant Lacking Carotene Hydroxylase Activity Reveals a Critical Role for Xanthophylls in Photosystem I Biogenesis[C][W

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Dall’Osto, Luca; Piques, Maria; Ronzani, Michela; Molesini, Barbara; Alboresi, Alessandro; Cazzaniga, Stefano; Bassi, Roberto

2013-01-01

Carotenes, and their oxygenated derivatives xanthophylls, are essential components of the photosynthetic apparatus. They contribute to the assembly of photosynthetic complexes and participate in light absorption and chloroplast photoprotection. Here, we studied the role of xanthophylls, as distinct from that of carotenes, by characterizing a no xanthophylls (nox) mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana, which was obtained by combining mutations targeting the four carotenoid hydroxylase genes. nox plants retained α- and β-carotenes but were devoid in xanthophylls. The phenotype included depletion of light-harvesting complex (LHC) subunits and impairment of nonphotochemical quenching, two effects consistent with the location of xanthophylls in photosystem II antenna, but also a decreased efficiency of photosynthetic electron transfer, photosensitivity, and lethality in soil. Biochemical analysis revealed that the nox mutant was specifically depleted in photosystem I function due to a severe deficiency in PsaA/B subunits. While the stationary level of psaA/B transcripts showed no major differences between genotypes, the stability of newly synthesized PsaA/B proteins was decreased and translation of psaA/B mRNA was impaired in nox with respect to wild-type plants. We conclude that xanthophylls, besides their role in photoprotection and LHC assembly, are also needed for photosystem I core translation and stability, thus making these compounds indispensable for autotrophic growth. PMID:23396829

[The role of mitochondrial permeability transition pore in the occurrence of septic myocardial depression].

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Jin, Shanzi; Wang, Sheng

2016-08-01

Sepsis is defined as life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dys-regulated host response to infection and septic myocardial depression (SMD) is a common complication. Pathogenesis of SMD is complicated and there is lack of specific treatment. Mitochondrial damage is an important pathological basis of SMD, and mitochondrial permeability transition pore (MPTP) plays an important role in maintaining the normal structure and function of the mitochondria. The change of MPTP during sepsis is summarized in this review so as to reveal the significant mechanism of MPTP in the occurrence of SMD.

Role of Pex21p for Piggyback Import of Gpd1p and Pnc1p into Peroxisomes of Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

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Effelsberg, Daniel; Cruz-Zaragoza, Luis Daniel; Tonillo, Jason; Schliebs, Wolfgang; Erdmann, Ralf

2015-10-16

Proteins designated for peroxisomal protein import harbor one of two common peroxisomal targeting signals (PTS). In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the oleate-induced PTS2-dependent import of the thiolase Fox3p into peroxisomes is conducted by the soluble import receptor Pex7p in cooperation with the auxiliary Pex18p, one of two supposedly redundant PTS2 co-receptors. Here, we report on a novel function for the co-receptor Pex21p, which cannot be fulfilled by Pex18p. The data establish Pex21p as a general co-receptor in PTS2-dependent protein import, whereas Pex18p is especially important for oleate-induced import of PTS2 proteins. The glycerol-producing PTS2 protein glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase Gpd1p shows a tripartite localization in peroxisomes, in the cytosol, and in the nucleus under osmotic stress conditions. We show the following: (i) Pex21p is required for peroxisomal import of Gpd1p as well as a key enzyme of the NAD(+) salvage pathway, Pnc1p; (ii) Pnc1p, a nicotinamidase without functional PTS2, is co-imported into peroxisomes by piggyback transport via Gpd1p. Moreover, the specific transport of these two enzymes into peroxisomes suggests a novel regulatory role for peroxisomes under various stress conditions. © 2015 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Intragenic suppressor of Osiaa23 revealed a conserved tryptophan residue crucial for protein-protein interactions.

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Jun Ni

Full Text Available The Auxin/Indole-3-Acetic Acid (Aux/IAA and Auxin Response Factor (ARF are two important families that play key roles in auxin signal transduction. Both of the families contain a similar carboxyl-terminal domain (Domain III/IV that facilitates interactions between these two families. In spite of the importance of protein-protein interactions among these transcription factors, the mechanisms involved in these interactions are largely unknown. In this study, we isolated six intragenic suppressors of an auxin insensitive mutant, Osiaa23. Among these suppressors, Osiaa23-R5 successfully rescued all the defects of the mutant. Sequence analysis revealed that an amino acid substitution occurred in the Tryptophan (W residue in Domain IV of Osiaa23. Yeast two-hybrid experiments showed that the mutation in Domain IV prevents the protein-protein interactions between Osiaa23 and OsARFs. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the W residue is conserved in both OsIAAs and OsARFs. Next, we performed site-specific amino acid substitutions within Domain IV of OsARFs, and the conserved W in Domain IV was exchanged by Serine (S. The mutated OsARF(WSs can be released from the inhibition of Osiaa23 and maintain the transcriptional activities. Expression of OsARF(WSs in Osiaa23 mutant rescued different defects of the mutant. Our results suggest a previously unknown importance of Domain IV in both families and provide an indirect way to investigate functions of OsARFs.

Cyclosporin A treatment of Leishmania donovani reveals stage-specific functions of cyclophilins in parasite proliferation and viability.

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Wai-Lok Yau

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Cyclosporin A (CsA has important anti-microbial activity against parasites of the genus Leishmania, suggesting CsA-binding cyclophilins (CyPs as potential drug targets. However, no information is available on the genetic diversity of this important protein family, and the mechanisms underlying the cytotoxic effects of CsA on intracellular amastigotes are only poorly understood. Here, we performed a first genome-wide analysis of Leishmania CyPs and investigated the effects of CsA on host-free L. donovani amastigotes in order to elucidate the relevance of these parasite proteins for drug development. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Multiple sequence alignment and cluster analysis identified 17 Leishmania CyPs with significant sequence differences to human CyPs, but with highly conserved functional residues implicated in PPIase function and CsA binding. CsA treatment of promastigotes resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of cell growth with an IC50 between 15 and 20 microM as demonstrated by proliferation assay and cell cycle analysis. Scanning electron microscopy revealed striking morphological changes in CsA treated promastigotes reminiscent to developing amastigotes, suggesting a role for parasite CyPs in Leishmania differentiation. In contrast to promastigotes, CsA was highly toxic to amastigotes with an IC50 between 5 and 10 microM, revealing for the first time a direct lethal effect of CsA on the pathogenic mammalian stage linked to parasite thermotolerance, independent from host CyPs. Structural modeling, enrichment of CsA-binding proteins from parasite extracts by FPLC, and PPIase activity assays revealed direct interaction of the inhibitor with LmaCyP40, a bifunctional cyclophilin with potential co-chaperone function. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: The evolutionary expansion of the Leishmania CyP protein family and the toxicity of CsA on host-free amastigotes suggest important roles of PPIases in parasite biology and implicate

Accessory renal arteries: Prevalence in resistant hypertension and an important role in nonresponse to radiofrequency renal denervation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

VonAchen, Paige [Minneapolis Heart Institute and Foundation at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Minneapolis, MN (United States); Hamann, Jason [Boston Scientific Corporation, Maple Grove, MN (United States); Houghland, Thomas; Lesser, John R.; Wang, Yale; Caye, David; Rosenthal, Kristi; Garberich, Ross F. [Minneapolis Heart Institute and Foundation at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Minneapolis, MN (United States); Daniels, Mary [Vital Images/Toshiba, Minnetonka, MN (United States); Schwartz, Robert S., E-mail: rss@rsschwartz.com [Minneapolis Heart Institute and Foundation at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Minneapolis, MN (United States)

2016-10-15

future clinical trials may improve RDN therapeutic efficacy. - Highlights: • This paper advances the hypothesis that accessory renal arteries have an important role in non-response to renal denervation. • In this paper systematic review of cases from the REDUCE-HTN study found that accessory renal arteries are a highly significant risk for renal denervation nonresponse. • Accessory renal arteries were markedly over-represented in resistant hypertensives compared with healthy controls. • Addressing accessory renal arteries in future clinical trials may improve RDN therapeutic efficacy.

Accessory renal arteries: Prevalence in resistant hypertension and an important role in nonresponse to radiofrequency renal denervation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

VonAchen, Paige; Hamann, Jason; Houghland, Thomas; Lesser, John R.; Wang, Yale; Caye, David; Rosenthal, Kristi; Garberich, Ross F.; Daniels, Mary; Schwartz, Robert S.

2016-01-01

future clinical trials may improve RDN therapeutic efficacy. - Highlights: • This paper advances the hypothesis that accessory renal arteries have an important role in non-response to renal denervation. • In this paper systematic review of cases from the REDUCE-HTN study found that accessory renal arteries are a highly significant risk for renal denervation nonresponse. • Accessory renal arteries were markedly over-represented in resistant hypertensives compared with healthy controls. • Addressing accessory renal arteries in future clinical trials may improve RDN therapeutic efficacy.

78 FR 22895 - Test To Allow Customs Brokers To Pre-Certify Importers for Participation in the Importer Self...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-04-17

... role in the success of various CBP commercial initiatives, automation efforts, and security programs... communication with importers, the ISA pre-certifiers will provide information on the ISA program and work to... import data that CBP possesses, as well as help to focus the ISA pre-certifier's efforts on the areas for...

Creativity and technical innovation: spatial ability's unique role.

Science.gov (United States)

Kell, Harrison J; Lubinski, David; Benbow, Camilla P; Steiger, James H

2013-09-01

In the late 1970s, 563 intellectually talented 13-year-olds (identified by the SAT as in the top 0.5% of ability) were assessed on spatial ability. More than 30 years later, the present study evaluated whether spatial ability provided incremental validity (beyond the SAT's mathematical and verbal reasoning subtests) for differentially predicting which of these individuals had patents and three classes of refereed publications. A two-step discriminant-function analysis revealed that the SAT subtests jointly accounted for 10.8% of the variance among these outcomes (p development of creativity, beyond the roles played by the abilities traditionally measured in educational selection, counseling, and industrial-organizational psychology. Spatial ability plays a key and unique role in structuring many important psychological phenomena and should be examined more broadly across the applied and basic psychological sciences.

AN HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF THE IMPORTANCE OF THE WEAK DECAY OF HYPERNUCLEI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

GIBSON, B.F.

2001-01-01

Weak decay of hypernuclei, first cousin to the β-decay of conventional, nonstrange nuclei, was initially observed in the 1950s. Pionic decay rates have proven a challenge--to reconcile nuclear decay rates with that of free λ decay. Pauli blocking of the decay nucleon plays an important role. Nonmesonic decay provides our only practical means of exploring the four-fermion, strangeness-changing NΛ → NN weak interaction. The NΛρ vertex can be investigated in no other way. The large momentum transfer in the nonmesonic decay process suggests a means to probe short distance aspects of the interaction, possibly revealing baryon substructure effects. Whether the ΔI = 1/2 rule, which governs free Λ decay, also applies to the nonmesonic decay process remains an open question. The free Λ does not decay by emission of a π + ; the π + decay of 4 He is a puzzle. Finally, the weak decay of strangeness -2 hypernuclei is an important topic, because the pionic decay process is central to current efforts to seek and identify ΛΛ hypernuclei

The Role of Chaperone-subunit Usher Domain Interactions in the Mechanism of Bacterial Pilus Biogenesis Revealed by ESI-MS*

Science.gov (United States)

Morrissey, Bethny; Leney, Aneika C.; Toste Rêgo, Ana; Phan, Gilles; Allen, William J.; Verger, Denis; Waksman, Gabriel; Ashcroft, Alison E.; Radford, Sheena E.

2012-01-01

The PapC usher is a β-barrel outer membrane protein essential for assembly and secretion of P pili that are required for adhesion of pathogenic E. coli, which cause the development of pyelonephritis. Multiple protein subunits form the P pilus, the highly specific assembly of which is coordinated by the usher. Despite a wealth of structural knowledge, how the usher catalyzes subunit polymerization and orchestrates a correct and functional order of subunit assembly remain unclear. Here, the ability of the soluble N-terminal (UsherN), C-terminal (UsherC2), and Plug (UsherP) domains of the usher to bind different chaperone-subunit (PapDPapX) complexes is investigated using noncovalent electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. The results reveal that each usher domain is able to bind all six PapDPapX complexes, consistent with an active role of all three usher domains in pilus biogenesis. Using collision induced dissociation, combined with competition binding experiments and dissection of the adhesin subunit, PapG, into separate pilin and adhesin domains, the results reveal why PapG has a uniquely high affinity for the usher, which is consistent with this subunit always being displayed at the pilus tip. In addition, we show how the different soluble usher domains cooperate to coordinate and control efficient pilus assembly at the usher platform. As well as providing new information about the protein-protein interactions that determine pilus biogenesis, the results highlight the power of noncovalent MS to interrogate biological mechanisms, especially in complex mixtures of species. PMID:22371487

The role of chaperone-subunit usher domain interactions in the mechanism of bacterial pilus biogenesis revealed by ESI-MS.

Science.gov (United States)

Morrissey, Bethny; Leney, Aneika C; Toste Rêgo, Ana; Phan, Gilles; Allen, William J; Verger, Denis; Waksman, Gabriel; Ashcroft, Alison E; Radford, Sheena E

2012-07-01

The PapC usher is a β-barrel outer membrane protein essential for assembly and secretion of P pili that are required for adhesion of pathogenic E. coli, which cause the development of pyelonephritis. Multiple protein subunits form the P pilus, the highly specific assembly of which is coordinated by the usher. Despite a wealth of structural knowledge, how the usher catalyzes subunit polymerization and orchestrates a correct and functional order of subunit assembly remain unclear. Here, the ability of the soluble N-terminal (UsherN), C-terminal (UsherC2), and Plug (UsherP) domains of the usher to bind different chaperone-subunit (PapDPapX) complexes is investigated using noncovalent electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. The results reveal that each usher domain is able to bind all six PapDPapX complexes, consistent with an active role of all three usher domains in pilus biogenesis. Using collision induced dissociation, combined with competition binding experiments and dissection of the adhesin subunit, PapG, into separate pilin and adhesin domains, the results reveal why PapG has a uniquely high affinity for the usher, which is consistent with this subunit always being displayed at the pilus tip. In addition, we show how the different soluble usher domains cooperate to coordinate and control efficient pilus assembly at the usher platform. As well as providing new information about the protein-protein interactions that determine pilus biogenesis, the results highlight the power of noncovalent MS to interrogate biological mechanisms, especially in complex mixtures of species.

Chlorosis caused by two recessively interacting genes reveals a role of RNA helicase in hybrid breakdown in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Science.gov (United States)

Plötner, Björn; Nurmi, Markus; Fischer, Axel; Watanabe, Mutsumi; Schneeberger, Korbinian; Holm, Svante; Vaid, Neha; Schöttler, Mark Aurel; Walther, Dirk; Hoefgen, Rainer; Weigel, Detlef; Laitinen, Roosa A E

2017-07-01

Hybrids often differ in fitness from their parents. They may be superior, translating into hybrid vigour or heterosis, but they may also be markedly inferior, because of hybrid weakness or incompatibility. The underlying genetic causes for the latter can often be traced back to genes that evolve rapidly because of sexual or host-pathogen conflicts. Hybrid weakness may manifest itself only in later generations, in a phenomenon called hybrid breakdown. We have characterized a case of hybrid breakdown among two Arabidopsis thaliana accessions, Shahdara (Sha, Tajikistan) and Lövvik-5 (Lov-5, Northern Sweden). In addition to chlorosis, a fraction of the F 2 plants have defects in leaf and embryo development, and reduced photosynthetic efficiency. Hybrid chlorosis is due to two major-effect loci, of which one, originating from Lov-5, appears to encode an RNA helicase (AtRH18). To examine the role of the chlorosis allele in the Lövvik area, in addition to eight accessions collected in 2009, we collected another 240 accessions from 15 collections sites, including Lövvik, from Northern Sweden in 2015. Genotyping revealed that Lövvik collection site is separated from the rest. Crosses between 109 accessions from this area and Sha revealed 85 cases of hybrid chlorosis, indicating that the chlorosis-causing allele is common in this area. These results suggest that hybrid breakdown alleles not only occur at rapidly evolving loci, but also at genes that code for conserved processes. © 2017 The Authors The Plant Journal © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Differential RNA-seq, Multi-Network Analysis and Metabolic Regulation Analysis of Kluyveromyces marxianus Reveals a Compartmentalised Response to Xylose.

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Du Toit W P Schabort

Full Text Available We investigated the transcriptomic response of a new strain of the yeast Kluyveromyces marxianus, in glucose and xylose media using RNA-seq. The data were explored in a number of innovative ways using a variety of networks types, pathway maps, enrichment statistics, reporter metabolites and a flux simulation model, revealing different aspects of the genome-scale response in an integrative systems biology manner. The importance of the subcellular localisation in the transcriptomic response is emphasised here, revealing new insights. As was previously reported by others using a rich medium, we show that peroxisomal fatty acid catabolism was dramatically up-regulated in a defined xylose mineral medium without fatty acids, along with mechanisms to activate fatty acids and transfer products of β-oxidation to the mitochondria. Notably, we observed a strong up-regulation of the 2-methylcitrate pathway, supporting capacity for odd-chain fatty acid catabolism. Next we asked which pathways would respond to the additional requirement for NADPH for xylose utilisation, and rationalised the unexpected results using simulations with Flux Balance Analysis. On a fundamental level, we investigated the contribution of the hierarchical and metabolic regulation levels to the regulation of metabolic fluxes. Metabolic regulation analysis suggested that genetic level regulation plays a major role in regulating metabolic fluxes in adaptation to xylose, even for the high capacity reactions, which is unexpected. In addition, isozyme switching may play an important role in re-routing of metabolic fluxes in subcellular compartments in K. marxianus.

The importance and role of the Central Bank in the creation of a healthy monetary and investment policy

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Šmigić-Miladinović Jasmina

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper's starting point is finding an answer to the question: What kind of monetary policy should be followed by the Central bank in new market circumstances? As a major monetary institution, the Central bank should provide credibility for its monetary policy, which is particularly important during a macroeconomic stabilisation. In order to choose the most appropriate monetary policy, its creators should be familiar with the monetary policy's effects on economic activities, first of all on investment activities and the period in which they may occur. The Central bank uses its special status and authorisations to control monetary trends, to keep and handle foreign exchange reserves, to keep banks' required reserves, to manage the country's debt, to be the final creditor of the banking system, to take care of the banking system's liquidity. That is why the Central bank has become important for the functioning of the whole financial market, and especially the monetary market. The Central bank has both direct and indirect influence on the most important events on financial markets, financial system, as well as a wider influence - on a country's whole economy. In order to envisage the financial market's impact on monetary and investment policies, one should begin with the Central bank's role on the financial market, and at the same time analyse the financial market's instruments and institutions.

Egocentric reciprocity and the role of friendship and anger.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Xiao-Ping; Eberly, Marion B; Bachrach, Daniel G; Wu, Keke; Qu, Qing

2017-01-01

In this research, we examine the phenomenon of egocentric reciprocity, where individuals protect self-interest by adopting an eye-for-an-eye strategy in negatively imbalanced exchanges, and by taking advantage of overly generous treatment in positively imbalanced exchanges. We conducted two experiments using a modified ultimatum game examining attitudinal and behavioral responses to imbalanced exchanges. The experiments allowed us to explore the moderating role of relational closeness (i.e., whether the game partner was a friend or a stranger) and the mediating role of anger and indebtedness in these moderated relationships. Our results consistently demonstrate the phenomenon of egocentric reciprocity. Most importantly, this research reveals that friendship places a boundary on this egocentric tendency, and that the effects may partially be explained by anger experienced in response to exchange.

Knockout silkworms reveal a dispensable role for juvenile hormones in holometabolous life cycle.

Science.gov (United States)

Daimon, Takaaki; Uchibori, Miwa; Nakao, Hajime; Sezutsu, Hideki; Shinoda, Tetsuro

2015-08-04

Insect juvenile hormones (JHs) prevent precocious metamorphosis and allow larvae to undergo multiple rounds of status quo molts. However, the roles of JHs during the embryonic and very early larval stages have not been fully understood. We generated and characterized knockout silkworms (Bombyx mori) with null mutations in JH biosynthesis or JH receptor genes using genome-editing tools. We found that embryonic growth and morphogenesis are largely independent of JHs in Bombyx and that, even in the absence of JHs or JH signaling, pupal characters are not formed in first- or second-instar larvae, and precocious metamorphosis is induced after the second instar at the earliest. We also show by mosaic analysis that a pupal specifier gene broad, which is dramatically up-regulated in the late stage of the last larval instar, is essential for pupal commitment in the epidermis. Importantly, the mRNA expression level of broad, which is thought to be repressed by JHs, remained at very low basal levels during the early larval instars of JH-deficient or JH signaling-deficient knockouts. Therefore, our study suggests that the long-accepted paradigm that JHs maintain the juvenile status throughout larval life should be revised because the larval status can be maintained by a JH-independent mechanism in very early larval instars. We propose that the lack of competence for metamorphosis during the early larval stages may result from the absence of an unidentified broad-inducing factor, i.e., a competence factor.

Nod-Like Receptor Protein-3 Inflammasome Plays an Important Role during Early Stages of Wound Healing

Science.gov (United States)

Weinheimer-Haus, Eileen M.; Mirza, Rita E.; Koh, Timothy J.

2015-01-01

The Nod-like receptor protein (NLRP)-3 inflammasome/IL-1β pathway is involved in the pathogenesis of various inflammatory skin diseases, but its biological role in wound healing remains to be elucidated. Since inflammation is typically thought to impede healing, we hypothesized that loss of NLRP-3 activity would result in a downregulated inflammatory response and accelerated wound healing. NLRP-3 null mice, caspase-1 null mice and C57Bl/6 wild type control mice (WT) received four 8 mm excisional cutaneous wounds; inflammation and healing were assessed during the early stage of wound healing. Consistent with our hypothesis, wounds from NLRP-3 null and caspase-1 null mice contained lower levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α compared to WT mice and had reduced neutrophil and macrophage accumulation. Contrary to our hypothesis, re-epithelialization, granulation tissue formation, and angiogenesis were delayed in NLRP-3 null mice and caspase-1 null mice compared to WT mice, indicating that NLRP-3 signaling is important for early events in wound healing. Topical treatment of excisional wounds with recombinant IL-1β partially restored granulation tissue formation in wounds of NLRP-3 null mice, confirming the importance of NLRP-3-dependent IL-1β production during early wound healing. Despite the improvement in healing, angiogenesis and levels of the pro-angiogenic growth factor VEGF were further reduced in IL-1β treated wounds, suggesting that IL-1β has a negative effect on angiogenesis and that NLRP-3 promotes angiogenesis in an IL-1β-independent manner. These findings indicate that the NLRP-3 inflammasome contributes to the early inflammatory phase following skin wounding and is important for efficient healing. PMID:25793779

Diversity and Structure of Diazotrophic Communities in Mangrove Rhizosphere, Revealed by High-Throughput Sequencing.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yanying; Yang, Qingsong; Ling, Juan; Van Nostrand, Joy D; Shi, Zhou; Zhou, Jizhong; Dong, Junde

2017-01-01

Diazotrophic communities make an essential contribution to the productivity through providing new nitrogen. However, knowledge of the roles that both mangrove tree species and geochemical parameters play in shaping mangove rhizosphere diazotrophic communities is still elusive. Here, a comprehensive examination of the diversity and structure of microbial communities in the rhizospheres of three mangrove species, Rhizophora apiculata , Avicennia marina , and Ceriops tagal , was undertaken using high - throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA and nifH genes. Our results revealed a great diversity of both the total microbial composition and the diazotrophic composition specifically in the mangrove rhizosphere. Deltaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were both ubiquitous and dominant, comprising an average of 45.87 and 86.66% of total microbial and diazotrophic communities, respectively. Sulfate-reducing bacteria belonging to the Desulfobacteraceae and Desulfovibrionaceae were the dominant diazotrophs. Community statistical analyses suggested that both mangrove tree species and additional environmental variables played important roles in shaping total microbial and potential diazotroph communities in mangrove rhizospheres. In contrast to the total microbial community investigated by analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences, most of the dominant diazotrophic groups identified by nifH gene sequences were significantly different among mangrove species. The dominant diazotrophs of the family Desulfobacteraceae were positively correlated with total phosphorus, but negatively correlated with the nitrogen to phosphorus ratio. The Pseudomonadaceae were positively correlated with the concentration of available potassium, suggesting that diazotrophs potentially play an important role in biogeochemical cycles, such as those of nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and potassium, in the mangrove ecosystem.

Diversity and Structure of Diazotrophic Communities in Mangrove Rhizosphere, Revealed by High-Throughput Sequencing

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Yanying Zhang

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Diazotrophic communities make an essential contribution to the productivity through providing new nitrogen. However, knowledge of the roles that both mangrove tree species and geochemical parameters play in shaping mangove rhizosphere diazotrophic communities is still elusive. Here, a comprehensive examination of the diversity and structure of microbial communities in the rhizospheres of three mangrove species, Rhizophora apiculata, Avicennia marina, and Ceriops tagal, was undertaken using high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA and nifH genes. Our results revealed a great diversity of both the total microbial composition and the diazotrophic composition specifically in the mangrove rhizosphere. Deltaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were both ubiquitous and dominant, comprising an average of 45.87 and 86.66% of total microbial and diazotrophic communities, respectively. Sulfate-reducing bacteria belonging to the Desulfobacteraceae and Desulfovibrionaceae were the dominant diazotrophs. Community statistical analyses suggested that both mangrove tree species and additional environmental variables played important roles in shaping total microbial and potential diazotroph communities in mangrove rhizospheres. In contrast to the total microbial community investigated by analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences, most of the dominant diazotrophic groups identified by nifH gene sequences were significantly different among mangrove species. The dominant diazotrophs of the family Desulfobacteraceae were positively correlated with total phosphorus, but negatively correlated with the nitrogen to phosphorus ratio. The Pseudomonadaceae were positively correlated with the concentration of available potassium, suggesting that diazotrophs potentially play an important role in biogeochemical cycles, such as those of nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, and potassium, in the mangrove ecosystem.

Mexican-American adolescents' gender role attitude development: the role of adolescents' gender and nativity and parents' gender role attitudes.

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Updegraff, Kimberly A; McHale, Susan M; Zeiders, Katharine H; Umaña-Taylor, Adriana J; Perez-Brena, Norma J; Wheeler, Lorey A; Rodríguez De Jesús, Sue A

2014-12-01

Gender development has long term implications for education and career endeavors and family formation behaviors, but we know very little about the role of sociocultural factors in developmental and individual differences. In this study, we investigated one domain of gender development, gender role attitudes, in Mexican-American adolescents (N = 246; 51 % female), using four phases of longitudinal data across 8 years. Data were collected when adolescents averaged 12.51 years (SD = 0.58), 14.64 years (SD = 0.59), 17.72 years (SD = 0.57), and 19.60 years of age (SD = 0.66). Mothers' and fathers' gender role attitudes also were assessed in Phases 1, 3, and 4. Findings revealed that gender attitude development varied as a function of the interaction between adolescents' nativity and gender. Among Mexico-born adolescents, females exhibited significant declines in traditional attitudes from early to late adolescence, but males' attitudes were stable over time. U.S.-born females and males, in contrast, did not differ in their gender attitude trajectories. Examining the links between mothers', fathers', and adolescents' gender role attitudes revealed within-person associations between mothers' and adolescents' gender role attitudes: on occasions when mothers reported more traditional attitudes relative to their own cross-time average, adolescents also reported more traditional attitudes than usual. In addition, fathers' more traditional gender role attitudes were associated with daughters', but not sons', more traditional gender role attitudes at the between-person level. The discussion focuses on the interpretation of Mexican-American adolescents' gender role attitude development from a cultural ecological perspective.

Prognostic importance of vascular endothelial growth factor-A expression and vascular endothelial growth factor polymorphisms in epithelial ovarian cancer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smerdel, Maja; Waldstrøm, Marianne; Brandslund, Ivan

2009-01-01

INTRODUCTION: Vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGFs) play a central role in angiogenesis and consequently, in various steps of ovarian carcinogenesis. Gene polymorphisms within the VEGF system have revealed a correlation with prognosis in some malignancies. The aim of the present study...... was to examine the possible importance of 2 VEGF polymorphisms and VEGF-A expression in ovarian cancer. METHODS: We investigated 2 single nucleotide polymorphisms VEGF +405G/C and VEGF -460C/T by polymerase chain reaction and also analyzed VEGF-A expression by immunohistochemistry in 159 women with ovarian...... cancer. RESULTS: Vascular endothelial growth factor-A expression revealed a significant correlation with survival in a Cox proportional hazards regression model (P = 0.012). Germline polymorphisms were not correlated with clinicopathological parameters such as stage, type, and histology. Heterozygous...

Analyses of Catharanthus roseus and Arabidopsis thaliana WRKY transcription factors reveal involvement in jasmonate signaling.

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Schluttenhofer, Craig; Pattanaik, Sitakanta; Patra, Barunava; Yuan, Ling

2014-06-20

To combat infection to biotic stress plants elicit the biosynthesis of numerous natural products, many of which are valuable pharmaceutical compounds. Jasmonate is a central regulator of defense response to pathogens and accumulation of specialized metabolites. Catharanthus roseus produces a large number of terpenoid indole alkaloids (TIAs) and is an excellent model for understanding the regulation of this class of valuable compounds. Recent work illustrates a possible role for the Catharanthus WRKY transcription factors (TFs) in regulating TIA biosynthesis. In Arabidopsis and other plants, the WRKY TF family is also shown to play important role in controlling tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, as well as secondary metabolism. Here, we describe the WRKY TF families in response to jasmonate in Arabidopsis and Catharanthus. Publically available Arabidopsis microarrays revealed at least 30% (22 of 72) of WRKY TFs respond to jasmonate treatments. Microarray analysis identified at least six jasmonate responsive Arabidopsis WRKY genes (AtWRKY7, AtWRKY20, AtWRKY26, AtWRKY45, AtWRKY48, and AtWRKY72) that have not been previously reported. The Catharanthus WRKY TF family is comprised of at least 48 members. Phylogenetic clustering reveals 11 group I, 32 group II, and 5 group III WRKY TFs. Furthermore, we found that at least 25% (12 of 48) were jasmonate responsive, and 75% (9 of 12) of the jasmonate responsive CrWRKYs are orthologs of AtWRKYs known to be regulated by jasmonate. Overall, the CrWRKY family, ascertained from transcriptome sequences, contains approximately 75% of the number of WRKYs found in other sequenced asterid species (pepper, tomato, potato, and bladderwort). Microarray and transcriptomic data indicate that expression of WRKY TFs in Arabidopsis and Catharanthus are under tight spatio-temporal and developmental control, and potentially have a significant role in jasmonate signaling. Profiling of CrWRKY expression in response to jasmonate treatment

Gravity Plays an Important Role in Muscle Development and the Differentiation of Contractile Protein Phenotype

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Adams, Gregory A.; Haddad, Fadia; Baldwin, Kenneth M.

2003-01-01

Several muscles in the body exist mainly to work against gravity. Whether gravity is important in the development of these muscles is not known. By examining the basic proteins that compose muscle, questions about the role of gravity in muscle development can be answered. Myosin heavy chains (MHCs) are a family of proteins critically important for muscle contraction. Several types of MHCs exist (e.g., neonatal, slow, fast), and each type is produced by a particular gene. Neonatal MHCs are produced early in life. Slow MHCs are important in antigravity muscles, and fast MHCs are found in fast-twitch power muscles. The gene that is turned on or expressed will determine which MHC is produced. Early in development, antigravity skeletal muscles (muscles that work against gravity) normally produce a combination of the neonatal/embryonic MHCs. The expression of these primitive MHCs is repressed early in development; and the adult slow and fast MHC genes become fully expressed. We tested the hypothesis that weightbearing activity is critical for inducing the normal expression of the slow MHC gene typically expressed in adult antigravity muscles. Also, we hypothesized that thyroid hormone, but not opposition to gravity, is necessary for expressing the adult fast IIb MHC gene essential for high-intensity muscle performance. Groups of normal thyroid and thyroid-deficient neonatal rats were studied after their return from the 16-day Neurolab mission and compared to matched controls. The results suggest: (1) Weightlessness impaired body and limb skeletal muscle growth in both normal and thyroid-deficient animals. Antigravity muscles were impaired more than those used primarily for locomotion andor nonweightbearing activity. (2) Systemic and muscle expression of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), an important body and tissue growth factor, was depressed in flight animals. (3) Normal slow, type I MHC gene expression was markedly repressed in the normal thyroid flight group. (4

The role of institutions as actors influencing Uganda’s cassava sector

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Cedric Mutyaba

2016-04-01

Full Text Available We aim at mapping out a detailed framework that reveals the proportionate flow of cassava and its products along the value chain (VC. Furthermore, we aim at establishing the role of institutions and the linkages between institutions and other VC actors that influence the cassava VC in Uganda. We use both primary and secondary data obtained from four regions in Uganda. Results show that farmers, processors, transporters, traders, consumers and institutions are the major actors. There are four categories of institutions, viz, government, non-government, community based organisations and international agencies. Roles performed by institutions include: development and enforcement of policies, Research and Development (R&D, capacity building, and creation of market access linkages for cassava and its products. Findings reveal that there is no clear nexus and no coordination among farmers/producers, processors, traders, transporters and consumers. However, institutions are well coordinated and play various roles along the VC to influence the dynamics of actors. Policy-wise it is important to establish strong private-public partnerships to bridge the impaired linkages between the actors (farmers/producers, processors, traders, transporters, and consumers and institutions. Strong partnerships are envisaged to reduce the associated transaction costs amongst the actors.

The specification of glycinergic neurons and the role of glycinergic transmission in development

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Alexander V Chalphin

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Glycine’s role as an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the adult vertebrate nervous system has been well characterized in a number of different model organisms. However, a full understanding of glycinergic transmission requires a knowledge of how glycinergic synapses emerge and the role of glycinergic signaling during development. Recent literature has provided a detailed picture of the developmental expression of many of the molecular components that comprise the glycinergic phenotype, namely the glycine transporters and the glycine receptor subunits; the transcriptional networks leading to the expression of this important neurotransmitter phenotype are also being elucidated. An equally important focus of research has revealed the critical role of glycinergic signaling in sculpting many different aspects of neural development. This review examines the current literature detailing the expression patterns of the components of the glycinergic phenotype in various vertebrate model organisms over the course of development and the molecular mechanisms governing the expression of the glycinergic phenotype. The review then surveys the recent work on the role of glycinergic signaling in the developing nervous system and concludes with an overview of areas for further research.

Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis prevalence and haplotypes in domestic and imported pet amphibians in Japan.

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Tamukai, Kenichi; Une, Yumi; Tominaga, Atsushi; Suzuki, Kazutaka; Goka, Koichi

2014-05-13

The international trade in amphibians is believed to have increased the spread of Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), the fungal pathogen responsible for chytridiomycosis, which has caused a rapid decline in amphibian populations worldwide. We surveyed amphibians imported into Japan and those held in captivity for a long period or bred in Japan to clarify the Bd infection status. Samples were taken from 820 individuals of 109 amphibian species between 2008 and 2011 and were analyzed by a nested-PCR assay. Bd prevalence in imported amphibians was 10.3% (58/561), while it was 6.9% (18/259) in those in private collections and commercially bred amphibians in Japan. We identified the genotypes of this fungus using partial DNA sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Sequencing of PCR products of all 76 Bd-positive samples revealed 11 haplotypes of the Bd ITS region. Haplotype A (DNA Data Bank of Japan accession number AB435211) was found in 90% (52/58) of imported amphibians. The results show that Bd is currently entering Japan via the international trade in exotic amphibians as pets, suggesting that the trade has indeed played a major role in the spread of Bd.

The Role of DNA Methylation in Xylogenesis in Different Tissues of Poplar

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Qingshi Wang

2016-07-01

Full Text Available In trees, xylem tissues play a key role in the formation of woody tissues, which have important uses for pulp and timber production; also DNA methylation plays an important part in gene regulation during xylogenesis in trees. In our study, methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP analysis was used to analyze the role cytosine methylation plays in wood formation in the commercially important tree species Populus tomentosa. This analysis compared the methylation patterns between xylem tissues (developing xylem and mature xylem and non-xylem tissues (cambium, shoot apex, young leaf, mature leaf, phloem, root, male catkin, and female catkin and found 10,316 polymorphic methylation sites. MSAP identified 132 candidate genes with the same methylation patterns in xylem tissues, including seven wood-related genes. The expression of these genes differed significantly between xylem and non-xylem tissue types (P<0.01. This indicated that the difference of expression of specific genes with unique methylation patterns, rather than relative methylation levels between the two tissue types plays a critical role in wood biosynthesis. However, 46.2% of candidate genes with the same methylation pattern in vascular tissues (cambium, phloem, and developing xylem did not have distinct expression patterns in xylem and non-xylem tissue. Also, bisulfite sequencing and transcriptome sequencing of MYB, NAC and FASCICLIN-LIKE AGP 13 revealed that the location of cytosine methylation in the gene might affect the expression of different transcripts from the corresponding gene. The expression of different transcripts that produce distinct proteins from a single gene might play an important role in the regulation of xylogenesis.

Meta-synthesis on nurse practitioner autonomy and roles in ambulatory care.

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Wang-Romjue, Pauline

2018-04-01

Many healthcare stakeholders view nurse practitioners (NPs) as an important workforce resource to help fill the anticipated shortage of 20,400 ambulatory care physicians that is expected by 2020. Multiple quantitative studies revealed the attributes of NPs' practice autonomy and roles. However, there is no qualitative meta-synthesis that describes the experiences of NPs' practice autonomy and roles. To describe and understand the experiences of NPs regarding their practice autonomy and roles in various ambulatory settings through the exploration of existing qualitative studies: meta-synthesis. A qualitative meta-synthesis was conducted to gain insight into ambulatory NPs' practice autonomy and roles through content analysis and reciprocal translation. Articles published between 2000 and 2017 were retrieved by searching 7 databases using the following key words: U.S. qualitative studies, advance practice nurses, NP role in ambulatory care, NP autonomy, and outpatient care. Autonomy, NPs' roles and responsibilities, practice relationships, and organizational work environment pressures are the four main themes that emerged from the content analysis of the nine selected qualitative studies. Within and between states, NPs' experiences with autonomy and NPs' roles are multifaceted depending on state regulations, practice relationships, and organizational work environments. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

SNP analyses of growth factor genes EGF, TGF{beta}-1, and HGF reveal haplotypic association of EGF with autism

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Toyoda, Takao; Thanseem, Ismail; Kawai, Masayoshi; Sekine, Yoshimoto [Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu 431-3192 (Japan); Nakamura, Kazuhiko; Anitha, Ayyappan; Suda, Shiro [Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu 431-3192 (Japan); Yamada, Kazuo [Laboratory of Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Saitama (Japan); Tsujii, Masatsugu [Faculty of Sociology, Chukyo University, Toyota, Aichi (Japan); [The Osaka-Hamamatsu Joint Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu (Japan); Iwayama, Yoshimi; Hattori, Eiji; Toyota, Tomoko; Yoshikawa, Takeo [Laboratory of Molecular Psychiatry, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, Saitama (Japan); Miyachi, Taishi; Tsuchiya, Kenji; Sugihara, Gen-ichi; Matsuzaki, Hideo [The Osaka-Hamamatsu Joint Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu (Japan); Iwata, Yasuhide; Suzuki, Katsuaki [Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu 431-3192 (Japan); Mori, Norio [Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu 431-3192 (Japan); [The Osaka-Hamamatsu Joint Research Center for Child Mental Development, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University (Japan); Ouchi, Yasuomi [The Osaka-Hamamatsu Joint Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu (Japan); [The Positron Medical Center, Hamamatsu Medical Center, Hamamatsu (Japan); Sugiyama, Toshiro [Aichi Children' s Health and Medical Center, Obu, Aichi (Japan); Takei, Nori [The Osaka-Hamamatsu Joint Research Center for Child Mental Development, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatsu (Japan)

2007-09-07

Autism is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder diagnosed in early childhood. Growth factors have been found to play a key role in the cellular differentiation and proliferation of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) is detected in several regions of the developing and adult brain, where, it enhances the differentiation, maturation, and survival of a variety of neurons. Transforming growth factor-{beta} (TGF{beta}) isoforms play an important role in neuronal survival, and the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been shown to exhibit neurotrophic activity. We examined the association of EGF, TGF{beta}1, and HGF genes with autism, in a trio association study, using DNA samples from families recruited to the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange; 252 trios with a male offspring scored for autism were selected for the study. Transmission disequilibrium test revealed significant haplotypic association of EGF with autism. No significant SNP or haplotypic associations were observed for TGF{beta}1 or HGF. Given the role of EGF in brain and neuronal development, we suggest a possible role of EGF in the pathogenesis of autism.

Site-Directed Mutagenesis Study Revealed Three Important Residues in Hc-DAF-22, a Key Enzyme Regulating Diapause of Haemonchus contortus

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Yan Huang

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Haemonchus contortus (H. contortus is one of the most important parasites of small ruminants, especially goats and sheep. The complex life cycle of this nematode is a main obstacle for the control and prevention of haemonchosis. So far, a special form of arrested development called diapause different from the dauer stage in Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans has been found in many parasitic nematodes. In our previous study, we have characterized a novel gene Hc-daf-22 from H. contortus sharing high homology with Ce-daf-22 and functional analysis showed this gene has similar biological function with Ce-daf-22. In this study, Hc-daf-22 mutants were constructed using site-directed mutagenesis, and carried out rescue experiments, RNA interference (RNAi experiments and in vitro enzyme activity analysis with the mutants to further explore the precise function site of Hc-DAF-22. The results showed that Hc-daf-22 mutants could be expressed in the rescued ok693 worms and the expression positions were mainly in the intestine which was identical with that of Hc-daf-22 rescued worms. Through lipid staining we found that Hc-daf-22 could rescue daf-22 mutant (ok693 from the fatty acid metabolism deficiency while Hc-daf-22 mutants failed. Brood size and body length analyses in rescue experiment along with body length and life span analyses in RNAi experiment elucidated that Hc-daf-22 resembled Ce-daf-22 in effecting the development and capacity of C. elegans and mutants impaired the function of Hc-daf-22. Together with the protease activity assay, this research revealed three important active resides 84C/299H/349H in Hc-DAF-22 by site-directed mutagenesis.

Site-Directed Mutagenesis Study Revealed Three Important Residues in Hc-DAF-22, a Key Enzyme Regulating Diapause of Haemonchus contortus.

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Huang, Yan; Zheng, Xiuping; Zhang, Hongli; Ding, Haojie; Guo, Xiaolu; Yang, Yi; Chen, Xueqiu; Zhou, Qianjin; Du, Aifang

2017-01-01

Haemonchus contortus ( H. contortus ) is one of the most important parasites of small ruminants, especially goats and sheep. The complex life cycle of this nematode is a main obstacle for the control and prevention of haemonchosis. So far, a special form of arrested development called diapause different from the dauer stage in Caenorhabditis elegans ( C. elegans ) has been found in many parasitic nematodes. In our previous study, we have characterized a novel gene Hc-daf-22 from H. contortus sharing high homology with Ce-daf-22 and functional analysis showed this gene has similar biological function with Ce-daf-22 . In this study, Hc-daf-22 mutants were constructed using site-directed mutagenesis, and carried out rescue experiments, RNA interference (RNAi) experiments and in vitro enzyme activity analysis with the mutants to further explore the precise function site of Hc-DAF-22. The results showed that Hc-daf-22 mutants could be expressed in the rescued ok693 worms and the expression positions were mainly in the intestine which was identical with that of Hc-daf-22 rescued worms. Through lipid staining we found that Hc-daf-22 could rescue daf-22 mutant ( ok693 ) from the fatty acid metabolism deficiency while Hc-daf-22 mutants failed. Brood size and body length analyses in rescue experiment along with body length and life span analyses in RNAi experiment elucidated that Hc-daf-22 resembled Ce-daf-22 in effecting the development and capacity of C. elegans and mutants impaired the function of Hc-daf-22 . Together with the protease activity assay, this research revealed three important active resides 84C/299H/349H in Hc-DAF-22 by site-directed mutagenesis.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation reveals a role for the left inferior parietal lobule in matching observed kinematics during imitation.

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Reader, Arran T; Royce, Ben P; Marsh, Jade E; Chivers, Katy-Jayne; Holmes, Nicholas P

2018-04-01

Apraxia (a disorder of complex movement) suggests that the left inferior parietal lobule (IPL) plays a role in kinematic or spatial aspects of imitation, which may be particularly important for meaningless (i.e. unfamiliar intransitive) actions. Mirror neuron theories indicate that the IPL is part of a frontoparietal system that can support imitation by linking observed and stored actions through visuomotor matching, and have less to say about different subregions of the left IPL, or how different types of action (i.e. meaningful or meaningless) are processed for imitation. We used repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) to bridge this gap and better understand the roles of the left supramarginal gyrus (SMG) and left angular gyrus (AG) in imitation. We also examined whether these areas are differentially involved in meaningful and meaningless action imitation. We applied rTMS over the left SMG, over the left AG or during a no-rTMS baseline condition, and then asked participants to imitate a confederate's actions whilst the arm and hand movements of both individuals were motion-tracked. rTMS over both the left SMG and the left AG reduced the velocity of participants' finger movements relative to the actor during imitation of finger gestures, regardless of action meaning. Our results support recent claims in apraxia and confirm a role for the left IPL in kinematic processing during gesture imitation, regardless of action meaning. © 2018 Federation of European Neuroscience Societies and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Identifying and annotating human bifunctional RNAs reveals their versatile functions.

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Chen, Geng; Yang, Juan; Chen, Jiwei; Song, Yunjie; Cao, Ruifang; Shi, Tieliu; Shi, Leming

2016-10-01

Bifunctional RNAs that possess both protein-coding and noncoding functional properties were less explored and poorly understood. Here we systematically explored the characteristics and functions of such human bifunctional RNAs by integrating tandem mass spectrometry and RNA-seq data. We first constructed a pipeline to identify and annotate bifunctional RNAs, leading to the characterization of 132 high-confidence bifunctional RNAs. Our analyses indicate that bifunctional RNAs may be involved in human embryonic development and can be functional in diverse tissues. Moreover, bifunctional RNAs could interact with multiple miRNAs and RNA-binding proteins to exert their corresponding roles. Bifunctional RNAs may also function as competing endogenous RNAs to regulate the expression of many genes by competing for common targeting miRNAs. Finally, somatic mutations of diverse carcinomas may generate harmful effect on corresponding bifunctional RNAs. Collectively, our study not only provides the pipeline for identifying and annotating bifunctional RNAs but also reveals their important gene-regulatory functions.

The Role of Reading in the Development of Giftedness in the Context of Globalization and National Identity

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Shastina, Elena; Shatunova, Olga; Borodina, Tatyana; Borisov, Anatoly; Maliy, Yury

2018-01-01

The article explores the cultural potential of reading as one of the factors in the development of children's giftedness. The role of the book as the bearer of culture in the process of preserving national identity is revealed. The authors of the article discover the growing importance of family reading in the process of a gifted person…

Bcl2-associated Athanogene 3 Interactome Analysis Reveals a New Role in Modulating Proteasome Activity*

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Chen, Ying; Yang, Li-Na; Cheng, Li; Tu, Shun; Guo, Shu-Juan; Le, Huang-Ying; Xiong, Qian; Mo, Ran; Li, Chong-Yang; Jeong, Jun-Seop; Jiang, Lizhi; Blackshaw, Seth; Bi, Li-Jun; Zhu, Heng; Tao, Sheng-Ce; Ge, Feng

2013-01-01

Bcl2-associated athanogene 3 (BAG3), a member of the BAG family of co-chaperones, plays a critical role in regulating apoptosis, development, cell motility, autophagy, and tumor metastasis and in mediating cell adaptive responses to stressful stimuli. BAG3 carries a BAG domain, a WW domain, and a proline-rich repeat (PXXP), all of which mediate binding to different partners. To elucidate BAG3's interaction network at the molecular level, we employed quantitative immunoprecipitation combined with knockdown and human proteome microarrays to comprehensively profile the BAG3 interactome in humans. We identified a total of 382 BAG3-interacting proteins with diverse functions, including transferase activity, nucleic acid binding, transcription factors, proteases, and chaperones, suggesting that BAG3 is a critical regulator of diverse cellular functions. In addition, we characterized interactions between BAG3 and some of its newly identified partners in greater detail. In particular, bioinformatic analysis revealed that the BAG3 interactome is strongly enriched in proteins functioning within the proteasome-ubiquitination process and that compose the proteasome complex itself, suggesting that a critical biological function of BAG3 is associated with the proteasome. Functional studies demonstrated that BAG3 indeed interacts with the proteasome and modulates its activity, sustaining cell survival and underlying resistance to therapy through the down-modulation of apoptosis. Taken as a whole, this study expands our knowledge of the BAG3 interactome, provides a valuable resource for understanding how BAG3 affects different cellular functions, and demonstrates that biologically relevant data can be harvested using this kind of integrated approach. PMID:23824909

Quantitative membrane proteomics reveals a role for tetraspanin enriched microdomains during entry of human cytomegalovirus.

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Kasinath Viswanathan

Full Text Available Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV depends on and modulates multiple host cell membrane proteins during each stage of the viral life cycle. To gain a global view of the impact of HCMV-infection on membrane proteins, we analyzed HCMV-induced changes in the abundance of membrane proteins in fibroblasts using stable isotope labeling with amino acids (SILAC, membrane fractionation and protein identification by two-dimensional liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry. This systematic approach revealed that CD81, CD44, CD98, caveolin-1 and catenin delta-1 were down-regulated during infection whereas GRP-78 was up-regulated. Since CD81 downregulation was also observed during infection with UV-inactivated virus we hypothesized that this tetraspanin is part of the viral entry process. Interestingly, additional members of the tetraspanin family, CD9 and CD151, were also downregulated during HCMV-entry. Since tetraspanin-enriched microdomains (TEM cluster host cell membrane proteins including known CMV receptors such as integrins, we studied whether TEMs are required for viral entry. When TEMs were disrupted with the cholesterol chelator methyl-β-cylcodextrin, viral entry was inhibited and this inhibition correlated with reduced surface levels of CD81, CD9 and CD151, whereas integrin levels remained unchanged. Furthermore, simultaneous siRNA-mediated knockdown of multiple tetraspanins inhibited viral entry whereas individual knockdown had little effect suggesting essential, but redundant roles for individual tetraspanins during entry. Taken together, our data suggest that TEM act as platforms for receptors utilized by HCMV for entry into cells.

Macrophages as IL-25/IL-33-responsive cells play an important role in the induction of type 2 immunity.

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Zhonghan Yang

Full Text Available Type 2 immunity is essential for host protection against nematode infection but is detrimental in allergic inflammation or asthma. There is a major research focus on the effector molecules and specific cell types involved in the initiation of type 2 immunity. Recent work has implicated an important role of epithelial-derived cytokines, IL-25 and IL-33, acting on innate immune cells that are believed to be the initial sources of type 2 cytokines IL-4/IL-5/IL-13. The identities of the cell types that mediate the effects of IL-25/IL-33, however, remain to be fully elucidated. In the present study, we demonstrate that macrophages as IL-25/IL-33-responsive cells play an important role in inducing type 2 immunity using both in vitro and in vivo approaches. Macrophages produced type 2 cytokines IL-5 and IL-13 in response to the stimulation of IL-25/IL-33 in vitro, or were the IL-13-producing cells in mice administrated with exogenous IL-33 or infected with Heligmosomoides bakeri. In addition, IL-33 induced alternative activation of macrophages primarily through autocrine IL-13 activating the IL-4Rα-STAT6 pathway. Moreover, depletion of macrophages attenuated the IL-25/IL-33-induced type 2 immunity in mice, while adoptive transfer of IL-33-activated macrophages into mice with a chronic Heligmosomoides bakeri infection induced worm expulsion accompanied by a potent type 2 protective immune response. Thus, macrophages represent a unique population of the innate immune cells pivotal to type 2 immunity and a potential therapeutic target in controlling type 2 immunity-mediated inflammatory pathologies.

Comparison of global sensitivity analysis techniques and importance measures in PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borgonovo, E.; Apostolakis, G.E.; Tarantola, S.; Saltelli, A.

2003-01-01

This paper discusses application and results of global sensitivity analysis techniques to probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) models, and their comparison to importance measures. This comparison allows one to understand whether PSA elements that are important to the risk, as revealed by importance measures, are also important contributors to the model uncertainty, as revealed by global sensitivity analysis. We show that, due to epistemic dependence, uncertainty and global sensitivity analysis of PSA models must be performed at the parameter level. A difficulty arises, since standard codes produce the calculations at the basic event level. We discuss both the indirect comparison through importance measures computed for basic events, and the direct comparison performed using the differential importance measure and the Fussell-Vesely importance at the parameter level. Results are discussed for the large LLOCA sequence of the advanced test reactor PSA

The Role and Importance of the Manager in the Management Process

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Oana Oprișan

2016-01-01

Full Text Available A leader is the person who goes first, which has the authority to lead, who is number one in aparticular area by excellence or who has the responsibility to do everything possible to get taskssafely to completion in a company. The manager's role is essential in human activity particularly inthe contemporary economic environment, especially when the organization acts in the internationaleconomic environment, particularly running through competitive economic activity in the globalmarket.

Quantitative flux analysis reveals folate-dependent NADPH production

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Fan, Jing; Ye, Jiangbin; Kamphorst, Jurre J.; Shlomi, Tomer; Thompson, Craig B.; Rabinowitz, Joshua D.

2014-06-01

ATP is the dominant energy source in animals for mechanical and electrical work (for example, muscle contraction or neuronal firing). For chemical work, there is an equally important role for NADPH, which powers redox defence and reductive biosynthesis. The most direct route to produce NADPH from glucose is the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway, with malic enzyme sometimes also important. Although the relative contribution of glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation to ATP production has been extensively analysed, similar analysis of NADPH metabolism has been lacking. Here we demonstrate the ability to directly track, by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, the passage of deuterium from labelled substrates into NADPH, and combine this approach with carbon labelling and mathematical modelling to measure NADPH fluxes. In proliferating cells, the largest contributor to cytosolic NADPH is the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway. Surprisingly, a nearly comparable contribution comes from serine-driven one-carbon metabolism, in which oxidation of methylene tetrahydrofolate to 10-formyl-tetrahydrofolate is coupled to reduction of NADP+ to NADPH. Moreover, tracing of mitochondrial one-carbon metabolism revealed complete oxidation of 10-formyl-tetrahydrofolate to make NADPH. As folate metabolism has not previously been considered an NADPH producer, confirmation of its functional significance was undertaken through knockdown of methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (MTHFD) genes. Depletion of either the cytosolic or mitochondrial MTHFD isozyme resulted in decreased cellular NADPH/NADP+ and reduced/oxidized glutathione ratios (GSH/GSSG) and increased cell sensitivity to oxidative stress. Thus, although the importance of folate metabolism for proliferating cells has been long recognized and attributed to its function of producing one-carbon units for nucleic acid synthesis, another crucial function of this pathway is generating reducing power.

"Whether I like it or not, it's important": Implicit importance of means predicts self-regulatory persistence and success.

Science.gov (United States)

Critcher, Clayton R; Ferguson, Melissa J

2016-06-01

To effectively self-regulate, people must persevere on tasks that they deem important, regardless of whether those tasks are enjoyable. Building on past work that has noted the fundamental role of implicit cognition in guiding effective self-regulation, the present paper tests whether an implicit association between goal means and importance predicts self-regulatory persistence and success. Implicit importance predicted markers of effective self-regulation-better grades, more studying and exercise, and stronger standardized testing performance-over and above, and often better than, explicit beliefs about the importance of that self-regulation, as well as implicit evaluations of those means. In particular, those for whom tasks were fairly taxing to complete (i.e., those for whom this self-regulation required effortful self-control) were those who most benefitted from the implicit association between means and importance. Moreover, when participants were reminded of recent self-regulatory failure that they believed could be overcome through hard work, implicit importance toward the means increased as if to prepare them to achieve self-regulatory persistence. A final study sought to reconcile the present findings with previous work showing the key role that implicit evaluations play in effective self-regulation. We reasoned that means are important precisely because they are associated with valued end-states. Consistent with this account, implicit evaluations of end-states predicted the implicit importance of means, which in turn predicted effective self-regulation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

Grainyhead-like 2 (GRHL2) distribution reveals novel pathophysiological differences between human idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and mouse models of pulmonary fibrosis

Science.gov (United States)

Mahavadi, Poornima; Sasikumar, Satish; Cushing, Leah; Hyland, Tessa; Rosser, Ann E.; Riccardi, Daniela; Lu, Jining; Kalin, Tanya V.; Kalinichenko, Vladimir V.; Guenther, Andreas; Ramirez, Maria I.; Pardo, Annie; Selman, Moisés; Warburton, David

2013-01-01

Chronic injury of alveolar lung epithelium leads to epithelial disintegrity in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We had reported earlier that Grhl2, a transcriptional factor, maintains alveolar epithelial cell integrity by directly regulating components of adherens and tight junctions and thus hypothesized an important role of GRHL2 in pathogenesis of IPF. Comparison of GRHL2 distribution at different stages of human lung development showed its abundance in developing lung epithelium and in adult lung epithelium. However, GRHL2 is detected in normal human lung mesenchyme only at early fetal stage (week 9). Similar mesenchymal reexpression of GRHL2 was also observed in IPF. Immunofluorescence analysis in serial sections from three IPF patients revealed at least two subsets of alveolar epithelial cells (AEC), based on differential GRHL2 expression and the converse fluorescence intensities for epithelial vs. mesenchymal markers. Grhl2 was not detected in mesenchyme in intraperitoneal bleomycin-induced injury as well as in spontaneously occurring fibrosis in double-mutant HPS1 and HPS2 mice, whereas in contrast in a radiation-induced fibrosis model, with forced Forkhead box M1 (Foxm1) expression, an overlap of Grhl2 with a mesenchymal marker was observed in fibrotic regions. Grhl2's role in alveolar epithelial cell plasticity was confirmed by altered Grhl2 gene expression analysis in IPF and further validated by in vitro manipulation of its expression in alveolar epithelial cell lines. Our findings reveal important pathophysiological differences between human IPF and specific mouse models of fibrosis and support a crucial role of GRHL2 in epithelial activation in lung fibrosis and perhaps also in epithelial plasticity. PMID:24375798

A study on important factors influencing customers’ impulsive buying behavior: A case study of Shahrvand food chain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hamed Asgari

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Customer purchasing behavior plays an essential role on marketing planning in today’s competitive environment. Immediate purchasing behavior is one of the most important components of purchasing behavior. In this paper, we use factor analysis to extract important factors influencing immediate purchasing behavior.The proposed study of this paper designs a questionnaire including 35 questions and through basic investigation, the questions are reduced to 21 ones. The questionnaire is distributed among 200 regular customers and 149 questionnaires have been collected. Cronbach alpha has been calculated as 0.804, which is well above the minimum desirable level of 0.7. The survey is conducted among regular customers who normally make purchases from Shahrvand food chains in city of Tehran, Iran. The results of factor analysis reveals four major factors including intelligence pricing strategy, involvement, promotion margin and consumer behavior. The proposed study of this paper considers “intelligence pricing strategy” for the first time as an important factor in consumer’s purchasing behavior.

Forward Genetics Approach Reveals Host Genotype-Dependent Importance of Accessory Chromosomes in the Fungal Wheat Pathogen Zymoseptoria tritici

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Michael Habig

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The fungal wheat pathogen Zymoseptoria tritici possesses a large complement of accessory chromosomes showing presence/absence polymorphism among isolates. These chromosomes encode hundreds of genes; however, their functional role and why the chromosomes have been maintained over long evolutionary times are so far not known. In this study, we addressed the functional relevance of eight accessory chromosomes in reference isolate IPO323. We induced chromosome losses by inhibiting the β-tubulin assembly during mitosis using carbendazim and generated several independent isogenic strains, each lacking one of the accessory chromosomes. We confirmed chromosome losses by electrophoretic karyotyping and whole-genome sequencing. To assess the importance of the individual chromosomes during host infection, we performed in planta assays comparing disease development results in wild-type and chromosome mutant strains. Loss of the accessory chromosomes 14, 16, 18, 19, and 21 resulted in increased virulence on wheat cultivar Runal but not on cultivars Obelisk, Titlis, and Riband. Moreover, some accessory chromosomes affected the switch from biotrophy to necrotrophy as strains lacking accessory chromosomes 14, 18, 19, and 21 showed a significantly earlier onset of necrosis than the wild type on the Runal cultivar. In general, we observed that the timing of the lifestyle switch affects the fitness of Z. tritici. Taking the results together, this study was the first to use a forward-genetics approach to demonstrate a cultivar-dependent functional relevance of the accessory chromosomes of Z. tritici during host infection.

Does Morphology Play an Important Role in L2 Chinese Vocabulary Acquisition?

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Haomin

2016-01-01

The present study examined the role of morphological awareness in second language (L2) Chinese vocabulary acquisition through an investigation of linguistic universality and specificity underlying morphological awareness. Morphological awareness in this study was conceptualized as a universal and sharable cognitive resource as well as a…

The importance and possibilities of role playing on children surgery classes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Goremykin I.V.

2014-03-01

Full Text Available This article analyzes the first experience in the implementation into the pedagogical process of one of the methods of active training — role playing. The need for intensification of medical education process is linked primarily to the rapid increase in the volume required to provide students with information and the lack of training time. The analysis showed that the game significantly increases the level of students' knowledge, but require substantial modernization of the educational process.

Not all players are equally motivated: The role of narcissism.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Ross; Woodman, Tim; Lofthouse, Sian; Williams, Lucy

2015-01-01

Research on motivational climates consistently demonstrates that mastery-focused climates are associated with positive outcomes and ego-involving performance climates lead to maladaptive outcomes. However, the role of personality within such a framework has been largely ignored. To redress this imbalance, we examined the potential role of narcissism in moderating the effects of different motivational climates on leader-inspired extra effort in training. Training is where rugby players spend most of their rugby time and we were keen to examine the combination of personality and climate that might maximise the yield of such training environments. Female rugby players (n = 126) from 15 clubs completed measures of narcissism, motivational climate and effort. Moderated regression analyses revealed that narcissism moderated the relationship between motivational climate and effort. Increases in either performance or mastery climates were associated with increases in effort for narcissists; no such relationship was revealed for low narcissists. The findings demonstrate the importance of considering personality within rugby training environments, as it is clear that not every player will respond the same way to specific training conditions. Coaches who understand this and are able to tailor individualised motivational climates will likely gain the greatest benefits from their different players.

How important are sex differences in cannabinoid action?

Science.gov (United States)

Fattore, Liana; Fratta, Walter

2010-06-01

In humans as in animals, males and females are dissimilar in their genetic and hormonally driven behaviour; they process information differently, perceive experience and emotions in different ways, display diverse attitudes, language and social skills, and show sex-related differences in the brain anatomy and organization. Drug addiction is a widespread relapsing illness that affects both men and women. Sex-dependent differences have been frequently observed in the biological and behavioural effects of substances of abuse, including cannabis. Beside sex differences observed in the cannabinoid-induced effects related to cannabis abuse and dependence, cannabinoids have been shown to exert sex-dependent effects also in other physiological and behavioural aspects, such as food intake and energy balance (more evident in males), or anxiety and depression (more evident in females). Research has just begun to identify factors which could provide a neurobiological basis for gender-based differences in cannabinoid effects, among which, gonadal hormones seem to play a crucial role. Yet, cannabinoid pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic may also be important, as sex differences in cannabinoid effects might be due, at least in part, to differences in muscle mass and fat tissue distribution between males and females. Here, we will review both clinical and laboratory-based research evidence revealing important sex-related differences in cannabinoid effects, and put forward some suggestions for future studies to fill the gap in our knowledge of gender-specific bias in cannabinoid pharmacology.

Gender role conflict and emotional approach coping in men with cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Hoyt, Michael A

2009-10-01

The utility of emotional approach coping (EAC), or expressing and processing emotions, has been equivocal for men. Gender role conflict, or the negative cognitive, emotional and behavioural consequences associated with male gender role socialisation, likely shape coping responses and may negatively affect the efficacy of men's emotion-directed coping efforts and adjustment to cancer. Perceptions of receptiveness of one's interpersonal environment may be particularly important to the effectiveness of EAC. This study examined the relationships among EAC, gender role conflict, and distress in a group of 183 men with cancer. Structural equation modelling revealed that higher gender role conflict was associated with lower emotional expression, which in turn was associated with greater distress. Gender role conflict was not related to emotional processing. Higher gender role conflict also was associated directly with more distress. In subsequent analyses, social constraints and age were examined as possible moderators of EAC. Emotional expression was related to more psychological distress for those in highly constrained environments; and emotional processing was associated with more distress with younger age. Emotional expression may be particularly affected by social influences related to gender and social receptivity. More research is needed to better distinguish constructive and unconstructive emotional processing.

Stoma-associated problems: the important role of the specialist nurse.

OpenAIRE

McGrath, A

2017-01-01

Following on from a study carried out with his colleagues in 2010, Anthony McGrath, Head of Department Adult Nursing and Midwifery, London South Bank University, considers the ongoing problems faced by patients with stomas and the importance of support from stoma care nurses.

Importance and role of grain size in free surface cracking prediction of heavy forgings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Zhenhua [State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004 (China); Key Laboratory of Advanced Forging & Stamping Technology and Science, Yanshan University, Ministry of Education of China, Qinhuangdao 066004 (China); Sun, Shuhua; Wang, Bo [State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004 (China); Shi, Zhongping [Key Laboratory of Advanced Forging & Stamping Technology and Science, Yanshan University, Ministry of Education of China, Qinhuangdao 066004 (China); Fu, Wantang, E-mail: wtfu@ysu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004 (China)

2015-02-11

The importance and role of grain size in predicting surface cracking of heavy forgings were investigated. 18Mn18Cr0.5N steel specimens with four different grain sizes were tensioned between 900 and 1100 °C at a strain rate of 0.1 s{sup −1}. The nucleation sites and crack morphology were analyzed through electron backscatter diffraction analysis, and the fracture morphology was examined using scanning electron microscopy. The nucleation sites were independent of the grain size, and cracks primarily formed at grain boundaries and triple junctions between grains with high Taylor factors. Grains with lower Taylor factors inhibited crack propagation. Strain was found to mainly concentrate near the grain boundaries; thus, a material with a larger grain size cracks more easily because there are fewer grain boundaries. Fine grains can be easily rotated to a lower Taylor factor to further inhibit cracking. The fracture morphology transformed from a brittle to ductile type with a lowering of grain size. At lower temperature, small dimples on the fracture surfaces of specimens with smaller grain sizes were left by single parent grains and the dimple edge was the grain edge. At higher temperature, dimples formed through void coalescence and the dimple edge was the tearing edge. Finally, the relationship between the reduction in area, grain size, and deformation temperature was obtained.

the economic importance of microorganism in food processing

African Journals Online (AJOL)

BSN

This paper attempts to highlight the Economic Importance of microorganisms in food processing and manufacturing; it goes further to differentiate between the desirable ... Desirable importance are those cost saving and revenue generating activities ... Microorganism (yeast) play very useful role in the Bakery industries.

Learning-Induced Gene Expression in the Hippocampus Reveals a Role of Neuron -Astrocyte Metabolic Coupling in Long Term Memory

KAUST Repository

Tadi, Monika; Allaman, Igor; Lengacher, Sylvain; Grenningloh, Gabriele; Magistretti, Pierre J.

2015-01-01

We examined the expression of genes related to brain energy metabolism and particularly those encoding glia (astrocyte)-specific functions in the dorsal hippocampus subsequent to learning. Context-dependent avoidance behavior was tested in mice using the step-through Inhibitory Avoidance (IA) paradigm. Animals were sacrificed 3, 9, 24, or 72 hours after training or 3 hours after retention testing. The quantitative determination of mRNA levels revealed learning-induced changes in the expression of genes thought to be involved in astrocyte-neuron metabolic coupling in a time dependent manner. Twenty four hours following IA training, an enhanced gene expression was seen, particularly for genes encoding monocarboxylate transporters 1 and 4 (MCT1, MCT4), alpha2 subunit of the Na/K-ATPase and glucose transporter type 1. To assess the functional role for one of these genes in learning, we studied MCT1 deficient mice and found that they exhibit impaired memory in the inhibitory avoidance task. Together, these observations indicate that neuron-glia metabolic coupling undergoes metabolic adaptations following learning as indicated by the change in expression of key metabolic genes.

Learning-Induced Gene Expression in the Hippocampus Reveals a Role of Neuron -Astrocyte Metabolic Coupling in Long Term Memory

KAUST Repository

Tadi, Monika

2015-10-29

We examined the expression of genes related to brain energy metabolism and particularly those encoding glia (astrocyte)-specific functions in the dorsal hippocampus subsequent to learning. Context-dependent avoidance behavior was tested in mice using the step-through Inhibitory Avoidance (IA) paradigm. Animals were sacrificed 3, 9, 24, or 72 hours after training or 3 hours after retention testing. The quantitative determination of mRNA levels revealed learning-induced changes in the expression of genes thought to be involved in astrocyte-neuron metabolic coupling in a time dependent manner. Twenty four hours following IA training, an enhanced gene expression was seen, particularly for genes encoding monocarboxylate transporters 1 and 4 (MCT1, MCT4), alpha2 subunit of the Na/K-ATPase and glucose transporter type 1. To assess the functional role for one of these genes in learning, we studied MCT1 deficient mice and found that they exhibit impaired memory in the inhibitory avoidance task. Together, these observations indicate that neuron-glia metabolic coupling undergoes metabolic adaptations following learning as indicated by the change in expression of key metabolic genes.

Reducing conflicts between climate policy and energy policy in the US: The important role of the states

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peterson, Thomas D.; Rose, Adam Z.

2006-01-01

The absence of US national action on global climate change policy has prompted initiatives by the US Congress, cities, states, and regions toward what is likely to become a long-term, collaborative effort to harmonize national energy and climate policies. This upward evolution in the face of a reluctant administration is historically consistent with the development of national legislation on other environmental and social issues in the US. At the heart of this movement is the need to resolve conflicts between high-intensity use of low-cost fossil energy supplies, and the dominating impact of carbon dioxide emissions on global climate change. US states are among the largest carbon dioxide emitters in the world and play a critical role in supplying and transforming energy, as well as consuming it, for economic advantage. State governments are also likely to have to shoulder some of the cost of potentially extensive climate damages and bear the brunt of the cost of implementing future federal mandates. As a result, many are taking proactive stances on the development of climate mitigation policy to prepare for, accelerate, and/or guide national policy. As US states show leadership on addressing greenhouse gas emissions, they also play an important role in forging policies and measures that reduce economic conflict between energy and climate goals. A number have launched or completed greenhouse gas mitigation plans and other major policies in the past few years that address these conflicts through: (1) finding ways to reduce mitigation costs, including the use of incentive-based policy instruments; (2) promoting an open and democratic policy process that includes major stakeholders; (3) promoting equity across socioeconomic groups, regions, and generations; and (4) promoting interregional cooperation. The results are promising and suggest that the state arena for climate and energy policy is evolving quickly and constructively toward alternatives that reduce conflict

Factors that facilitate registered nurses in their first-line nurse manager role.

Science.gov (United States)

Cziraki, Karen; McKey, Colleen; Peachey, Gladys; Baxter, Pamela; Flaherty, Brenda

2014-11-01

To determine the factors that attract and retain Registered Nurses in the first-line nurse manager role. The first-line nurse manger role is pivotal in health-care organisations. National demographics suggest that Canada will face a first-line nurse manager shortage because of retirement in the next decade. Determination of factors that attract and retain Registered Nurses will assist organisations and policy makers to employ strategies to address this shortage. The study used an exploratory, descriptive qualitative approach, consisting of semi-structured individual interviews with 11 Registered Nurses in first-line nurse manager roles. The findings revealed a discrepancy between the factors that attract and retain Registered Nurses in the first-line nurse manager role, underscored the importance of the mentor role and confirmed the challenges encountered by first-line nurse managers practicing in the current health-care environment. The first-line nurse manager role has been under studied. Further research is warranted to understand which strategies are most effective in supporting first-line nurse managers. Strategies to support nurses in the first-line nurse manager role are discussed for the individual, programme, organisation and health-care system/policy levels. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Structure-Activity Relationship and Molecular Mechanics Reveal the Importance of Ring Entropy in the Biosynthesis and Activity of a Natural Product.

Science.gov (United States)

Tran, Hai L; Lexa, Katrina W; Julien, Olivier; Young, Travis S; Walsh, Christopher T; Jacobson, Matthew P; Wells, James A

2017-02-22

Macrocycles are appealing drug candidates due to their high affinity, specificity, and favorable pharmacological properties. In this study, we explored the effects of chemical modifications to a natural product macrocycle upon its activity, 3D geometry, and conformational entropy. We chose thiocillin as a model system, a thiopeptide in the ribosomally encoded family of natural products that exhibits potent antimicrobial effects against Gram-positive bacteria. Since thiocillin is derived from a genetically encoded peptide scaffold, site-directed mutagenesis allows for rapid generation of analogues. To understand thiocillin's structure-activity relationship, we generated a site-saturation mutagenesis library covering each position along thiocillin's macrocyclic ring. We report the identification of eight unique compounds more potent than wild-type thiocillin, the best having an 8-fold improvement in potency. Computational modeling of thiocillin's macrocyclic structure revealed a striking requirement for a low-entropy macrocycle for activity. The populated ensembles of the active mutants showed a rigid structure with few adoptable conformations while inactive mutants showed a more flexible macrocycle which is unfavorable for binding. This finding highlights the importance of macrocyclization in combination with rigidifying post-translational modifications to achieve high-potency binding.

Strategic Framework for Implementing the Potential of Import Substitution on the Example of Railway Engineering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuliya Georgievna Lavrikova

2015-07-01

Full Text Available At present, Russia’s economy is dependent on import in some of its strategically important sectors. The recent economic and political developments such as the aggravation of geopolitical situation and termination of economic partnership between Russia and a number of countries and entities, and also the Government’s policy that aims to reduce import dependence determine the need to expand the interaction between domestic producers and the need to use domestic resources, materials and equipment in economic activities. Import substitution in Russia can become a driving force of its industrial growth. The paper presents different interpretations of the term “import substitution” contained in several publications of recent years; it also reveals a common approach of the authors to this problem. The article summarizes existing proposals on priority areas of import substitution such as the shift towards import-substituting production and technology in strategically important industries. Mechanical engineering is seen as a most important industry in this respect. Russia’s machine-building complex is a highly diversified industry, therefore the policy of import substitution implies that it will be implemented efficiently in various sectors of mechanical engineering on the basis of the differentiated approach, with regard to industry and sectoral specifics. The article considers a strategic framework for the implementation of the import substitution potential on the example of railway engineering. The authors reveal trends in the development of the internal market of railway engineering products; they determine the degree of import dependence for individual sectors of the industry on the basis of statistical data. The article substantiates priorities and possibilities of import substitution in different sectors, and in high-tech sectors of railway engineering. The authors point out a goal of import substitution in these sectors, the goal is to

The role of involvement in the choice of foods with nutrition and health claims

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Aschemann-Witzel, Jessica

Claims are gaining in importance as a tool of communication in the growing sector of health-related foods. In order to target the right consumers, it is crucial to determine their key characteristics. A realistically designed choice experiment aims at analysing the role of various determinants...... of choice for foods with claims. Logistic regression reveals that while product-involvement plays only a minor role, health-related food-involvement appears to be a better explanatory factor than e.g. sociodemographic variables. It is concluded that items measuring the latter type of involvement might...... be helpful for practical market research in the area of health-related foods....

Volumetric flow imaging reveals the importance of vortex ring formation in squid swimming tail-first and arms-first.

Science.gov (United States)

Bartol, Ian K; Krueger, Paul S; Jastrebsky, Rachel A; Williams, Sheila; Thompson, Joseph T

2016-02-01

Squids use a pulsed jet and fin movements to swim both arms-first (forward) and tail-first (backward). Given the complexity of the squid multi-propulsor system, 3D velocimetry techniques are required for the comprehensive study of wake dynamics. Defocusing digital particle tracking velocimetry, a volumetric velocimetry technique, and high-speed videography were used to study arms-first and tail-first swimming of brief squid Lolliguncula brevis over a broad range of speeds [0-10 dorsal mantle lengths (DML) s(-1)] in a swim tunnel. Although there was considerable complexity in the wakes of these multi-propulsor swimmers, 3D vortex rings and their derivatives were prominent reoccurring features during both tail-first and arms-first swimming, with the greatest jet and fin flow complexity occurring at intermediate speeds (1.5-3.0 DML s(-1)). The jet generally produced the majority of thrust during rectilinear swimming, increasing in relative importance with speed, and the fins provided no thrust at speeds >4.5 DML s(-1). For both swimming orientations, the fins sometimes acted as stabilizers, producing negative thrust (drag), and consistently provided lift at low/intermediate speeds (swimming orientation, and η for swimming sequences with clear isolated jet vortex rings was significantly greater (η=78.6±7.6%, mean±s.d.) than that for swimming sequences with clear elongated regions of concentrated jet vorticity (η=67.9±19.2%). This study reveals the complexity of 3D vortex wake flows produced by nekton with hydrodynamically distinct propulsors. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Adjustment and sex-role orientation in adolescence.

Science.gov (United States)

Lamke, L K

1982-06-01

The purpose of the present study was to reexamine the relationship between sex-role orientation and self-esteem in adolescence. One hundred and six senior high school students completed the Rosenberg self-esteem measure (Rosenberg, 1965) and two measures of sex-role orientation, the Bem Sex Role Inventory, Short Form (BSRI; Bem, 1981), and the Personal Attributes Questionnaire Short Form (PAQ; Spence et al., 1975). The relationship between sex-role orientation and self-esteem was found to vary depending on the sex-role measure employed. Results of the BSRI revealed that androgynous individuals had higher levels of self-esteem than masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated adolescents. PAQ results indicated that androgynous individuals had higher levels of self-esteem than feminine and undifferentiated individuals. When the independent contributions of masculinity and femininity were assessed, both BSRI and PAQ masculinity and femininity significantly predicted self-esteem. Analyses also revealed that the effects of sex-role orientation on self-esteem varied by sex across both the BSRI and PAQ. Implications of the present findings for previous work on sex-role development in adolescence are discussed.

Role Stress and Work Engagement as Antecedents of Job Satisfaction: Results From Portugal

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Moura

2014-05-01

Full Text Available With more organizations looking for employees who take initiative and respond creatively to the challenges of the job, engagement becomes important at both individual and organizational levels. Engaged employees are generally more satisfied with their work, committed and effective at work. According to the JDR model (Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004, engagement may be produced by two types of working conditions: job demands (i.e., role stress and job resources (i.e., self-efficacy. This study examines the role of role stress (role ambiguity and role conflict and work engagement as antecedents of job satisfaction. A cross sectional study using online questionnaires was conducted. The sample consisted of 312 Portuguese workers. Hierarchical multiple regressions analyses have revealed that job satisfaction was significantly predicted by role conflict and work engagement. Results support JDR model by showing that positive outcomes, such as job satisfaction, may be predicted by motivational process and job demands. On a practical level, JDR model provides a framework for understanding motivating workplaces and engaged and satisfied employees.

Transcriptomic analysis of Portunus trituberculatus reveals a critical role for WNT4 and WNT signalling in limb regeneration.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Lei; Fu, Yuanyuan; Zhu, Fang; Mu, Changkao; Li, Ronghua; Song, Weiwei; Shi, Ce; Ye, Yangfang; Wang, Chunlin

2018-06-05

The swimming crab (Portunus trituberculatus) is among the most economically important seawater crustacean species in Asia. Despite its commercial importance and being well-studied status, genomic and transcriptomic data are scarce for this crab species. In the present study, limb bud tissue was collected at different developmental stages post amputation for transcriptomic analysis. Illumina RNA-sequencing was applied to characterise the limb regeneration transcriptome and identify the most characteristic genes. A total of 289,018 transcripts were obtained by clustering and assembly of clean reads, producing 150,869 unigenes with an average length of 956 bp. Subsequent analysis revealed WNT signalling as the key pathway involved in limb regeneration, with WNT4 a key mediator. Overall, limb regeneration appears to be regulated by multiple signalling pathways, with numerous cell differentiation, muscle growth, moult, metabolism, and immune-related genes upregulated, including WNT4, LAMA, FIP2, FSTL5, TNC, HUS1, SWI5, NCGL, SLC22, PLA2, Tdc2, SMOX, GDH, and SMPD4. This is the first experimental study done on regenerating claws of P. trituberculatus. These findings expand existing sequence resources for crab species, and will likely accelerate research into regeneration and development in crustaceans, particularly functional studies on genes involved in limb regeneration. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

UV-induced nuclear import of XPA is mediated by importin-α4 in an ATR-dependent manner.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhengke Li

Full Text Available Xeroderma pigmentosum Group A (XPA is a crucial factor in mammalian nucleotide excision repair (NER and nuclear import of XPA from the cytoplasm for NER is regulated in cellular DNA damage responses in S-phase. In this study, experiments were carried out to determine the transport mechanisms that are responsible for the UV (ultraviolet-induced nuclear import of XPA. We found that, in addition to the nuclear localization signal (NLS of XPA, importin-α4 or/and importin-α7 are required for the XPA nuclear import. Further investigation indicated that, importin-α4 and importin-α7 directly interacted with XPA in cells. Interestingly, the binding of importin-α4 to XPA was dependent on UV-irradiation, while the binding of importin-α7 was not, suggesting a role for importin-α7 in nuclear translocation of XPA in the absence of DNA damage, perhaps with specificity to certain non-S-phases of the cell-cycle. Consistent with the previous report of a dependence of UV-induced XPA nuclear import on ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related protein (ATR in S-phase, knockdown of ATR reduced the amount of XPA interacting with importin-α4. In contrast, the GTPase XPA binding protein 1 (XAB1, previously proposed to be required for XPA nuclear import, showed no effect on the nuclear import of XPA in our siRNA knockdown analysis. In conclusion, our results suggest that upon DNA damage transport adaptor importin-α4 imports XPA into the nucleus in an ATR-dependent manner, while XAB1 has no role in this process. In addition, these findings reveal a potential new therapeutic target for the sensitization of cancer cells to chemotherapy.

A role of TRPA1 in mechanical hyperalgesia is revealed by pharmacological inhibition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huynh Truc

2007-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Mechanical hyperalgesia is a clinically-relevant form of pain sensitization that develops through largely unknown mechanisms. TRPA1, a Transient Receptor Potential ion channel, is a sensor of pungent chemicals that may play a role in acute noxious mechanosensation and cold thermosensation. We have developed a specific small molecule TRPA1 inhibitor (AP18 that can reduce cinnameldehyde-induced nociception in vivo. Interestingly, AP18 is capable of reversing CFA-induced mechanical hyperalgesia in mice. Although TRPA1-deficient mice develop normal CFA-induced hyperalgeisa, AP18 is ineffective in the knockout mice, consistent with an on-target mechanism. Therefore, TRPA1 plays a role in sensitization of nociception, and that compensation in TRPA1-deficient mice masks this requirement.

Genome-wide identification of microRNA targets in human ES cells reveals a role for miR-302 in modulating BMP response

Science.gov (United States)

Lipchina, Inna; Elkabetz, Yechiel; Hafner, Markus; Sheridan, Robert; Mihailovic, Aleksandra; Tuschl, Thomas; Sander, Chris; Studer, Lorenz; Betel, Doron

2011-01-01

MicroRNAs are important regulators in many cellular processes, including stem cell self-renewal. Recent studies demonstrated their function as pluripotency factors with the capacity for somatic cell reprogramming. However, their role in human embryonic stem (ES) cells (hESCs) remains poorly understood, partially due to the lack of genome-wide strategies to identify their targets. Here, we performed comprehensive microRNA profiling in hESCs and in purified neural and mesenchymal derivatives. Using a combination of AGO cross-linking and microRNA perturbation experiments, together with computational prediction, we identified the targets of the miR-302/367 cluster, the most abundant microRNAs in hESCs. Functional studies identified novel roles of miR-302/367 in maintaining pluripotency and regulating hESC differentiation. We show that in addition to its role in TGF-β signaling, miR-302/367 promotes bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling by targeting BMP inhibitors TOB2, DAZAP2, and SLAIN1. This study broadens our understanding of microRNA function in hESCs and is a valuable resource for future studies in this area. PMID:22012620

The Importance of Communication in Quality Management

OpenAIRE

Anca Cristina Stanciu; Elena Condrea; Cristina Zamfir

2016-01-01

From a managerial perspective, communication is regarded as a process of understandingamong people by means of information exchange. According to the principle “quality starts withthe manager”, his role becomes crucial, one of the main traits of the manager’s behaviour beingthe ability to communicate effectively.Important in any aspect of quality management,communication plays an essential role in developing business projects. As a component of publicrelations, although less spectacular than ...

Mutational analysis of TRAF6 reveals a conserved functional role of the RING dimerization interface and a potentially necessary but insufficient role of RING-dependent TRAF6 polyubiquitination towards NF-κB activation.

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Megas, Charilaos; Hatzivassiliou, Eudoxia G; Yin, Qian; Marinopoulou, Elli; Hadweh, Paul; Vignali, Dario A A; Mosialos, George

2011-05-01

TRAF6 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that plays a pivotal role in the activation of NF-κB by innate and adaptive immunity stimuli. TRAF6 consists of a highly conserved carboxyl terminal TRAF-C domain which is preceded by a coiled coil domain and an amino terminal region that contains a RING domain and a series of putative zinc-finger motifs. The TRAF-C domain contributes to TRAF6 oligomerization and mediates the interaction of TRAF6 with upstream signaling molecules whereas the RING domain comprises the core of the ubiquitin ligase catalytic domain. In order to identify structural elements that are important for TRAF6-induced NF-κB activation, mutational analysis of the TRAF-C and RING domains was performed. Alterations of highly conserved residues of the TRAF-C domain of TRAF6 did not affect significantly the ability of the protein to activate NF-κB. On the other hand a number of functionally important residues (L77, Q82, R88, F118, N121 and E126) for the activation of NF-κB were identified within the RING domain of TRAF6. Interestingly, several homologues of these residues in TRAF2 were shown to have a conserved functional role in TRAF2-induced NF-κB activation and lie at the dimerization interface of the RING domain. Finally, whereas alteration of Q82, R88 and F118 compromised both the K63-linked polyubiquitination of TRAF6 and its ability to activate NF-κB, alteration of L77, N121 and E126 diminished the NF-κB activating function of TRAF6 without affecting TRAF6 K63-linked polyubiquitination. Our results support a conserved functional role of the TRAF RING domain dimerization interface and a potentially necessary but insufficient role for RING-dependent TRAF6 K63-linked polyubiquitination towards NF-κB activation in cells. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pam heterozygous mice reveal essential role for Cu in amygdalar behavioral and synaptic function.

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Gaier, Eric D; Eipper, Betty A; Mains, Richard E

2014-05-01

Copper (Cu) is an essential element with many biological roles, but its roles in the mammalian nervous system are poorly understood. Mice deficient in the cuproenzyme peptidylglycine α-amidating monooxygenase (Pam(+/-) mice) were initially generated to study neuropeptide amidation. Pam(+/-) mice exhibit profound deficits in a few behavioral tasks, including enhancements in innate fear along with deficits in acquired fear. Interestingly, several Pam(+/-) phenotypes were recapitulated in Cu-restricted wild-type mice and rescued in Cu-supplemented Pam(+/-) mice. These behaviors correspond to enhanced excitability and deficient synaptic plasticity in the amygdala of Pam(+/-) mice, which are also rescued by Cu supplementation. Cu and ATP7A are present at synapses, in key positions to respond to and influence synaptic activity. Further study demonstrated that extracellular Cu is necessary for wild-type synaptic plasticity and sufficient to induce long-term potentiation. These experiments support roles for PAM in Cu homeostasis and for synaptic Cu in amygdalar function. © 2014 New York Academy of Sciences.

Global Proteomic Analysis Reveals an Exclusive Role of Thylakoid Membranes in Bioenergetics of a Model Cyanobacterium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liberton, Michelle; Saha, Rajib; Jacobs, Jon M.; Nguyen, Amelia Y.; Gritsenko, Marina A.; Smith, Richard D.; Koppenaal, David W.; Pakrasi, Himadri B.

2016-04-07

Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic microbes with highly differentiated membrane systems. These organisms contain an outer membrane, plasma membrane, and an internal system of thylakoid membranes where the photosynthetic and respiratory machinery are found. This existence of compartmentalization and differentiation of membrane systems poses a number of challenges for cyanobacterial cells in terms of organization and distribution of proteins to the correct membrane system. Proteomics studies have long sought to identify the components of the different membrane systems, and to date about 450 different proteins have been attributed to either the plasma membrane or thylakoid membrane. Given the complexity of these membranes, many more proteins remain to be identified in these membrane systems, and a comprehensive catalog of plasma membrane and thylakoid membrane proteins is needed. Here we describe the identification of 635 proteins in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 by quantitative iTRAQ isobaric labeling; of these, 459 proteins were localized to the plasma membrane and 176 were localized to the thylakoid membrane. Surprisingly, we found over 2.5 times the number of unique proteins identified in the plasma membrane compared to the thylakoid membrane. This suggests that the protein composition of the thylakoid membrane is more homogeneous than the plasma membrane, consistent with the role of the plasma membrane in diverse cellular processes including protein trafficking and nutrient import, compared to a more specialized role for the thylakoid membrane in cellular energetics. Overall, the protein composition of the Synechocystis 6803 plasma membrane and thylakoid membrane is quite similar to the E.coli plasma membrane and Arabidopsis thylakoid membrane, respectively. Synechocystis 6803 can therefore be described as a gram-negative bacterium that has an additional internal membrane system that fulfils the energetic requirements of the cell.

Global Proteomic Analysis Reveals an Exclusive Role of Thylakoid Membranes in Bioenergetics of a Model Cyanobacterium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liberton, Michelle; Saha, Rajib; Jacobs, Jon M.; Nguyen, Amelia Y.; Gritsenko, Marina A.; Smith, Richard D.; Koppenaal, David W.; Pakrasi, Himadri B.

2016-04-07

Cyanobacteria are photosynthetic microbes with highlydifferentiated membrane systems. These organisms contain an outer membrane, plasma membrane, and an internal system of thylakoid membranes where the photosynthetic and respiratory machinery are found. This existence of compartmentalization and differentiation of membrane systems poses a number of challenges for cyanobacterial cells in terms of organization and distribution of proteins to the correct membrane system. Proteomics studies have long sought to identify the components of the different membrane systems in cyanobacteria, and to date about 450 different proteins have been attributed to either the plasma membrane or thylakoid membrane. Given the complexity of these membranes, many more proteins remain to be identified, and a comprehensive catalogue of plasma membrane and thylakoid membrane proteins is needed. Here we describe the identification of 635 differentially localized proteins in Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 by quantitative iTRAQ isobaric labeling; of these, 459 proteins were localized to the plasma membrane and 176 were localized to the thylakoid membrane. Surprisingly, we found over 2.5 times the number of unique proteins identified in the plasma membrane compared with the thylakoid membrane. This suggests that the protein composition of the thylakoid membrane is more homogeneous than the plasma membrane, consistent with the role of the plasma membrane in diverse cellular processes including protein trafficking and nutrient import, compared with a more specialized role for the thylakoid membrane in cellular energetics. Thus, our data clearly define the two membrane systems with distinct functions. Overall, the protein compositions of the Synechocystis 6803 plasma membrane and thylakoid membrane are quite similar to that of the plasma membrane of Escherichia coli and thylakoid membrane of Arabidopsis chloroplasts, respectively. Synechocystis 6803 can therefore be described as a Gram

Psychological effects of dog ownership: role strain, role enhancement, and depression.

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Cline, Krista Marie Clark

2010-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the link between multiple roles and depression and to attempt to provide a clearer answer to the question of what effect, if any, the role of dog ownership plays. Role strain and role enhancement theories are drawn upon to study this relationship. Ordinary least squares regression is used to examine a national sample of 201 adults in the United States. Findings revealed sex and marital status differences in the relationship between dog ownership and well-being, with women and single adults more likely to benefit from dog ownership. The findings presented here suggest that inattention to variations in marital status and sex may have been one factor in the inconsistency in the literature on pets and well-being.

Evaluations and utilizations of risk importances

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vesely, W.E.; Davis, T.C.

1985-08-01

This report presents approaches for utilizing Probabilistic Risk Analyses (PRA's) to determine risk importances. Risk importances are determined for design features, plant operations, and other factors that can affect risk. PRA's can be used to identify the importances of risk contributors or proposed changes to designs or operations. The objective of this report is to serve as a handbook and guide in evaluating and applying risk importances. The utilization of both qualitative risk importances and quantitative risk importances is described in this report. Qualitative risk importances are based on the logic models in the PRA, while quantitative risk importances are based on the quantitative results of the PRA. Both types of importances are among the most robust and meaningful information a PRA can provide. A wide variety of risk importance evaluations are described including evaluations of the importances of design changes, testing, maintenance, degrading environments, and aging. Specific utilizations are described in inspection and in reliability assurance programs, however the general approaches have widespread applicability. The role of personal computers and decision support programs in applying risk importance evaluations is also described

A synthetic eicosanoid LX-mimetic unravels host-donor interactions in allogeneic BMT-induced GvHD to reveal an early protective role for host neutrophils.

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Devchand, Pallavi R; Schmidt, Birgitta A; Primo, Valeria C; Zhang, Qing-yin; Arnaout, M Amin; Serhan, Charles N; Nikolic, Boris

2005-02-01

Lipoxin A(4) (LXA(4)) and aspirin-triggered 15-epi-LXA(4) are potent endogenous lipid mediators thought to define the inflammatory set-point. We used single prophylactic administrations of a synthetic aspirin-triggered lipoxin A(4) signal mimetic, ATLa, to probe dynamics of early host-donor interactions in a mouse model for the inflammation-associated multifactorial disease of allogeneic bone marrow transplant (BMT) -induced graft-vs.-host disease (GvHD). We first demonstrated that both host and donor are responsive to the ATLa signals. The simple and restricted regimen of a single prophylactic administration of ATLa [100 ng/mL to donor cells or 1 microg (approximately 50 microg/kg) i.v. to host] was sufficient to delay death. Clinical indicators of weight, skin lesions, diarrhea and eye inflammation were monitored. Histological analyses on day 45 post-BMT showed that the degree of cellular trafficking, particularly neutrophil infiltrate, and protection of end-organ target pathology are different, depending on whether the host or donor was treated with ATLa. Taken together, these results chart some ATLa protective effects on GvHD cellular dynamics over time and identify a previously unrecognized effect of host neutrophils in the early phase post-BMT as important determinants in the dynamics of GvHD onset and progression.-Devchand, P. R., Schmidt, B. A., Primo, V. C., Zhang, Q.-y., Arnaout, M. A., Serhan, C. N., Nikolic, B. A synthetic eicosanoid LX-mimetic unravels host-donor interactions in allogeneic BMT-induced GvHD to reveal an early protective role for host neutrophils.

Role of Growth Differentiation Factor 9 and Bone Morphogenetic Protein 15 in Ovarian Function and Their Importance in Mammalian Female Fertility — A Review

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Fernanda Cavallari de Castro

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Growth factors play an important role during early ovarian development and folliculogenesis, since they regulate the migration of germ cells to the gonadal ridge. They also act on follicle recruitment, proliferation/atresia of granulosa cells and theca, steroidogenesis, oocyte maturation, ovulation and luteinization. Among the growth factors, the growth differentiation factor 9 (GDF9 and the bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15, belong to the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β superfamily, have been implicated as essential for follicular development. The GDF9 and BMP15 participate in the evolution of the primordial follicle to primary follicle and play an important role in the later stages of follicular development and maturation, increasing the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein expression, plasminogen activator and luteinizing hormone receptor (LHR. These factors are also involved in the interconnections between the oocyte and surrounding cumulus cells, where they regulate absorption of amino acids, glycolysis and biosynthesis of cholesterol cumulus cells. Even though the mode of action has not been fully established, in vitro observations indicate that the factors GDF9 and BMP15 stimulate the growth of ovarian follicles and proliferation of cumulus cells through the induction of mitosis in cells and granulosa and theca expression of genes linked to follicular maturation. Thus, seeking greater understanding of the action of these growth factors on the development of oocytes, the role of GDF9 and BMP15 in ovarian function is summarized in this brief review.

Prayer and pain: the mediating role of positive re-appraisal.

Science.gov (United States)

Dezutter, Jessie; Wachholtz, Amy; Corveleyn, Jozef

2011-12-01

The present study explored in a sample of Flemish pain patients the role of prayer as a possible individual factor in pain management. The focus on prayer as a personal religious factor fits with the current religious landscape in Western-Europe where personal religious factors are more important than organizational dimensions of religion. Our study is framed in the transactional theory of stress and coping by testing first, whether prayer was related with pain severity and pain tolerance and second, whether cognitive positive re-appraisal was a mediating mechanism in the association between prayer and pain. We expected that prayer would be related to pain tolerance in reducing the impact of the pain on patient's daily life, but not necessarily to pain severity. A cross-sectional questionnaire design was adopted in order to measure demographics, prayer, pain outcomes (i.e., pain severity and pain tolerance), and cognitive positive re-appraisal. Two hundred and two chronic pain (CP) patients, all members of a Flemish national patients association, completed the questionnaires. Correlational analyses showed that prayer was significantly related with pain tolerance, but not with pain severity. However, ancillary analyses revealed a moderational effect of religious affiliation in the relationship between prayer and pain severity as well as pain tolerance. Furthermore, mediation analysis revealed that cognitive positive re-appraisal was indeed an underlying mechanism in the relationship between prayer and pain tolerance. This study affirms the importance to distinguish between pain severity and pain tolerance, and indicates that prayer can play a role in pain management, especially for religious pain patients. Further, the findings can be framed within the transactional theory of stress and coping as the results indicate that positive re-appraisal might be an important underlying mechanism in the association between prayer and pain.

Role of the Occupational Physician in Corporate Management of Health Risks: An Important Aspect of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

Science.gov (United States)

Sugita, Minoru; Miyakawa, Michiko

2016-01-01

There are various risks involved in corporate activities conducted both within and outside the corporation. Among these, health risks are very important and should be managed effectively as an integral part of corporate social responsibility (CSR). A corporation is responsible for health impairments caused by its activities and suffers great moral and economic loss when they occur. It is essential that corporate management takes proper preventive measures against such risks. Occupational physicians possess substantial knowledge of health risks in corporations. In this study, we examine the role of occupational physicians in the management of corporate health risks. Information was obtained from articles in print and on the Internet. Health risks due to corporate activities involve not only the employees of the corporation but also individuals outside the corporation. Each corporation should effectively use available resources to manage health risks. Occupational physicians are one such valuable resource. However, many corporations do not actively involve occupational physicians in health risk management. According to a current Japanese law, health risks for employees in corporations are managed by occupational physicians, but in general, health risks outside corporations are not. The 1984 Bhopal Disaster in India is an example in which physicians of the corporation were only minimally, if at all, involved in assessing and treating impaired health outside the corporation. The role of occupational physicians should be expanded to include management of health risks outside the corporation. This places a greater burden on the physicians and they must make the effort to train in many academic fields in order to better understand the entire context of health risks due to corporate activities. Some occupational physicians may be hesitant to take on such added responsibilities. Some corporations may not recognize the overall health risks due to its activities and do not

Si and C interactions in the world ocean: Importance of ecological processes and implications for the role of diatoms in the biological pump

Science.gov (United States)

Ragueneau, Olivier; Schultes, Sabine; Bidle, Kay; Claquin, Pascal; Moriceau, BrivaëLa

2006-12-01

Diatoms play a major role in carbon export from surface waters, but their role in the transport of carbon to the deep sea has been questioned by global analyses of sediment trap fluxes which suggest that organic carbon fluxes and transfer efficiencies through the mesopelagic are tightly correlated with CaCO3 (Klaas and Archer, 2002; François et al., 2002). Here we explore the role of diatoms in the biological pump through a study of Si and C interactions from the molecular to the global scale. Recent findings on molecular interactions between Si and C are reviewed. The roles of bacteria, grazers and aggregation are explored and combined, to account for the extent of Si and C decoupling between surface waters and 1000 m, observed to be very homogeneous in different biogeochemical provinces of the ocean. It is suggested that the mesopelagic food web plays a crucial role in this homogeneity: Sites of high export are also sites where diatom C is being either remineralized or channeled toward the long-lived carbon pool most efficiently in the mesopelagic zone. The amount of carbon participating in the biological pump but not collected in sediment traps remains to be explored. It is also demonstrated that statistical analyses performed at global scales hide spatial variability in carrying coefficients, indicating a clear need to understand the mechanisms that control spatial and temporal variations in the relative importance of ballast minerals and other export mechanisms such as particle dynamics.

Fish mucus metabolome reveals fish life-history traits

Science.gov (United States)

Reverter, M.; Sasal, P.; Banaigs, B.; Lecchini, D.; Lecellier, G.; Tapissier-Bontemps, N.

2017-06-01

Fish mucus has important biological and ecological roles such as defense against fish pathogens and chemical mediation among several species. A non-targeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry metabolomic approach was developed to study gill mucus of eight butterflyfish species in Moorea (French Polynesia), and the influence of several fish traits (geographic site and reef habitat, species taxonomy, phylogeny, diet and parasitism levels) on the metabolic variability was investigated. A biphasic extraction yielding two fractions (polar and apolar) was used. Fish diet (obligate corallivorous, facultative corallivorous or omnivorous) arose as the main driver of the metabolic differences in the gill mucus in both fractions, accounting for 23% of the observed metabolic variability in the apolar fraction and 13% in the polar fraction. A partial least squares discriminant analysis allowed us to identify the metabolites (variable important in projection, VIP) driving the differences between fish with different diets (obligate corallivores, facultative corallivores and omnivorous). Using accurate mass data and fragmentation data, we identified some of these VIP as glycerophosphocholines, ceramides and fatty acids. Level of monogenean gill parasites was the second most important factor shaping the gill mucus metabolome, and it explained 10% of the metabolic variability in the polar fraction and 5% in the apolar fraction. A multiple regression tree revealed that the metabolic variability due to parasitism in the polar fraction was mainly due to differences between non-parasitized and parasitized fish. Phylogeny and butterflyfish species were factors contributing significantly to the metabolic variability of the apolar fraction (10 and 3%, respectively) but had a less pronounced effect in the polar fraction. Finally, geographic site and reef habitat of butterflyfish species did not influence the gill mucus metabolome of butterflyfishes.

THE ROLES PLAYED BY THE TEAM MEMBERS IN THE HUMAN RESOURCES PERFORMING MANAGEMENT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul IVAN

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Teamwork - a feature of modern leadership, lead to performance if the team members are sharing the samevision, understanding the objectives of the organization, communicating, cooperating and helping each other, livingand acting after the same principles, norms and values. Team gains more and more a decisive role for the success ofthe organization and even if the leader is strong and well-intentioned, its results are the effect of all those people thatmake up the community.Only by highlighting the skills, talents, inclinations and experience of staff, promoting the principle "all forone and one for all" and some healthy interpersonal relationships we create favorable conditions to obtaining superiorresults.The company presented in the case study fits very well in the elements mentioned above, the importance ofhuman resources in general and of the team in particular, represents some of the most important reasons of seniormanagement.This paper is based on theory of the assumed roles in the team and, as practical application I applied the testfor determining the Belbin team roles in the Betty Ice company's financial accounting department. Applying this testwas meant as a method for improvement of the effectiveness of teamwork within the organization and tried to see if theteam studied is well formed from the perspective of the theory of team roles. Results revealed that a close-knit team hasdifferent and complementary roles and its success is based precisely on the existence of as many roles proposed byMeredith Belbin.

Molecular Characterization of Down Syndrome Embryonic Stem Cells Reveals a Role for RUNX1 in Neural Differentiation

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Tomer Halevy

2016-10-01

Full Text Available Down syndrome (DS is the leading genetic cause of mental retardation and is caused by a third copy of human chromosome 21. The different pathologies of DS involve many tissues with a distinct array of neural phenotypes. Here we characterize embryonic stem cell lines with DS (DS-ESCs, and focus on the neural aspects of the disease. Our results show that neural progenitor cells (NPCs differentiated from five independent DS-ESC lines display increased apoptosis and downregulation of forehead developmental genes. Analysis of differentially expressed genes suggested RUNX1 as a key transcription regulator in DS-NPCs. Using genome editing we were able to disrupt all three copies of RUNX1 in DS-ESCs, leading to downregulation of several RUNX1 target developmental genes accompanied by reduced apoptosis and neuron migration. Our work sheds light on the role of RUNX1 and the importance of dosage balance in the development of neural phenotypes in DS.

Perceived Maternal Role Competence among the Mothers Attending Immunization Clinics of Dharan, Nepal

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Shah Shrooti

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Background: Being a mother is considered by many women as their most important role in life. Women’s perceptions of their abilities to manage the demands of parenting and the parenting skills they posses are reflected by perceived maternal role competence. The present study was carried out to assess the perceived maternal role competence and its associated factors among mothers. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional research study was carried out on 290 mothers of infant in four immunization clinics of Dharan, Nepal. Data were collected using a standardized predesigned, pretested questionnaire (Parent sense of competence scale, Rosenberg’s self esteem scale, Maternity social support scale. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and multiple regression analysis at 0.05 level of significance. Results: The mean score of the perceived maternal role competence obtained by mothers was 64.34±7.90 and those of knowledge/skill and valuing/comfort subscale were 31±6.01 and 33±3.75, respectively. There was a significant association between perceived maternal role competence and factors as the age of the mother (P<0.001, educational status (P=0.015, occupation (P=0.001 and readiness for pregnancy (P=0.022. The study findings revealed a positive correlation between perceived maternal role competence and age at marriage (r=0.132, P=0.024, per capita income (r=0.118, P=0.045, self esteem (r=0.379, P<0.001, social support (r=0.272, P<0.001, and number of support persons (r=0.119, P=0.043. The results of the step wise multiple regression analysis revealed that the major predictor of perceived maternal role competence was self esteem. Conclusion: The factors associated with perceived maternal role competence were age, education, occupation, per capita income, self esteem, social support, and the number of support persons.

Jazz musicians reveal role of expectancy in human creativity.

Science.gov (United States)

Przysinda, Emily; Zeng, Tima; Maves, Kellyn; Arkin, Cameron; Loui, Psyche

2017-12-01

Creativity has been defined as the ability to produce work that is novel, high in quality, and appropriate to an audience. While the nature of the creative process is under debate, many believe that creativity relies on real-time combinations of known neural and cognitive processes. One useful model of creativity comes from musical improvisation, such as in jazz, in which musicians spontaneously create novel sound sequences. Here we use jazz musicians to test the hypothesis that individuals with training in musical improvisation, which entails creative generation of musical ideas, might process expectancy differently. We compare jazz improvisers, non-improvising musicians, and non-musicians in the domain-general task of divergent thinking, as well as the musical task of preference ratings for chord progressions that vary in expectation while EEGs were recorded. Behavioral results showed for the first time that jazz musicians preferred unexpected chord progressions. ERP results showed that unexpected stimuli elicited larger early and mid-latency ERP responses (ERAN and P3b), followed by smaller long-latency responses (Late Positivity Potential) in jazz musicians. The amplitudes of these ERP components were significantly correlated with behavioral measures of fluency and originality on the divergent thinking task. Together, results highlight the role of expectancy in creativity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Pharmaceutical Role Expansion and Developments in Pharmacist-Physician Communication.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergman, Alicia A; Jaynes, Heather A; Gonzalvo, Jasmine D; Hudmon, Karen Suchanek; Frankel, Richard M; Kobylinski, Amanda L; Zillich, Alan J

2016-01-01

Expanded clinical pharmacist professional roles in the team-based patient-centered medical home (PCMH) primary care environment require cooperative and collaborative relationships among pharmacists and primary care physicians (PCPs), but many PCPs have not previously worked in such a direct fashion with pharmacists. Additional roles, including formulary control, add further elements of complexity to the clinical pharmacist-PCP relationship that are not well described. Our objective was to characterize the nature of clinical pharmacist-PCP interprofessional collaboration across seven federally funded hospitals and associated primary care clinics, following pharmacist placement in primary care clinics and incorporation of expanded pharmacist roles. In-depth and semistructured interviews were conducted with 25 practicing clinical pharmacists and 17 PCPs. Qualitative thematic analysis revealed three major themes: (1) the complexities of electronic communication (particularly electronic nonformulary requests) as contributing to interprofessional tensions or misunderstandings for both groups, (2) the navigation of new roles and traditional hierarchy, with pharmacists using indirect communication to prevent PCP defensiveness to recommendations, and (3) a preference for onsite colocation for enhanced communication and professional relationships. Clinical pharmacists' indirect communication practices may hold important implications for patient safety in the context of medication use, and it is important to foster effective communication skills and an environment where all team members across hierarchies can feel comfortable speaking up to reduce error when problems are suspected. Also, the lack of institutional communication about managing drug formulary issues and related electronic nonformulary request processes was apparent in this study and merits further attention for both researchers and practitioners.

Excess fertilizer responsive miRNAs revealed in Linum usitatissimum L.

Science.gov (United States)

Melnikova, Nataliya V; Dmitriev, Alexey A; Belenikin, Maxim S; Speranskaya, Anna S; Krinitsina, Anastasia A; Rachinskaia, Olga A; Lakunina, Valentina A; Krasnov, George S; Snezhkina, Anastasiya V; Sadritdinova, Asiya F; Uroshlev, Leonid A; Koroban, Nadezda V; Samatadze, Tatiana E; Amosova, Alexandra V; Zelenin, Alexander V; Muravenko, Olga V; Bolsheva, Nadezhda L; Kudryavtseva, Anna V

2015-02-01

Effective fertilizer application is necessary to increase crop yields and reduce risk of plant overdosing. It is known that expression level of microRNAs (miRNAs) alters in plants under different nutrient concentrations in soil. The aim of our study was to identify and characterize miRNAs with expression alterations under excessive fertilizer in agriculturally important crop - flax (Linum usitatissimum L.). We have sequenced small RNAs in flax grown under normal and excessive fertilizer using Illumina GAIIx. Over 14 million raw reads was obtained for two small RNA libraries. 84 conserved miRNAs from 20 families were identified. Differential expression was revealed for several flax miRNAs under excessive fertilizer according to high-throughput sequencing data. For 6 miRNA families (miR395, miR169, miR408, miR399, miR398 and miR168) expression level alterations were evaluated on the extended sampling using qPCR. Statistically significant up-regulation was revealed for miR395 under excessive fertilizer. It is known that target genes of miR395 are involved in sulfate uptake and assimilation. However, according to our data alterations of the expression level of miR395 could be associated not only with excess sulfur application, but also with redundancy of other macro- and micronutrients. Furthermore expression level was evaluated for miRNAs and their predicted targets. The negative correlation between miR399 expression and expression of its predicted target ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme E2 gene was shown in flax for the first time. So we suggested miR399 involvement in phosphate regulation in L. usitatissimum. Revealed in our study expression alterations contribute to miRNA role in flax response to excessive fertilizer. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. and Société française de biochimie et biologie Moléculaire (SFBBM). All rights reserved.

Role Performance of Social Institutions in Student Activities

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Helen R. Lara

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The study was conducted to determine the influence of social institutions on the involvement of students in school activities. The descriptive method of research was used. Purposive sampling was utilized which involved 30 Presidents of all accredited student organizations. The study specifically determined the degree of involvement of students in school activities; and identified the roles of social institutions and the extent of their influence on the involvement of students in college activities. Interviews, documentary analysis and a survey using a questionnaire-checklist were utilized to gather data and information. The study revealed that family and school have a strong influence on the participation of students in school activities. This was so because student leaders are often in direct contact with people who provide support and spend a long time with them. The Church and community are revealed as moderate influences. The moderate influence of social institutions is because students are not exposed to a variety of activities that are equally important in the development of their abilities and skills. It was found that students had limited involvement in church and community undertakings because of the demands put upon them by their academic and non-academic school activities. There is a need to improve students’ participation in the Church and community activities that have moderate influence in order to strengthen their roles

Further insights into the roles of the medical educator: the importance of scholarly management.

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Bligh, John; Brice, Julie

2009-08-01

Medical educators need to be able to define excellence within the various roles they occupy so that they can demonstrate internationally recognized, high-quality scholarship. Previous definitions of scholarship have focused on research and teaching but have been unable to integrate other roles such as leadership, management, and administration. Clearer definition of the various roles of the medical educator, coupled with a broader understanding of medical education scholarship that is able to encompass management, as well as teaching and research, will help institutions to evaluate and reward faculty members appropriately. We propose that management should now be introduced as a third "priority of the professoriate." We outline the concept of the scholarly manager, particularly as it applies to management in medical education. We offer a new conceptual model which situates the role of the academic manager within the scholarship of medical education and shows it to be an essential part of the skills and competences of the excellent medical educator. We emphasize that at the heart of all scholarly activity in medical education lie the core skills, values, and behaviors shared by all involved in the education of doctors and medical students. Future research is needed to explore and, where possible, achieve consensus on the core skills, values, and behaviors of an excellent medical educator. In addition, work should commence to define and categorize the various stages in the development of a significant management portfolio in medical education teaching and research.

Intracellularly Induced Cyclophilins Play an Important Role in Stress Adaptation and Virulence of Brucella abortus

Science.gov (United States)

García Fernández, Lucía; DelVecchio, Vito G.; Briones, Gabriel

2013-01-01

Brucella is an intracellular bacterial pathogen that causes the worldwide zoonotic disease brucellosis. Brucella virulence relies on its ability to transition to an intracellular lifestyle within host cells. Thus, this pathogen must sense its intracellular localization and then reprogram gene expression for survival within the host cell. A comparative proteomic investigation was performed to identify differentially expressed proteins potentially relevant for Brucella intracellular adaptation. Two proteins identified as cyclophilins (CypA and CypB) were overexpressed in the intracellular environment of the host cell in comparison to laboratory-grown Brucella. To define the potential role of cyclophilins in Brucella virulence, a double-deletion mutant was constructed and its resulting phenotype was characterized. The Brucella abortus ΔcypAB mutant displayed increased sensitivity to environmental stressors, such as oxidative stress, pH, and detergents. In addition, the B. abortus ΔcypAB mutant strain had a reduced growth rate at lower temperature, a phenotype associated with defective expression of cyclophilins in other microorganisms. The B. abortus ΔcypAB mutant also displays reduced virulence in BALB/c mice and defective intracellular survival in HeLa cells. These findings suggest that cyclophilins are important for Brucella virulence and survival in the host cells. PMID:23230297

Integrative RNA- and miRNA-Profile Analysis Reveals a Likely Role of BR and Auxin Signaling in Branch Angle Regulation of B. napus

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hongtao Cheng

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Oilseed rape (Brassica napus L. is the second largest oilseed crop worldwide and one of the most important oil crops in China. As a component of plant architecture, branch angle plays an important role in yield performance, especially under high-density planting conditions. However, the mechanisms underlying the regulation of branch angle are still largely not understood. Two oilseed rape lines with significantly different branch angles were used to conduct RNA- and miRNA-profiling at two developmental stages, identifying differential expression of a large number of genes involved in auxin- and brassinosteroid (BR-related pathways. Many auxin response genes, including AUX1, IAA, GH3, and ARF, were enriched in the compact line. However, a number of genes involved in BR signaling transduction and biosynthesis were down-regulated. Differentially expressed miRNAs included those involved in auxin signaling transduction. Expression patterns of most target genes were fine-tuned by related miRNAs, such as miR156, miR172, and miR319. Some miRNAs were found to be differentially expressed at both developmental stages, including three miR827 members. Our results provide insight that auxin- and BR-signaling may play a pivotal role in branch angle regulation.

The Information and Communication Technology User Role: Implications for the Work Role and Inter-Role Spillover.

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Piszczek, Matthew M; Pichler, Shaun; Turel, Ofir; Greenhaus, Jeffrey

2016-01-01

Management and organization research has traditionally focused on employees' work role and the interface between their work and family roles. We suggest that persons assume a third role in modern society that is relevant to work and organizations, namely the Information and Communication Technology User (ICTU) role. Based on role theory and boundary theory, we develop propositions about the characteristics of this role, as well as how ICTU role characteristics are related to boundary spanning activity, inter-role spillover with the work role, and work role performance. To this end, we first conceptualize the ICTU role and its associations with work and family roles. We then apply identity theory and boundary management theory to advance our understanding of how the ICTU role is related to criteria that are important to individuals and to organizations, namely self-selection into certain types of work roles and positive and negative inter-role spillover. The implications of this role for theory, research, and practice in management and organizations are discussed.

Characterization of Pearl Millet Root Architecture and Anatomy Reveals Three Types of Lateral Roots

Science.gov (United States)

Passot, Sixtine; Gnacko, Fatoumata; Moukouanga, Daniel; Lucas, Mikaël; Guyomarc’h, Soazig; Ortega, Beatriz Moreno; Atkinson, Jonathan A.; Belko, Marème N.; Bennett, Malcolm J.; Gantet, Pascal; Wells, Darren M.; Guédon, Yann; Vigouroux, Yves; Verdeil, Jean-Luc; Muller, Bertrand; Laplaze, Laurent

2016-01-01

Pearl millet plays an important role for food security in arid regions of Africa and India. Nevertheless, it is considered an orphan crop as it lags far behind other cereals in terms of genetic improvement efforts. Breeding pearl millet varieties with improved root traits promises to deliver benefits in water and nutrient acquisition. Here, we characterize early pearl millet root system development using several different root phenotyping approaches that include rhizotrons and microCT. We report that early stage pearl millet root system development is characterized by a fast growing primary root that quickly colonizes deeper soil horizons. We also describe root anatomical studies that revealed three distinct types of lateral roots that form on both primary roots and crown roots. Finally, we detected significant variation for two root architectural traits, primary root lenght and lateral root density, in pearl millet inbred lines. This study provides the basis for subsequent genetic experiments to identify loci associated with interesting early root development traits in this important cereal. PMID:27379124

Nutrition metabolism plays an important role in the alternate bearing of the olive tree (Olea europaea L..

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mine Turktas

Full Text Available The olive tree (Olea europaea L. is widely known for its strong tendency for alternate bearing, which severely affects the fruit yield from year to year. Microarray based gene expression analysis using RNA from olive samples (on-off years leaves and ripe-unripe fruits are particularly useful to understand the molecular mechanisms influencing the periodicity in the olive tree. Thus, we carried out genome wide transcriptome analyses involving different organs and temporal stages of the olive tree using the NimbleGen Array containing 136,628 oligonucleotide probe sets. Cluster analyses of the genes showed that cDNAs originated from different organs could be sorted into separate groups. The nutritional control had a particularly remarkable impact on the alternate bearing of olive, as shown by the differential expression of transcripts under different temporal phases and organs. Additionally, hormonal control and flowering processes also played important roles in this phenomenon. Our analyses provide further insights into the transcript changes between "on year" and "off year" leaves along with the changes from unrpipe to ripe fruits, which shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the olive tree alternate bearing. These findings have important implications for the breeding and agriculture of the olive tree and other crops showing periodicity. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting the development and use of an olive array to document the gene expression profiling associated with the alternate bearing in olive tree.

Nutrition Metabolism Plays an Important Role in the Alternate Bearing of the Olive Tree (Olea europaea L.)

Science.gov (United States)

Turktas, Mine; Inal, Behcet; Okay, Sezer; Erkilic, Emine Gulden; Dundar, Ekrem; Hernandez, Pilar; Dorado, Gabriel; Unver, Turgay

2013-01-01

The olive tree (Olea europaea L.) is widely known for its strong tendency for alternate bearing, which severely affects the fruit yield from year to year. Microarray based gene expression analysis using RNA from olive samples (on-off years leaves and ripe-unripe fruits) are particularly useful to understand the molecular mechanisms influencing the periodicity in the olive tree. Thus, we carried out genome wide transcriptome analyses involving different organs and temporal stages of the olive tree using the NimbleGen Array containing 136,628 oligonucleotide probe sets. Cluster analyses of the genes showed that cDNAs originated from different organs could be sorted into separate groups. The nutritional control had a particularly remarkable impact on the alternate bearing of olive, as shown by the differential expression of transcripts under different temporal phases and organs. Additionally, hormonal control and flowering processes also played important roles in this phenomenon. Our analyses provide further insights into the transcript changes between ”on year” and “off year” leaves along with the changes from unrpipe to ripe fruits, which shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the olive tree alternate bearing. These findings have important implications for the breeding and agriculture of the olive tree and other crops showing periodicity. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting the development and use of an olive array to document the gene expression profiling associated with the alternate bearing in olive tree. PMID:23555820

Characteristics of the tomato chromoplast revealed by proteomic analysis

OpenAIRE

Barsan, Cristina; Sanchez-Bel, Paloma; Rombaldi, César Valmor; Egea, Isabel; Rossignol, Michel; Kuntz, Marcel; Zouine, Mohamed; Latché, Alain; Bouzayen, Mondher; Pech, Jean-Claude

2010-01-01

Chromoplasts are non-photosynthetic specialized plastids that are important in ripening tomato fruit (Solanum lycopersicum) since, among other functions, they are the site of accumulation of coloured compounds. Analysis of the proteome of red fruit chromoplasts revealed the presence of 988 proteins corresponding to 802 Arabidopsis unigenes, among which 209 had not been listed so far in plastidial databanks. These data revealed several features of the chromoplast. Proteins of lipid metabolism ...

The effect of maternal role training program on role attainment and maternal role satisfaction in nulliparous women with unplanned pregnancy

OpenAIRE

Kordi, Masoumeh; Fasanghari, Maryam; Asgharipour, Negar; Esmaily, Habibollah

2017-01-01

INTRODUCTION: The maternal role is one of the most basic and important roles played by women during their lifetime. The process of the maternal role starts during pregnancy and to continue and develop after postpartum with the growth of suckling. However, unplanned pregnancy may jeopardize achieving the maternal role and reduce maternal role satisfaction. Therefore, the researcher conducted the present study to determine the impact of maternal role training program on attainment of role and r...

Mentoring and role models in recruitment and retention: a study of junior medical faculty perceptions.

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Steele, Margaret M; Fisman, Sandra; Davidson, Brenda

2013-05-01

This study explored the views of junior faculty toward informing mentorship program development. Mixed sampling methodologies including questionnaires (n = 175), focus groups (female, n = 4; male, n = 4), and individual interviews (female n = 10; male, n = 9) of junior faculty were conducted in clinical departments at one academic health sciences center. Questionnaire results indicated that having role models increased commitment to an academic career; mentorship experience during residency training was a high incentive to pursue an academic career; and junior faculty did have identifiable mentorship experiences. Focus group results revealed that mentoring as well as the presence of role models a few years ahead of the junior faculty would promote career development. Females preferred similar age role models who spoke the same language, particularly in the area of promotion. Females identified several challenges and issues including a lack of researcher role models, a range of perceptions regarding the merits of formal versus informal mentoring, and the idea that mentors should provide advice on promotion and grants. Males valued advice on finances while females wanted advice on work-life balance. Mentorship emerged as an important factor in academic faculty recruitment and retention, with varying perceptions of how it should be institutionalized. Role models were viewed as important for retention, and a paucity of mid-career, female researcher role models suggests a gap to be filled in future programmatic efforts.

Insights into recent and ancient trends in the co-evolution of Earth and life as revealed by microbial genomics

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Anderson, R. E.; Huber, J. A.; Parsons, C.; Stüeken, E.

2017-12-01

Since the origin of life over 4 billion years ago, life has fundamentally altered the habitability of Earth. Similarly, the environment molds the evolutionary trajectory of life itself through natural selection. Microbial genomes retain a "memory" of the co-evolution of life and Earth and can be analyzed to better understand trends and events in both the recent and distant past. To examine evolutionary trends in the more recent past, we have used metagenomics analyses to investigate which environmental factors play the strongest role in driving the evolution of microbes in deep-sea hydrothermal vents, which are thought to have been important habitats in the earliest stages of life's evolution. We have shown that microbial populations in a deep, basalt-hosted system appear to be under stronger purifying selection than populations inhabiting a cooler serpentinizing system less than 20 km away, suggesting that environmental context and geochemistry have an important impact on evolutionary rates and trends. We also found evidence that viruses play an important role in driving evolution in these habitats. Changing environmental conditions may also effect long-term evolutionary trends in Earth's distant past, as revealed by comparative genomics. By reconciling phylogenetic trees for microbial species with trees of metabolic genes, we can determine approximately when crucial metabolic genes began to spread across the tree of life through horizontal gene transfer. Using these methods, we conducted an analysis of the relative timing of the spread of genes related to the nitrogen cycle. Our results indicate that the rate of horizontal gene transfer for important genes related to denitrification increased after the Great Oxidation Event, concurrent with geochemical evidence for increasing availability of nitrate, suggesting that the oxygenation of the atmosphere and surface ocean may have been an important determining factor for the spread of denitrification genes across the

Isotopic discrimination during nitrous oxide loss processes: An important piece of the N2O global atmospheric budget

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahn, T.; Wahlen, M.; Zhang Hui; Blake, G.

2002-01-01

Nitrous oxide plays an important role in greenhouse forcing and stratospheric ozone regulation. It is destructed in the stratosphere mainly by UV photolysis. Laboratory studies of N 2 O-N 2 mixtures irradiated at 193 and 207 nm reveal a significant enrichment of the residual heavy nitrous oxide isotopomers. The isotopic signatures are well described by an irreversible Rayleigh distillation process, with large enrichment factors of ε 15,18 (193 nm) = -18.4, -14.5 per mil and ε 15,18 (207 nm) = -48.7, -46.0 per mil. These results, when combined with diffusive mixing processes might help to explain the stratospheric enrichments previously observed. (author)

Coal still plays an important role in Europe's energy business

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Janoska, J.; Beer, G.

2004-01-01

European energy mix would be unimaginable without the coal as it is used to produce about 25 percent of the EU electricity and its importance will even increase after the enlargement. In many of the accession countries coal represents the main source of electricity. Reviews of electricity production in dependence of source, coal mining and share of brown coal on electricity production in European Union are presented

The importance of opinion leaders in agricultural production among ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The importance of opinion leaders in agricultural production among male and ... farmers do not have adequate access to extension services due to, amongst others, the ... In view of these problems, the role of opinion leaders is important and ...

Nuclear Import and Export of the Thyroid Hormone Receptor.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jibo; Roggero, Vincent R; Allison, Lizabeth A

2018-01-01

The thyroid hormone receptors, TRα1 and TRβ1, are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily that forms one of the most abundant classes of transcription factors in multicellular organisms. Although primarily localized to the nucleus, TRα1 and TRβ1 shuttle rapidly between the nucleus and cytoplasm. The fine balance between nuclear import and export of TRs has emerged as a critical control point for modulating thyroid hormone-responsive gene expression. Mutagenesis studies have defined two nuclear localization signal (NLS) motifs that direct nuclear import of TRα1: NLS-1 in the hinge domain and NLS-2 in the N-terminal A/B domain. Three nuclear export signal (NES) motifs reside in the ligand-binding domain. A combined approach of shRNA-mediated knockdown and coimmunoprecipitation assays revealed that nuclear entry of TRα1 is facilitated by importin 7, likely through interactions with NLS-2, and importin β1 and the adapter importin α1 interacting with both NLS-1 and NLS-2. Interestingly, TRβ1 lacks NLS-2 and nuclear import depends solely on the importin α1/β1 heterodimer. Heterokaryon and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching shuttling assays identified multiple exportins that play a role in nuclear export of TRα1, including CRM1 (exportin 1), and exportins 4, 5, and 7. Even single amino acid changes in TRs dramatically alter their intracellular distribution patterns. We conclude that mutations within NLS and NES motifs affect nuclear shuttling activity, and propose that TR mislocalization contributes to the development of some types of cancer and Resistance to Thyroid Hormone syndrome. © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The importance of contact quality

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Bakel, Marian; Gerritsen, Marinel; van Oudenhoven, Jan Pieter

Establishing contact between expatriates and a local host has been found to reap benefits with regard to Interaction Adjustment, Host National Social Support, Open-mindedness, and Social Initiative. This longitudinal study examines the role of the quality of contact for these four aspects....... Expatriates in the Netherlands were randomly divided into an experimental group (n = 33) of which 21 developed high-quality contact with their host, and a control group (n = 32) without host. The results show that contact quality plays an important role and suggest that the higher the quality of the contact......, the more benefit the expatriate experienced. Moreover, expatriates with low-quality contact did not experience a detrimental effect....

Ecological niche models reveal the importance of climate variability for the biogeography of protosteloid amoebae.

Science.gov (United States)

Aguilar, María; Lado, Carlos

2012-08-01

Habitat availability and environmental preferences of species are among the most important factors in determining the success of dispersal processes and therefore in shaping the distribution of protists. We explored the differences in fundamental niches and potential distributions of an ecological guild of slime moulds-protosteloid amoebae-in the Iberian Peninsula. A large set of samples collected in a north-east to south-west transect of approximately 1000 km along the peninsula was used to test the hypothesis that, together with the existence of suitable microhabitats, climate conditions may determine the probability of survival of species. Although protosteloid amoebae share similar morphologies and life history strategies, canonical correspondence analyses showed that they have varied ecological optima, and that climate conditions have an important effect in niche differentiation. Maxent environmental niche models provided consistent predictions of the probability of presence of the species based on climate data, and they were used to generate maps of potential distribution in an 'everything is everywhere' scenario. The most important climatic factors were, in both analyses, variables that measure changes in conditions throughout the year, confirming that the alternation of fruiting bodies, cysts and amoeboid stages in the life cycles of protosteloid amoebae constitutes an advantage for surviving in a changing environment. Microhabitat affinity seems to be influenced by climatic conditions, which suggests that the micro-environment may vary at a local scale and change together with the external climate at a larger scale.

Masculine role adherence and outcomes among men with traumatic brain injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Schopp, Laura H; Good, Glenn E; Barker, Katharine B; Mazurek, Micah O; Hathaway, Stefani L

2006-10-01

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant health problem disproportionately affecting men and is often associated with changes in masculine role functioning in life domains such as vocational functioning, sexual and inter-personal functioning and personal independence. These changes could have serious implications for men's adjustment following injury. The aim of this study was to examine the relations among traditional masculine role adherence, psychosocial adjustment and rehabilitation outcomes in men with TBI. A correlational design was chosen to examine the relations among variables. Spearman correlations and Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests were used to examine relationships between masculine role variables and outcome variables. The study included 33 men with TBI who had been discharged from inpatient rehabilitation within 5 years. Participants completed surveys on traditional masculine gender role adherence and gender role conflict and additional data, including measures of functional outcome, life satisfaction, psychosocial outcomes and earnings, were obtained through the TBI Model System longitudinal data collection system. The results revealed significant associations between masculine role adherence and satisfaction with life, follow-up earnings and FIM change from admission to discharge. In the current study, particular masculine role variables corresponded to different functional and psychological outcomes. Understanding these differences provides new directions for treatment and offers important information about aspects of traditional masculine roles that may enhance or hinder adjustment to injury.

The Role of a Facilitated Online Workspace Component of a Community of Practice: Knowledge Building and Value Creation for NASA

Science.gov (United States)

Davey, Bradford Thomas

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of an online workspace component of a community in the work of a community of practice. Much has been studied revealing the importance of communities of practice to organizations, project success, and knowledge management and some of these same successes hold true for virtual communities of…

Growth of a Functionally Important Lexicon.