Introducing Undergraduate Students to Real-Time PCR

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hancock, Dale; Funnell, Alister; Jack, Briony; Johnston, Jill

2010-01-01

An experiment is conducted, which in four 3 h laboratory sessions, introduces third year undergraduate Biochemistry students to the technique of real-time PCR in a biological context. The model used is a murine erythroleukemia cell line (MEL cells). These continuously cycling, immature red blood cells, arrested at an early stage in erythropoiesis,…

Case Report: Congenital Erythroleukemia in a Premature Infant with Dysmorphic Features.

PubMed

Helin, Heidi; van der Walt, Jon; Holder, Muriel; George, Simi

2016-01-01

We present a case of pure erythroleukemia, diagnosed at autopsy, in a dysmorphic premature infant who died of multiorgan failure within 24 hours of birth. Dysmorphic features included facial and limb abnormalities with long philtrum, microagnathia, downturned mouth, short neck as well as abnormal and missing nails, missing distal phalanx from the second toe, and overlapping toes. Internal findings included gross hepatomegaly and patchy hemorrhages in the liver, splenomegaly, and cardiomegaly; and subdural, intracerebral, and intraventricular hemorrhages. Histology revealed infiltration of bone marrow, kidney, heart, liver, adrenal, lung, spleen, pancreas, thyroid, testis, thymus, and placenta by pure erythroleukemia. Only 6 cases of congenital erythroleukemia have been previously reported with autopsy findings similar to those of this case. The dysmorphic features, although not fitting any specific syndrome, make this case unique. Congenital erythroleukemia and possible syndromes suggested by the dysmorphic features are discussed.

Pure erythroid leukemia following precursor B-cell lymphoblastic leukemia.

PubMed

Xu, Min; Finn, Laura S; Tsuchiya, Karen D; Thomson, Blythe; Pollard, Jessica; Rutledge, Joe

2012-01-01

Therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia is an unfortunate sequel to current multimodal intensive chemotherapy. The patient described was diagnosed with pure erythroleukemia, AML-M6b, during therapy for precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of this unusual association.

Microarrays for Undergraduate Classes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hancock, Dale; Nguyen, Lisa L.; Denyer, Gareth S.; Johnston, Jill M.

2006-01-01

A microarray experiment is presented that, in six laboratory sessions, takes undergraduate students from the tissue sample right through to data analysis. The model chosen, the murine erythroleukemia cell line, can be easily cultured in sufficient quantities for class use. Large changes in gene expression can be induced in these cells by…

Kinetics of ultraweak light emission from human erythroleukemia K562 cells upon electroporation.

PubMed

Maccarrone, M; Fantini, C; Agrò, A F; Rosato, N

1998-11-11

Electroporation involves the application of an electric pulse that creates transient aqueous channels (electropores) across the lipid bilayer membranes. Here, we describe an instrument set up suitable to record ultraweak light emission from human erythroleukemia K562 cells during and immediately after delivery of electric pulses. Most of light was emitted in the first seconds after each pulse, following a complex decay which can be fitted by a double exponential equation characterized by two different time constants (T1 and T2), both in the order of seconds. T1 was approximately 10-fold shorter than T2 and both time constants were dependent on field strength of the electric pulse. The effect of various antioxidants on the amount of emitted photons and on T1 and T2 values was investigated, in order to shed some light on the chemical species responsible for cellular luminescence.

Glycosylation and intracellular transport of membrane glycoproteins encoded by murine leukemia viruses. Inhibition by amino acid analogues and by tunicamycin.

PubMed

Polonoff, E; Machida, C A; Kabat, D

1982-12-10

Addition of asparagine-linked oligosaccharides to nascent murine leukemia virus (MuLV)-encoded membrane glycoproteins was inhibited either completely by tunicamycin or specifically at Asn-X-Thr glycosylation sites by incorporation of the threonine analogue beta-hydroxynorvaline. In conditions of partial analogue substitution, a series of subglycosylated components is formed which are related by a constant apparent Mr difference when assayed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. The total number of asparagine-linked oligosaccharides is then estimated by dividing the measured apparent Mr of one oligosaccharide into the total apparent Mr difference between the complete glycoprotein and the polypeptide chain that is synthesized in cells incubated with tunicamycin. Correct results were obtained using glycoproteins with known numbers of oligosaccharides. Our analyses indicate that the gp70 membrane envelope glycoproteins of certain ecotropic MuLVs contain seven oligosaccharides, whereas the GIX+ antigen-containing variant gp70 contains one fewer Asn-X-Thr-linked oligosaccharide. The membrane glycoprotein encoded by the gag gene of Friend MuLV contains only one asparagine-linked oligosaccharide. Similarly, the gp55 membrane glycoprotein encoded by Friend erythroleukemia virus contains four asparagine-linked oligosaccharides. Pulse-chase and cell surface iodination analyses indicate that MuLV membrane envelope glycoprotein processing by partial proteolysis and transport to the cell surface can be efficiently blocked by structural perturbations caused by incorporation of different amino acid analogues or by loss of oligosaccharides. Our data also suggest that loss of oligosaccharides may expose new antigenic sites in viral membrane glycoproteins and increase their susceptibility to intracellular proteolysis.

Stimulation of Breast Tumor Cell Proliferative Recovery by the Peptide Hormone Erythropoietin

DTIC Science & Technology

2006-08-01

against apoptosis induced by chemotherapy, F-MEL leukemic cells treated with or without EPO were exposed to either cytarabine (Ara-C) or daunorubicin...F-MEL erythroleukemia cells is suppressed by treatment with cytarabine ( Ara C) or daunorubicin. Cells were incubated in the absence or presence...antiproliferative and/or cytotoxic effects of Adriamycin,Taxol, and tamoxifen in breast tumor cells (or of cytarabine and daunorubicin in F-MEL cells). EPO failed to

Increased cyclooxygenase-2 and thromboxane synthase expression is implicated in diosgenin-induced megakaryocytic differentiation in human erythroleukemia cells.

PubMed

Cailleteau, C; Liagre, B; Battu, S; Jayat-Vignoles, C; Beneytout, J L

2008-09-01

Differentiation induction as a therapeutic strategy has, so far, the greatest impact in hematopoietic malignancies, most notably leukemia. Diosgenin is a very interesting natural product because, depending on the specific dose used, its biological effect is very different in HEL (human erythroleukemia) cells. For example, at 10 microM, diosgenin induced megakaryocytic differentiation, in contrast to 40 microM diosgenin, which induced apoptosis in HEL cells previously demonstrated using sedimentation field-flow fractionation (SdFFF). The goal of this work focused on the correlation between cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and thromboxane synthase (TxS) and megakaryocytic differentiation induced by diosgenin in HEL cells. Furthermore, the technique of SdFFF, having been validated in our models, was used in this new study as an analytical tool that provided us with more or less enriched differentiated cell fractions that could then be used for further analyses of enzyme protein expression and activity for the first time. In our study, we showed the implication of COX-2 and TxS in diosgenin-induced megakaryocytic differentiation in HEL cells. Furthermore, we showed that the analytical technique of SdFFF may be used as a tool to confirm our results as a function of the degree of cell differentiation.

Improved radioimmunotherapy of hematologic malignancies. Progress report, November 1, 1993--October 31, 1994

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Press, O.W.

1994-08-04

This report summaries progress made during the time interval between November 1, 1993 and October 31, 1994 and briefly describes studies on the metabolism of antibodies targeting B cell antigens, retention of labeled antibodies by human B cell lymphocytes, and tissue distribution of Chloramine T and tyramine cellobiose labeled antibodies in mice harboring a human erythroleukemia tumor transplant.

The potential role of ribosomal protein S5 on cell cycle arrest and initiation of murine erythroleukemia cell differentiation.

PubMed

Matragkou, Christina N; Papachristou, Eleni T; Tezias, Sotirios S; Tsiftsoglou, Asterios S; Choli-Papadopoulou, Theodora; Vizirianakis, Ioannis S

2008-07-01

Evidence now exists to indicate that some ribosomal proteins besides being structural components of the ribosomal subunits are involved in the regulation of cell differentiation and apoptosis. As we have shown earlier, initiation of erythroid differentiation of murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells is associated with transcriptional inactivation of genes encoding ribosomal RNAs and ribosomal proteins S5 (RPS5) and L35a. In this study, we extended these observations and investigated whether transfection of MEL cells with RPS5 cDNA affects the onset of initiation of erythroid maturation and their entrance in cell cycle arrest. Stably transfected MEL cloned cells (MEL-C14 and MEL-C56) were established and assessed for their capacity to produce RPS5 RNA transcript and its translated product. The impact of RPS5 cDNA transfection on the RPS5 gene expression patterns and the accumulation of RPS5 protein in inducible transfected MEL cells were correlated with their ability to: (a) initiate differentiation, (b) enter cell cycle arrest at G(1)/G(0) phase, and (c) modulate the level of cyclin-dependent kinases CDK2, CDK4, and CDK6. The data presented indicate that deregulation of RPS5 gene expression (constitutive expression) affects RPS5 protein level and delays both the onset of initiation of erythroid maturation and entrance in cell cycle arrest in inducer-treated MEL cells. 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Acute erythroblastic leukemia presenting as acute undifferentiated leukemia: a report of two cases with ultrastructural features.

PubMed

Reiffers, J; Bernard, P; Larrue, J; Dachary, D; David, B; Boisseau, M; Broustet, A

1985-01-01

This report describes two elderly patients with acute leukemia in which blast cells were undifferentiated with conventional light microscopy (L.M.) and cytochemistry. Blast cells were identified as belonging to the erythroblastic line by their ultrastructural features: glycogen deposits, lipidic vacuoles, cytoplasmic ferritin molecules and rhopheocytotic invagination. Moreover, blast cells were surrounding a central macrophage. Thus, these two patients had acute erythroblastic leukemia which differs from erythroleukemia (M6 of FAB classification) in which blast cells present myeloblastic characteristics.

Decursin and PDBu: two PKC activators distinctively acting in the megakaryocytic differentiation of K562 human erythroleukemia cells.

PubMed

Kim, Hyeon Ho; Ahn, Kyung Seop; Han, Hogyu; Choung, Se Young; Choi, Sang-Yun; Kim, Ik-Hwan

2005-12-01

Protein kinase C (PKC) plays an important role in the proliferation and differentiation of various cell types including normal and leukemic hematopoietic cells. Phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (PDBu) induces the megakaryocytic differentiation of K562 human erythroleukemia cells through PKC activation. Decursin, a pyranocoumarin from Angelica gigas, exhibits the cytotoxic effects on various human cancer cell lines and in vitro PKC activation. We report here the differences between two PKC activators, tumor-suppressing decursin and tumor-promoting PDBu, in their actions on the megakaryocytic differentiation of K562 cells. First of all, decursin inhibited PDBu-induced bleb formation in K562 cells. Decursin also inhibited the PDBu-induced megakaryocytic differentiation of K562 cells that is characterized by an increase in substrate adhesion, the secretion of granulocyte/macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), and the surface expression of integrin beta3. The binding of PDBu to PKC was competitively inhibited by decursin. Decursin induced the more rapid down-regulation of PKC alpha and betaII isozymes than that induced by PDBu in K562 cells. Unlike PDBu, decursin promoted the translocation of PKC alpha and betaII to the nuclear membrane. Decursin-induced faster down-regulation and nuclear translocation of PKC alpha and betaII were not affected by the presence of PDBu. All these results indicate that decursin and phorbol ester are PKC activators distinctively acting in megakaryocytic differentiation and PKC modulation in K562 leukemia cells.

Design of retrovirus vectors for transfer and expression of the human. beta. -globin gene

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Miller, A.D.; Bender, M.A.; Harris, E.A.S.

1988-11-01

Regulated expression of the human ..beta..-globin gene has been demonstrated in cultured murine erythroleukemia cells and in mice after retrovirus-mediated gene transfer. However, the low titer of recombinant viruses described to date results in relatively inefficient gene transfer, which limits their usefulness for animal studies and for potential gene therapy in humans for diseases involving defective ..beta..-globin genes. The authors found regions that interfered with virus production within intron 2 of the ..beta..-globin gene and on both sides of the gene. The flanking regions could be removed, but intron 2 was required for ..beta..-globin expression. Inclusion of ..beta..-globin introns necessitatesmore » an antisense orientation of the gene within the retrovirus vector. However, they found no effect of the antisense ..beta..-globin transcription on virus production. A region downstream of the ..beta..-globin gene that stimulates expression of the gene in transgenic mice was included in the viruses without detrimental effects on virus titer. Virus titers of over 10/sup 6/ CFU/ml were obtained with the final vector design, which retained the ability to direct regulated expression of human ..beta..-globin in murine erythroleukemia cells. The vector also allowed transfer and expression of the human ..beta..-globin gene in hematopoietic cells (CFU-S cells) in mice.« less

Acute erythroid leukemia as defined in the World Health Organization classification is a rare and pathogenetically heterogeneous disease.

PubMed

Kasyan, Armen; Medeiros, L Jeffrey; Zuo, Zhuang; Santos, Favio P; Ravandi-Kashani, Farhad; Miranda, Roberto; Vadhan-Raj, Saroj; Koeppen, Hartmut; Bueso-Ramos, Carlos E

2010-08-01

The diagnostic criteria for acute erythroid leukemia have been controversial since this disease was initially described. Using the current World Health Organization classification criteria, we retrospectively reviewed cases of acute myeloid leukemia or myelodysplastic syndrome in which erythroid precursors were >or=50% of the bone marrow nucleated cell population and the diagnosis of erythroleukemia was considered using older classification schemes. We collected 90 cases and separated them into four diagnostic groups: acute erythroid leukemia, erythroleukemia or erythroid/myeloid type (n=20); acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplasia-related changes (n=22); therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia (n=32); and refractory anemia with excess blasts and preceding or concurrent history of erythropoietin therapy for anemia (n=16). Patients with acute erythroid leukemia were the youngest patient group and had the best overall survival. There was a statistically significant difference in overall survival between patients with acute erythroid leukemia versus acute myeloid leukemia with myelodysplasia-related changes (P=0.003) and between patients with acute erythroid leukemia versus therapy-related acute myeloid leukemia (P<0.0001). The presence of complex cytogenetic abnormalities (>3) was the only statistically significant independent variable that adversely affected survival in the acute erythroid leukemia group. Monosomy 5/del(5q) and monosomy 7/del(7q) were overrepresented in the context of complex chromosomal abnormalities. Our data suggest that acute erythroid leukemia, as currently defined in the World Health Organization classification, has become a rare disease. A majority of the cases reported previously as erythroleukemia are now classified as other entities. In addition, our data suggest that the current definition of acute erythroid leukemia, erythroleukemia type remains heterogeneous. One subset of acute erythroid leukemia patients has relatively low blast counts and are diploid. The prognosis of this patient subset is relatively good. The other subset has cytogenetic abnormalities similar to those in myelodysplastic syndromes and a poor prognosis.

Expression of the transcription factor Evi-1 in human erythroleukemia cell lines and in leukemias.

PubMed

Fontenay-Roupie, M; Bouscary, D; Melle, J; Viguié, F; Picard, F; Guesnu, M; Dreyfus, F

1997-02-01

The Evi-1 proto-oncogene is a zinc finger DNA binding protein. Although activation of the Evi-1 gene has been associated with chromosomal rearrangements of the 3q25-q28 region, ectopic expression of Evi-1 could also be observed in acute myelogenous leukemias and myelodysplastic syndromes without cytogenetic abnormalities of the 3q26 locus. In this study, human erythroleukemic cell lines were screened for the expression of Evi-1 mRNA by northern blotting. Evi-1 was expressed in all the erythroid cell lines, whether undifferentiated (K 562, HEL, LAMA 84) or exhibiting spontaneous terminal erythroid differentiation (KU 812, JK-1). Evi-1 mRNA levels were constant or elevated in hemoglobin-synthesizing KU 812 or K 562 cells in response to erythropoietin or hemin treatment, respectively. In human acute myeloblastic leukemias (AML), 11/30 expressed Evi-1 by RT-PCR. Among these cases, 4/6 erythroleukemias without abnormalities of the 3q25-q28 region were found positive. The presence of acidophilic erythroblasts (15-47% of bone marrow cells) accounted for the existence of a terminal erythroid differentiation in all Evi-1-positive AML M6, whereas one negative case was poorly differentiated and referred to as AML M6 variant. These results suggest that Evi-1 mRNA expression can coexist with erythroid differentiation.

Co-culture of stromal and erythroleukemia cells in a perfused hollow fiber bioreactor system as an in vitro bone marrow model for myeloid leukemia.

PubMed

Usuludin, Suaidah Binte Mohamed; Cao, Xue; Lim, Mayasari

2012-05-01

We have developed a hematopoietic co-culture system using the hollow fiber bioreactor (HFBR) as a potential in vitro bone marrow model for evaluating leukemia. Supporting stroma using HS-5 cells was established in HFBR system and the current bioprocess configuration yielded an average glucose consumption of 640 mg/day and an average protein concentration of 6.40 mg/mL in the extracapillary space over 28 days. Co-culture with erythroleukemia K562 cells was used as a model for myelo-leukemic cell proliferation and differentiation. Two distinct localizations of K562 cells (loosely adhered and adherent cells) were identified and characterized after 2 weeks. The HFBR co-culture resulted in greater leukemic cell expansion (3,130 fold vs. 43 fold) compared to a standard tissue culture polystyrene (TCP) culture. Majority of expanded cells (68%) in HFBR culture were the adherent population, highlighting the importance of cell-cell contact for myelo-leukemic proliferation. Differentiation tendencies in TCP favored maturation toward monocyte and erythrocyte lineages but maintained a pool of myeloid progenitors. In contrast, HFBR co-culture exhibited greater lineage diversity, stimulating monocytic and megakaryocytic differentiation while inhibiting erythroid maturation. With the extensive stromal expansion capacity on hollow fiber surfaces, the HFBR system is able to achieve high cell densities and 3D cell-cell contacts mimicking the bone marrow microenvironment. The proposed in vitro system represents a dynamic and highly scalable 3D co-culture platform for the study of cell-stroma dependent hematopoietic/leukemic cell functions and ex vivo expansion. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Adsorption and transport of charged vs. neutral hydrophobic molecules at the membrane of murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells.

PubMed

Zeng, Jia; Eckenrode, Heather M; Dai, Hai-Lung; Wilhelm, Michael J

2015-03-01

The adsorption and transport of hydrophobic molecules at the membrane surface of pre- and post-DMSO induced differentiated murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells were examined by time- and wavelength-resolved second harmonic light scattering. Two medium (<600 Da) hydrophobic molecules, cationic malachite green (MG) and neutral bromocresol purple (BCP), were investigated. While it was observed that the MG cation adsorbs onto the surface of the MEL cell, neutral BCP does not. It is suggested that an electrostatic interaction between the opposite charges of the cation and the MEL cell surface is the primary driving force for adsorption. Comparisons of adsorption density and free energy, measured at different pH and cell morphology, indicate that the interaction is predominantly through sialic acid carboxyl groups. MG cation adsorption densities have been determined as (0.6±0.3)×10(6) μm(-2) on the surface of undifferentiated MEL cells, and (1.8±0.5)×10(7) μm(-2) on differentiated MEL cells, while the deduced adsorption free energies are effectively identical (ca. -10.9±0.1 and -10.8±0.1 kcal mol(-1), respectively). The measured MG densities indicate that the total number of surface carboxyl groups is largely conserved following differentiation, and therefore the density of carboxylic groups is much larger on the differentiated cell surface than the undifferentiated one. Finally, in contrast to synthetic liposomes and bacterial membranes, surface adsorbed MG cations are unable to traverse the MEL cell membrane. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Activation of the N-Terminally Truncated Form of the Stk Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Sf-Stk by Friend Virus-Encoded gp55 Is Mediated by Cysteine Residues in the Ecotropic Domain of gp55 and the Extracellular Domain of Sf-Stk ▿

PubMed Central

He, Shihan; Ni, Shuang; Hegde, Shailaja; Wang, Xin; Sharda, Daniel R.; August, Avery; Paulson, Robert F.; Hankey, Pamela A.

2010-01-01

Friend virus induces an erythroleukemia in susceptible mice that is initiated by the interaction of the Friend virus-encoded glycoprotein gp55 with the erythropoietin (Epo) receptor and the product of the host Fv2 gene, a naturally occurring truncated form of the Stk receptor tyrosine kinase (Sf-Stk). We have previously demonstrated that the activation of Sf-Stk, recruitment of a Grb2/Gab2/Stat3 signaling complex, and induction of Pu.1 expression by Stat3 are required for the development of the early stage of Friend disease both in vitro and in vivo. Here we demonstrate that the interaction of gp55 with Sf-Stk is dependent on cysteine residues in the ecotropic domain of gp55 and the extracellular domain of Sf-Stk. Point mutation of these cysteine residues or deletion of these domains inhibits the ability of gp55 to interact with Sf-Stk, resulting in the inability of these proteins to promote the Epo-independent growth of erythroid progenitor cells. We also demonstrate that the interaction of gp55 with Sf-Stk does not promote dimerization of Sf-Stk but results in enhanced phosphorylation of Sf-Stk and the relocalization of Sf-Stk from the cytosol to the plasma membrane. Finally, we demonstrate that a constitutively active form of Sf-Stk (Sf-StkM330T), as well as its human counterpart, Sf-Ron, promotes Epo-independent colony formation in the absence of gp55 and that this response is also dependent on the cysteines in the extracellular domains of Sf-StkM330T and Sf-Ron. These data suggest that the cysteines in the extracellular domains of Sf-Stk and Sf-Ron may also mediate the interaction of these truncated receptors with other cellular factors that regulate their ability to promote cytokine-independent growth. PMID:20016000

DNA replication fading as proliferating cells advance in their commitment to terminal differentiation.

PubMed

Estefanía, Monturus Ma; Ganier, Olivier; Hernández, Pablo; Schvartzman, Jorge B; Mechali, Marcel; Krimer, Dora B

2012-01-01

Terminal differentiation is the process by which cycling cells stop proliferating to start new specific functions. It involves dramatic changes in chromatin organization as well as gene expression. In the present report we used cell flow cytometry and genome wide DNA combing to investigate DNA replication during murine erythroleukemia-induced terminal cell differentiation. The results obtained indicated that the rate of replication fork movement slows down and the inter-origin distance becomes shorter during the precommitment and commitment periods before cells stop proliferating and accumulate in G1. We propose this is a general feature caused by the progressive heterochromatinization that characterizes terminal cell differentiation.

A novel LSD1 inhibitor NCD38 ameliorates MDS-related leukemia with complex karyotype by attenuating leukemia programs via activating super-enhancers.

PubMed

Sugino, N; Kawahara, M; Tatsumi, G; Kanai, A; Matsui, H; Yamamoto, R; Nagai, Y; Fujii, S; Shimazu, Y; Hishizawa, M; Inaba, T; Andoh, A; Suzuki, T; Takaori-Kondo, A

2017-11-01

Lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1) regulates gene expression by affecting histone modifications and is a promising target for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with specific genetic abnormalities. Novel LSD1 inhibitors, NCD25 and NCD38, inhibited growth of MLL-AF9 leukemia as well as erythroleukemia, megakaryoblastic leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDSs) overt leukemia cells in the concentration range that normal hematopoiesis was spared. NCD25 and NCD38 invoked the myeloid development programs, hindered the MDS and AML oncogenic programs, and commonly upregulated 62 genes in several leukemia cells. NCD38 elevated H3K27ac level on enhancers of these LSD1 signature genes and newly activated ~500 super-enhancers. Upregulated genes with super-enhancer activation in erythroleukemia cells were enriched in leukocyte differentiation. Eleven genes including GFI1 and ERG, but not CEBPA, were identified as the LSD1 signature with super-enhancer activation. Super-enhancers of these genes were activated prior to induction of the transcripts and myeloid differentiation. Depletion of GFI1 attenuated myeloid differentiation by NCD38. Finally, a single administration of NCD38 causes the in vivo eradication of primary MDS-related leukemia cells with a complex karyotype. Together, NCD38 derepresses super-enhancers of hematopoietic regulators that are silenced abnormally by LSD1, attenuates leukemogenic programs and consequently exerts anti-leukemic effect against MDS-related leukemia with adverse outcome.

Acute erythroid leukemia.

PubMed

Zuo, Zhuang; Polski, Jacek M; Kasyan, Armen; Medeiros, L Jeffrey

2010-09-01

Acute erythroid leukemia (AEL) is an uncommon type of acute myeloid leukemia (AML), representing less than 5% of all cases. Acute erythroid leukemia is characterized by a predominant erythroid proliferation, and in the current World Health Organization (WHO) classification scheme there are 2 subtypes: erythroleukemia (erythroid/myeloid leukemia) and pure erythroid leukemia. Morphologic findings are most important for establishing the diagnosis. The erythroleukemia subtype, which is most common, is defined as the presence of 50% or more erythroid precursors and 20% or more blasts in the nonerythroid component. The pure erythroid leukemia subtype is composed of 80% or more immature erythroblasts. Although these morphologic criteria appear straightforward, AEL overlaps with other types of AML and myelodysplastic syndrome that are erythroid rich. To provide an update of AEL, including clinical presentation, morphologic features, immunophenotype, and cytogenetic and molecular data. As the erythroleukemia subtype is most common, the literature and this review are biased towards this subtype of AEL. Clinicopathologic, cytogenetic, and molecular information were extracted from our review of pertinent literature and a subset of AEL cases in the files of The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (Houston) and University of South Alabama (Mobile). The current WHO criteria for establishing the diagnosis of AEL reduce the frequency of this entity, as cases once classified as the erythroleukemia subtype are now reclassified as other types of AML, particularly AML with myelodysplasia-related changes and therapy-related AML. This reclassification also may have prognostic significance for patients with the erythroleukemia subtype of AEL. In contrast, the current WHO criteria appear to have little impact on the frequency and poor prognosis of patients with the pure erythroid leukemia subtype of AEL. Molecular studies, preferably using high-throughput methods, are needed for a better understanding of the pathogenesis of AEL, and for developing diagnostic and prognostic markers.

The natural history of trilinear myelodysplastic syndrome and erythroleukemia.

PubMed

Michiels, J J; van der Meulen, J; Brederoo, P

1997-01-01

A case of Di Guglielmo's syndrome passed through the three stages of chronic erythromyelosis, erythroleukemia and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). According to the FAB classification the subsequent stages of this syndrome were refractory anemia (RA), RA with excess of blasts (RAEB), AML-M6, AML-M2 and undifferentiated AML-MO as the end-stage disease. Light- and electronmicroscopice findings on peripheral blood and bone marrow slides showed a pronounced trilineage myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) during the RA, RAEB, AML-M6 and M2 phases of the disease, i.e. dysplastic erythropoiesis with PAS-positive erythroblasts, agranular and hypogranular neutrophils and dysplastic megakaryocytes. It is concluded that this case of Di Guglielmo's syndrome with chronic erythromyelosis, erythroleukemia and AML appears to be a continuum of trilineage MDS, AML-M6 and M2 with dyserythropoiesis which evolved into AML-M0.

Further considerations on the thermal stabilization of the nuclear matrix in mouse erythroleukemia cells.

PubMed

Martelli, A M; Falcieri, E; Gobbi, P; Manzoli, L; Cataldi, A; Rana, R A; Cocco, L

1992-04-01

The morphology and the polypeptide composition of the nuclear matrix obtained from 37 degrees C incubated nuclei has been studied in mouse erythroleukemia cells. From a structural point of view, in the absence of heat treatment, the matrix lacked identifiable nucleolar remnants and the internal fibrogranular meshwork whereas a peripheral lamina was seen. On the contrary, the matrix obtained from heat exposed nuclei displayed very electrondense nucleolar remnants and an abundant inner network. These results were obtained irrespective of the type of extracting agent (2M NaCl or 0.2 M (NH4)2SO4) used to remove histones and other soluble proteins. The heat stabilization of the matrix could not be prevented by sulfhydryl blocking chemicals such as iodoacetamide and n-ethylmaleimide, thus suggesting that heat does not stabilize the matrix by inducing the formation of disulfide bonds. Only limited differences in the polypeptide pattern of matrix isolated under different conditions were seen using one-dimensional pore gradient polyacrylamide gels stained with both Coomassie Brilliant Blue and silver despite the fact that the matrix fraction from heat treated nuclei retained about three fold more protein in comparison with controls. The same results were obtained also by means of two-dimensional non-equilibrium gel electrophoresis.

Cyclophosphamide for Prevention of Graft-Versus-Host Disease After Allogeneic Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation in Patients With Hematological Malignancies

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-05-17

Accelerated Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Nasal Type Extranodal NK/T-cell Lymphoma; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Angioimmunoblastic T-cell Lymphoma; Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Burkitt Lymphoma; Childhood Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Childhood Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Childhood Immunoblastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Childhood Nasal Type Extranodal NK/T-cell Lymphoma; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Chronic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Cutaneous B-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Extranodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue; Hepatosplenic T-cell Lymphoma; Intraocular Lymphoma; Nodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma; Noncutaneous Extranodal Lymphoma; Peripheral T-cell Lymphoma; Philadelphia Chromosome Negative Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Post-transplant Lymphoproliferative Disorder; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Burkitt Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Mixed Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Small Cleaved Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Grade III Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis; Recurrent Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Immunoblastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Lymphoblastic Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult T-cell Leukemia/Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Grade III Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis; Recurrent Childhood Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Lymphoblastic Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Small Noncleaved Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Cutaneous T-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 1 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 2 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 3 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Mantle Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Recurrent Mycosis Fungoides/Sezary Syndrome; Recurrent Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma; Recurrent/Refractory Childhood Hodgkin Lymphoma; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Small Intestine Lymphoma; Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Stage III Multiple Myeloma; Testicular Lymphoma; Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

Cloning, sequencing and expression in MEL cells of a cDNA encoding the mouse ribosomal protein S5.

PubMed

Vanegas, N; Castañeda, V; Santamaría, D; Hernández, P; Schvartzman, J B; Krimer, D B

1997-06-05

We describe the isolation and characterization of a cDNA encoding the mouse S5 ribosomal protein. It was isolated from a MEL (murine erythroleukemia) cell cDNA library by differential hybridization as a down regulated sequence during HMBA-induced differentiation. Northern series analysis showed that S5 mRNA expression is reduced 5-fold throughout the differentiation process. The mouse S5 mRNA is 760 bp long and encodes for a 204 amino acid protein with 94% homology with the human and rat S5.

Posttranslational stability of the heme biosynthetic enzyme ferrochelatase is dependent on iron availability and intact iron-sulfur cluster assembly machinery

PubMed Central

Crooks, Daniel R.; Ghosh, Manik C.; Haller, Ronald G.; Tong, Wing-Hang

2010-01-01

Mammalian ferrochelatase, the terminal enzyme in the heme biosynthetic pathway, possesses an iron-sulfur [2Fe-2S] cluster that does not participate in catalysis. We investigated ferrochelatase expression in iron-deficient erythropoietic tissues of mice lacking iron regulatory protein 2, in iron-deficient murine erythroleukemia cells, and in human patients with ISCU myopathy. Ferrochelatase activity and protein levels were dramatically decreased in Irp2−/− spleens, whereas ferrochelatase mRNA levels were increased, demonstrating posttranscriptional regulation of ferrochelatase in vivo. Translation of ferrochelatase mRNA was unchanged in iron-depleted murine erythroleukemia cells, and the stability of mature ferrochelatase protein was also unaffected. However, the stability of newly formed ferrochelatase protein was dramatically decreased during iron deficiency. Ferrochelatase was also severely depleted in muscle biopsies and cultured myoblasts from patients with ISCU myopathy, a disease caused by deficiency of a scaffold protein required for Fe-S cluster assembly. Together, these data suggest that decreased Fe-S cluster availability because of cellular iron depletion or impaired Fe-S cluster assembly causes reduced maturation and stabilization of apo-ferrochelatase, providing a direct link between Fe-S biogenesis and completion of heme biosynthesis. We propose that decreased heme biosynthesis resulting from impaired Fe-S cluster assembly can contribute to the pathogenesis of diseases caused by defective Fe-S cluster biogenesis. PMID:19965627

Antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of propolis of Plebeia droryana and Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera, Apidae) from the Brazilian Cerrado biome.

PubMed

Bonamigo, Thaliny; Campos, Jaqueline Ferreira; Oliveira, Alex Santos; Torquato, Heron Fernandes Vieira; Balestieri, José Benedito Perrella; Cardoso, Claudia Andrea Lima; Paredes-Gamero, Edgar Julian; de Picoli Souza, Kely; Dos Santos, Edson Lucas

2017-01-01

Propolis is a complex bioactive mixture produced by bees, known to have different biological activities, especially in countries where there is a rich biodiversity of plant species. The objective of this study was to determine the chemical composition and evaluate the antioxidant and cytotoxic properties of Brazilian propolis from the species Plebeia droryana and Apis mellifera found in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. In the ethanolic extracts of P. droryana propolis (ExEP-P) and A. mellifera (ExEP-A) acids, phenolic compounds, terpenes and tocopherol were identified as major compounds. Both extracts presented antioxidant activity against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical, the maximum activities being 500 μg/mL (ExEP-P) and 300 μg/mL (ExEP-A). However, only ExEP-A was able to inhibit lipid peroxidation induced by the oxidizing agent 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH), which inhibited oxidative hemolysis and reduced the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) in human erythrocytes for 4 h of incubation. The extracts also reduced the cell viability of the K562 erythroleukemia tumour line, with a predominance of necrotic death. Thus, it is concluded that the propolis produced by P. droryana and A. mellifera contain important compounds capable of minimizing the action of oxidizing substances in the organism and reducing the viability of erythroleukemia cells.

Antioxidant and cytotoxic activity of propolis of Plebeia droryana and Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera, Apidae) from the Brazilian Cerrado biome

PubMed Central

Bonamigo, Thaliny; Campos, Jaqueline Ferreira; Oliveira, Alex Santos; Torquato, Heron Fernandes Vieira; Balestieri, José Benedito Perrella; Cardoso, Claudia Andrea Lima; Paredes-Gamero, Edgar Julian; de Picoli Souza, Kely

2017-01-01

Propolis is a complex bioactive mixture produced by bees, known to have different biological activities, especially in countries where there is a rich biodiversity of plant species. The objective of this study was to determine the chemical composition and evaluate the antioxidant and cytotoxic properties of Brazilian propolis from the species Plebeia droryana and Apis mellifera found in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. In the ethanolic extracts of P. droryana propolis (ExEP-P) and A. mellifera (ExEP-A) acids, phenolic compounds, terpenes and tocopherol were identified as major compounds. Both extracts presented antioxidant activity against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical, the maximum activities being 500 μg/mL (ExEP-P) and 300 μg/mL (ExEP-A). However, only ExEP-A was able to inhibit lipid peroxidation induced by the oxidizing agent 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride (AAPH), which inhibited oxidative hemolysis and reduced the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) in human erythrocytes for 4 h of incubation. The extracts also reduced the cell viability of the K562 erythroleukemia tumour line, with a predominance of necrotic death. Thus, it is concluded that the propolis produced by P. droryana and A. mellifera contain important compounds capable of minimizing the action of oxidizing substances in the organism and reducing the viability of erythroleukemia cells. PMID:28898258

Replication-defective Friend murine leukemia virus particles containing uncleaved gag polyproteins and decreased levels of envelope glycoprotein.

PubMed Central

Collins, J K; Chesebro, B

1981-01-01

An erythroleukemia cell clone, 7C, which failed to produce reverse transcriptase-containing virions or infectious virus, was found to produce noninfectious virus particles by gradient banding of [3H]leucine- and [3H]uridine-labeled virions. The RNA from the 7C virus was shown to consist of the normal 70S size component, which converted to 35S upon heat denaturation. In contrast, the 7C virion proteins showed multiple defects. Analysis of the virion proteins by gel electrophoresis demonstrated that the pr65 gag precursor was incorporated into the 7C virus and that the processing of this precursor was severely diminished. Polymerase proteins pr180gag-pol and pr120pol were also detected in virions, and a third possible polymerase protein, p70, was reduced in size compared to its normal counterpart, p80. Incorporation of the viral gp70 glycoprotein into particles was also reduced 10-fold, despite synthesis and incorporation of gp70 into the 7C cell membrane in normal amounts. Pulse-chase analysis of the synthesis of the viral gag and env proteins in 7C cells showed greatly reduced amounts of pr180gag-pol, pr65gag, p80gag, and p42gag, whereas pr90env, gp70, and spleen focus-forming virus-specific gp55 were synthesized and processed normally. These results suggested that at least one defect in 7C virus was impaired cleavage of gag or pol proteins or both, most likely due to a lack of the appropriate viral protease, and that this lack of cleavage might affect incorporation of gp70 into virus particles. Images PMID:6163868

Hexamethylenebisacetamide (HMBA) is a growth factor for human, ovine and porcine thyroid cells.

PubMed

Fayet, G; Amphoux-Fazekas, T; Aouani, A; Hovsépian, S

1996-03-01

Hexamethylenebisacetamide (HMBA) provokes in murine erythroleukemia cells (MELC) a commitment to terminal differentiation leading to the activation of the expression of hemoglobin. HMBA has been tested also in other cells from colon cancer, melanoma or lung cancer. However it has not yet been tested in the thyroid. We demonstrate in this paper that HMBA in kinetics and concentration-response experiments increases the proliferation of human thyroid cells isolated from Graves'-Basedow patients. It also acts like a growth factor for ovine and porcine thyroid cells, respectively, from the OVNIS line and the ATHOS line. This molecule which is a differentiating factor in the MELC system and a growth factor in human thyroid cell cultures represents a potential to get human thyroid cell lines expressing specialized functions.

Basal cell adhesion molecule/lutheran protein. The receptor critical for sickle cell adhesion to laminin.

PubMed Central

Udani, M; Zen, Q; Cottman, M; Leonard, N; Jefferson, S; Daymont, C; Truskey, G; Telen, M J

1998-01-01

Sickle red cells bind significant amounts of soluble laminin, whereas normal red cells do not. Solid phase assays demonstrate that B-CAM/LU binds laminin on intact sickle red cells and that red cell B-CAM/LU binds immobilized laminin, whereas another putative laminin binding protein, CD44, does not. Ligand blots also identify B-CAM/LU as the only erythrocyte membrane protein(s) that binds laminin. Finally, transfection of murine erythroleukemia cells with human B-CAM cDNA induces binding of both soluble and immobilized laminin. Thus, B-CAM/LU appears to be the major laminin-binding protein of sickle red cells. Previously reported overexpression of B-CAM/LU by epithelial cancer cells suggests that this protein may also serve as a laminin receptor in malignant tumors. PMID:9616226

Induction of Erythroid Differentiation in Human Erythroleukemia Cells by Depletion of Malic Enzyme 2

PubMed Central

Everett, Peter; Clish, Clary B.; Sukhatme, Vikas P.

2010-01-01

Malic enzyme 2 (ME2) is a mitochondrial enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of malate to pyruvate and CO2 and uses NAD as a cofactor. Higher expression of this enzyme correlates with the degree of cell de-differentiation. We found that ME2 is expressed in K562 erythroleukemia cells, in which a number of agents have been found to induce differentiation either along the erythroid or the myeloid lineage. We found that knockdown of ME2 led to diminished proliferation of tumor cells and increased apoptosis in vitro. These findings were accompanied by differentiation of K562 cells along the erythroid lineage, as confirmed by staining for glycophorin A and hemoglobin production. ME2 knockdown also totally abolished growth of K562 cells in nude mice. Increased ROS levels, likely reflecting increased mitochondrial production, and a decreased NADPH/NADP+ ratio were noted but use of a free radical scavenger to decrease inhibition of ROS levels did not reverse the differentiation or apoptotic phenotype, suggesting that ROS production is not causally involved in the resultant phenotype. As might be expected, depletion of ME2 induced an increase in the NAD+/NADH ratio and ATP levels fell significantly. Inhibition of the malate-aspartate shuttle was insufficient to induce K562 differentiation. We also examined several intracellular signaling pathways and expression of transcription factors and intermediate filament proteins whose expression is known to be modulated during erythroid differentiation in K562 cells. We found that silencing of ME2 leads to phospho-ERK1/2 inhibition, phospho-AKT activation, increased GATA-1 expression and diminished vimentin expression. Metabolomic analysis, conducted to gain insight into intermediary metabolic pathways that ME2 knockdown might affect, showed that ME2 depletion resulted in high orotate levels, suggesting potential impairment of pyrimidine metabolism. Collectively our data point to ME2 as a potentially novel metabolic target for leukemia therapy. PMID:20824065

Attenuated and Replication-Competent Vaccinia Virus Strains M65 and M101 with Distinct Biology and Immunogenicity as Potential Vaccine Candidates against Pathogens

PubMed Central

Sánchez-Sampedro, Lucas; Gómez, Carmen Elena; Mejías-Pérez, Ernesto; Pérez-Jiménez, Eva; Oliveros, Juan Carlos

2013-01-01

Replication-competent poxvirus vectors with an attenuation phenotype and with a high immunogenic capacity of the foreign expressed antigen are being pursued as novel vaccine vectors against different pathogens. In this investigation, we have examined the replication and immunogenic characteristics of two vaccinia virus (VACV) mutants, M65 and M101. These mutants were generated after 65 and 101 serial passages of persistently infected Friend erythroleukemia (FEL) cells. In cultured cells of different origins, the mutants are replication competent and have growth kinetics similar to or slightly reduced in comparison with those of the parental Western Reserve (WR) virus strain. In normal and immune-suppressed infected mice, the mutants showed different levels of attenuation and pathogenicity in comparison with WR and modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) strains. Wide genome analysis after deep sequencing revealed selected genomic deletions and mutations in a number of viral open reading frames (ORFs). Mice immunized in a DNA prime/mutant boost regimen with viral vectors expressing the LACK (Leishmania homologue for receptors of activated C kinase) antigen of Leishmania infantum showed protection or a delay in the onset of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Protection was similar to that triggered by MVA-LACK. In immunized mice, both polyfunctional CD4+ and CD8+ T cells with an effector memory phenotype were activated by the two mutants, but the DNA-LACK/M65-LACK protocol preferentially induced CD4+ whereas DNA-LACK/M101-LACK preferentially induced CD8+ T cell responses. Altogether, our findings showed the adaptive changes of the WR genome during long-term virus-host cell interaction and how the replication competency of M65 and M101 mutants confers distinct biological properties and immunogenicity in mice compared to those of the MVA strain. These mutants could have applicability for understanding VACV biology and as potential vaccine vectors against pathogens and tumors. PMID:23596295

Involvement of PKC and ROS in the cytotoxic mechanism of anti-leukemic decursin and its derivatives and their structure-activity relationship in human K562 erythroleukemia and U937 myeloleukemia cells.

PubMed

Kim, Hyeon Ho; Sik Bang, Sung; Seok Choi, Jin; Han, Hogyu; Kim, Ik-Hwan

2005-06-08

Protein kinase C (PKC) plays an important role in the proliferation and differentiation of various cell types including normal and leukemic hematopoietic cells. Recently, various PKC modulators were used as a chemotherapeutic agent of leukemia. Decursin (1), a pyranocoumarin from Angelica gigas, exhibits the cytotoxic effects on various human cancer cell lines and in vitro PKC activation. For the development of more effective anticancer agents with PKC modulation activity, 11 decursin derivatives 2-12 were chemically synthesized and evaluated for their ability to act as a tumor-suppressing PKC activator and as an antagonist to phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), a tumor-promoting PKC activator. In the presence of phosphatidylserine (PS), all of 12 compounds 1-12 activated PKC (mainly alpha, beta, and gamma isozymes) but only three compounds 1-3 activated PKC even in the absence of PS. Six compounds 1-6 containing the coumarin structure were cytotoxic to human K562 erythroleukemia and U937 myeloleukemia cells. A cytotoxic mechanism of decursin and its derivatives was investigated using TUR cells, a PKC betaII-deficient variant of U937 cells. Among six compounds 1-6 with cytotoxicity to K562 and U937 leukemia cells, only three compounds 1-3 were cytotoxic to TUR cells. Therefore, compounds 1-3 and 4-6 inhibit the proliferation of leukemia cells in a PKC betaII-independent and dependent manner, respectively, indicating that the side chain of compounds determines the dependency of their cytotoxicity on PKC betaII. To further elucidate the cytotoxic mechanism of compounds 1 and 2, levels of PKC isozymes and generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) were investigated. Compounds 1-2 induced the down-regulation of PKC alpha and betaII in K562 cells and the production of ROS in U937 cells. Thus, PKC and ROS are probably important factors in the cytotoxic mechanism of compounds 1-2. From these results, the structure-activity relationship of decursin and its derivatives is as follows: (i) the coumarin structure is required for anti-leukemic activity and (ii) the side chain is a determinant of PKC activation and the cytotoxic mechanism in leukemia cells.

Influence of different metal ions on the ultrastructure, biochemical properties, and protein localization of the K562 cell nuclear matrix.

PubMed

Neri, L M; Bortul, R; Zweyer, M; Tabellini, G; Borgatti, P; Marchisio, M; Bareggi, R; Capitani, S; Martelli, A M

1999-06-01

The higher order of chromatin organization is thought to be determined by the nuclear matrix, a mainly proteinaceous structure that would act as a nucleoskeleton. The matrix is obtained from isolated nuclei by a series of extraction steps involving the use of high salt and nonspecific nucleases, which remove chromatin and other loosely bound components. It is currently under debate whether these structures, isolated in vitro by unphysiological extraction buffers, correspond to a nucleoskeleton existing in vivo. In most cell types investigated, the nuclear matrix does not spontaneously resist these extractions steps; rather, it must be stabilized before the application of extracting agents. In this study nuclei, isolated from K562 human erythroleukemia cells, were stabilized by incubation with different metal ions (Ca2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, Cd2+), and the matrix was obtained by extraction with 2 M NaCl. By means of ultrastructural analysis of the resulting structures, we determined that, except for Ca2+, all the other metals induced a stabilization of the matrix, which retained the inner fibrogranular network and residual nucleoli. The biochemical composition, analyzed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis separation, exhibited a distinct matrix polypeptide pattern, characteristic of each type of stabilizing ion employed. We also investigated to what extent metal ions could maintain in the final structures the original distribution of three inner matrix components, i.e. NuMA, topoisomerase IIalpha, and RNP. Confocal microscopy analysis showed that only NuMa, and, to a lesser extent, topoisomerase IIalpha, were unaffected by stabilization with divalent ions. On the contrary, the fluorescent RNP patterns detected in the resulting matrices were always disarranged, irrespective of the stabilization procedure. These results indicate that several metal ions are powerful stabilizing agents of the nuclear matrix prepared from K562 erythroleukemia cells and also strengthen the concept that NuMA and topoisomerase IIalpha may act as structural components of the nuclear matrix.

Inhibitory effects of physalin B and physalin F on various human leukemia cells in vitro.

PubMed

Chiang, H C; Jaw, S M; Chen, P M

1992-01-01

Physalins B and F were isolated and characterized from the ethanolic extract of the whole plant of Physalis angulata L. (Solanaceae). Both physalin B and physalin F inhibited the growth of several human leukemia cells: K562 (erythroleukemia), APM1840 (acute T lymphoid leukemia), HL-60 (acute promyelocytic leukemia), KG-1 (acute myeloid leukemia), CTV1 (acute monocytic leukemia) and B cell (acute B lymphoid leukemia). Physalin F showed a stronger activity against these leukemia cells than physalin B, especially against acute myeloid leukemia (KG-1) and acute B lymphoid leukemia (B cell). From the structural features, the active site seems to be the functional epoxy group for physalin F and the double bond for physalin B located at carbon 5 and 6; the former is much more active than the latter as regards anti-leukemic effects.

Donor Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cell Transplant in Treating Patients With Hematologic Malignancies

ClinicalTrials.gov

2015-12-18

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Nasal Type Extranodal NK/T-cell Lymphoma; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); B-cell Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; B-cell Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Burkitt Lymphoma; Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Childhood Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Childhood Immunoblastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Childhood Nasal Type Extranodal NK/T-cell Lymphoma; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Chronic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Cutaneous B-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Extranodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue; Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, Unclassifiable; Nodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Prolymphocytic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Burkitt Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Mixed Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Small Cleaved Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Grade III Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis; Recurrent Adult Immunoblastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Lymphoblastic Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Grade III Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis; Recurrent Childhood Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Lymphoblastic Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Small Noncleaved Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Cutaneous T-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 1 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 2 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 3 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Mantle Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Recurrent Mycosis Fungoides/Sezary Syndrome; Recurrent Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma; Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Secondary Myelofibrosis; Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Stage I Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Stage II Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Stage III Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Stage IV Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; T-cell Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; T-cell Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; T-cell Large Granular Lymphocyte Leukemia; Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia

Regulation of synthesis and activity of NAD(+)-dependent 15-hydroxy-prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) by dexamethasone and phorbol ester in human erythroleukemia (HEL) cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Xun, C.Q.; Ensor, C.M.; Tai, H.H.

1991-06-28

Dexamethasone stimulated 15-PGDH activity in HEL cells in a time and concentration dependent manner. Increase in 15-PGDH activity by dexamethasone was found to be accompanied by an increase in enzyme synthesis as revealed by Western blot and (35S)methionine labeling studies. In addition to dexamethasone, other anti-inflammatory steroids also increased 15-PGDH activity in the order of their glucocorticoid activity. Among sex steroids only progesterone increased significantly 15-PGDH activity. 12-0-Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) also induced the synthesis of 15-PGDH but inhibited the enzyme activity. It appears that TPA caused a time dependent inactivation of 15-PGDH by a protein kinase C mediated mechanism.

Hexamethylenebisacetamide modulation of thyroglobulin and protein levels in thyroid cells is not mediated by phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase: a study with wortmannin.

PubMed

Aouani, A; Samih, N; Amphoux-Fazekas, T; Hovsépian, S; Fayet, G

1999-04-01

Hexamethylenebisacetamide (HMBA) induces in murine erythroleukemia cells (MELC) the commitment to terminal differentiation leading to globin gene expression. In the thyroid, HMBA acts as a growth factor and also as a differentiating agent. In the present paper, we studied the effect of HMBA on the very specific thyroid marker thyroglobulin (Tg) in two different thyroid cell systems, i.e., porcine cells in primary culture and ovine cells in long term culture. Using wortmannin, a specific inhibitor of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase, we investigated whether this enzyme is involved in HMBA mode of action. We found that HMBA is a positive modulator of Tg production in porcine cells, but a negative effector in the OVNIS cell line. As all HMBA effects studied in the present paper, i.e., Tg production and total protein levels, are not inhibited by wortmannin, we suggest the non-involvement of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase in HMBA mode of action.

Curcumin-Loaded Blood-Stable Polymeric Micelles for Enhancing Therapeutic Effect on Erythroleukemia.

PubMed

Gong, Feirong; Chen, Dan; Teng, Xin; Ge, Junhua; Ning, Xianfeng; Shen, Ya-Ling; Li, Jian; Wang, Shanfeng

2017-08-07

Curcumin has high potential in suppressing many types of cancer and overcoming multidrug resistance in a multifaceted manner by targeting diverse molecular targets. However, the rather low systemic bioavailability resulted from its poor solubility in water and fast metabolism/excretion in vivo has hampered its applications in cancer therapy. To increase the aqueous solubility of curcumin while retaining the stability in blood circulation, here we report curcumin-loaded copolymer micelles with excellent in vitro and in vivo stability and antitumor efficacy. The two copolymers used for comparison were methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(ε-caprolactone) (mPEG-PCL) and N-(tert-butoxycarbonyl)-l-phenylalanine end-capped mPEG-PCL (mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc)). In vitro cytotoxicity evaluation against human pancreatic SW1990 cell line showed that the delivery of curcumin in mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc) micelles to cancer cells was efficient and dosage-dependent. The pharmacokinetics in ICR mice indicated that intravenous (i.v.) administration of curcumin/mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc) micelles could retain curcumin in plasma much better than curcumin/mPEG-PCL micelles. Biodistribution results in Sprague-Dawley rats also showed higher uptake and slower elimination of curcumin into liver, lung, kidney, and brain, and lower uptake into heart and spleen of mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc) micelles, as compared with mPEG-PCL micelles. Further in vivo efficacy evaluation in multidrug-resistant human erythroleukemia K562/ADR xenograft model revealed that i.v. administration of curcumin-loaded mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc) micelles significantly delayed tumor growth, which was attributed to the improved stability of curcumin in the bloodstream and increased systemic bioavailability. The mPEG-PCL-Phe(Boc) micellar system is promising in overcoming the key challenge of curcumin's to promote its applications in cancer therapy.

Paracrine influence of human perivascular cells on the proliferation of adenocarcinoma alveolar epithelial cells.

PubMed

Kim, Eunbi; Na, Sunghun; An, Borim; Yang, Se-Ran; Kim, Woo Jin; Ha, Kwon-Soo; Han, Eun-Taek; Park, Won Sun; Lee, Chang-Min; Lee, Ji Yoon; Lee, Seung-Joon; Hong, Seok-Ho

2017-03-01

Understanding the crosstalk mechanisms between perivascular cells (PVCs) and cancer cells might be beneficial in preventing cancer development and metastasis. In this study, we investigated the paracrine influence of PVCs derived from human umbilical cords on the proliferation of lung adenocarcinoma epithelial cells (A549) and erythroleukemia cells (TF-1α and K562) in vitro using Transwell® co-culture systems. PVCs promoted the proliferation of A549 cells without inducing morphological changes, but had no effect on the proliferation of TF-1α and K562 cells. To identify the factors secreted from PVCs, conditioned media harvested from PVC cultures were analyzed by antibody arrays. We identified a set of cytokines, including persephin (PSPN), a neurotrophic factor, and a key regulator of oral squamous cell carcinoma progression. Supplementation with PSPN significantly increased the proliferation of A549 cells. These results suggested that PVCs produced a differential effect on the proliferation of cancer cells in a cell-type dependent manner. Further, secretome analyses of PVCs and the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms could facilitate the discovery of therapeutic target(s) for lung cancer.

Adult Acute Erythroleukemia: An Analysis of 108 patients treated at a single institution

PubMed Central

Santos, Fabio; Faderl, Stefan; Garcia-Manero, Guillermo; Koller, Charles; Beran, Miloslav; O'Brien, Susan; Pierce, Sherry; Freireich, Emil; Huang, Xuelin; Borthakur, Gautam; Bueso-Ramos, Carlos; de Lima, Marcos; Keating, Michael; Cortes, Jorge; Kantarjian, Hagop; Ravandi, Farhad

2014-01-01

Acute erythroleukemia (AML-M6) is an uncommon subtype of acute myeloid leukemia (AML); it is considered to have a poor prognosis. From January 1st, 1980 to May 21st, 2008, 108 patients with newly diagnosed AML-M6 were seen at the University of Texas – M.D. Anderson Cancer Center (UT-MDACC). Half (50%) had a history of myelodysplatic syndrome (MDS), compared to 41% in our control group (patients with other AML subtypes) (p=0.05). Poor risk cytogenetics was more common in patients with AML-M6 (69% versus 46%, p<0.001). Complete remission rates were 63% for patients with AML-M6, comparing to 58% for the control group (p = 0.285). Median disease free survival (DFS) for patients with AML-M6 was 31 weeks, versus 49 weeks for the control group (p = 0.004). Median overall survival (OS) of patients with AML-M6 was 33 weeks, compared to 42 weeks for the control group (p = 0.13). On multivariate analysis for DFS and OS, AML-M6 was not an independent risk factor. Acute erythroleukemia is commonly associated with a previous diagnosis of MDS and poor risk karyotype. The diagnosis of AML-M6 does not impart by itself a worse prognosis, and treatment decisions on this disease should be guided by well know AML prognostic factors. PMID:19741728

Myeloid Leukemia Factor 1 inhibits erythropoietin-induced differentiation, cell cycle exit and p27Kip1 accumulation.

PubMed

Winteringham, Louise Natalie; Kobelke, Simon; Williams, James Howard; Ingley, Evan; Klinken, Svend Peter

2004-06-24

Myeloid leukemia factor 1 (MLF1) is a novel oncoprotein involved in translocations associated with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), especially erythroleukemias. In this study, we demonstrate that ectopic expression of Mlf1 prevented J2E erythroleukemic cells from undergoing biological and morphological maturation in response to erythropoietin (Epo). We show that Mlf1 inhibited Epo-induced cell cycle exit and suppressed a rise in the cell cycle inhibitor p27(Kip1). Unlike differentiating J2E cells, Mlf1-expressing cells did not downregulate Cul1 and Skp2, components of the ubiquitin E3 ligase complex SCF(Skp2) involved in the proteasomal degradation of p27(Kip1). In contrast, Mlf1 did not interfere with increases in p27(Kip1) and terminal differentiation initiated by thyroid hormone withdrawal from erythroid cells, or cytokine-stimulated maturation of myeloid cells. These data demonstrate that Mlf1 interferes with an Epo-responsive pathway involving p27(Kip1) accumulation, which inhibits cell cycle arrest essential for erythroid terminal differentiation.

High-Dose Busulfan and High-Dose Cyclophosphamide Followed By Donor Bone Marrow Transplant in Treating Patients With Leukemia, Myelodysplastic Syndrome, Multiple Myeloma, or Recurrent Hodgkin or Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

ClinicalTrials.gov

2010-08-05

Accelerated Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With T(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With T(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With T(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (M3); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Nasal Type Extranodal NK/T-cell Lymphoma; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Angioimmunoblastic T-cell Lymphoma; Burkitt Lymphoma; Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Childhood Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (M3); Childhood Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Chronic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Cutaneous B-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; De Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Extranodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue; Hepatosplenic T-cell Lymphoma; Intraocular Lymphoma; Nodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma; Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma; Post-transplant Lymphoproliferative Disorder; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Burkitt Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Mixed Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Small Cleaved Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Grade III Lymphomatoid Granulomatosis; Recurrent Adult Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Immunoblastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Lymphoblastic Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult T-cell Leukemia/Lymphoma; Recurrent Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Cutaneous T-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 1 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 2 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 3 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Mantle Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Recurrent Mycosis Fungoides/Sezary Syndrome; Recurrent Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma; Refractory Multiple Myeloma; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Small Intestine Lymphoma; Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Testicular Lymphoma; Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia

Translocation (3;5)(q21;q34) in erythroleukemia: a molecular and in situ hybridization study.

PubMed

Kwong, Y L

1998-05-01

Translocation (3;5) is an uncommon karyotypic aberration in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). With the exception of M3, t(3;5) has been reported in every other subtype of AML, being most frequently associated with AML M6. Although a variety of breakpoints have been described, it has been suggested that the breakpoints in t(3;5) of all the reported cases should be assigned to 3q25.1 and 5q34. Recently, the breakpoints in three pediatric cases of AML M2 with t(3;5) were cloned and shown to involve the myelodysplasia/myeloid leukemia factor I (MLF1) gene on 3q25.1 and the nucleophosmin (NPM) gene on 5q34, generating a chimeric NPM/MLF1 transcript. An adult case of indolent erythroleukemia was found on karyotypic analysis to have t(3;5)(q21;q34). In about 60% of cells, the translocation was unbalanced, resulting in loss of the der(3) chromosome, implying that the critical leukemogenic sequence might reside on the der(5) chromosome. Molecular analysis of this case, however, failed to show rearrangement of the NPM gene and an MLF1/NPM transcript. A review of other reported cases of AML M6 with t(3;5) showed that the commonest breakpoint on chromosome 3 was also assigned to 3q21, as in our case. The considerable clinical, pathologic, cytogenetic and molecular differences observed in AML with t(3;5) suggest that these cases might be heterogeneous.

Considering Bone Marrow Blasts From Nonerythroid Cellularity Improves the Prognostic Evaluation of Myelodysplastic Syndromes.

PubMed

Arenillas, Leonor; Calvo, Xavier; Luño, Elisa; Senent, Leonor; Alonso, Esther; Ramos, Fernando; Ardanaz, María Teresa; Pedro, Carme; Tormo, Mar; Marco, Víctor; Montoro, Julia; Díez-Campelo, María; Brunet, Salut; Arrizabalaga, Beatriz; Xicoy, Blanca; Andreu, Rafael; Bonanad, Santiago; Jerez, Andrés; Nomdedeu, Benet; Ferrer, Ana; Sanz, Guillermo F; Florensa, Lourdes

2016-09-20

WHO classification of myeloid malignancies is based mainly on the percentage of bone marrow (BM) blasts. This is considered from total nucleated cells (TNCs), unless there is erythroid-hyperplasia (erythroblasts ≥ 50%), calculated from nonerythroid cells (NECs). In these instances, when BM blasts are ≥ 20%, the disorder is classified as erythroleukemia, and when BM blasts are < 20%, as myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). In the latter, the percentage of blasts is considered from TNCs. We assessed the percentage of BM blasts from TNCs and NECs in 3,692 patients with MDS from the Grupo Español de Síndromes Mielodisplásicos, 465 patients with erythroid hyperplasia (MDS-E) and 3,227 patients without erythroid hyperplasia. We evaluated the relevance of both quantifications on classification and prognostication. By enumerating blasts systematically from NECs, 22% of patients with MDS-E and 12% with MDS from the whole series diagnosed within WHO categories with < 5% BM blasts, were reclassified into higher-risk categories and showed a poorer overall survival than did those who remained in initial categories (P = .006 and P = .001, respectively). Following WHO recommendations, refractory anemia with excess blasts (RAEB)-2 diagnosis is not possible in MDS-E, as patients with 10% to < 20% BM blasts from TNCs fulfill erythroleukemia criteria; however, by considering blasts from NECs, 72 patients were recoded as RAEB-2 and showed an inferior overall survival than did patients with RAEB-1 without erythroid hyperplasia. Recalculating the International Prognostic Scoring System by enumerating blasts from NECs in MDS-E and in the overall MDS population reclassified approximately 9% of lower-risk patients into higher-risk categories, which indicated the survival expected for higher-risk patients. Regardless of the presence of erythroid hyperplasia, calculating the percentage of BM blasts from NECs improves prognostic assessment of MDS. This fact should be considered in future WHO classification reviews. © 2016 by American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Diverse Effects of Glutathione and UPF Peptides on Antioxidant Defense System in Human Erythroleukemia Cells K562.

PubMed

Kairane, Ceslava; Mahlapuu, Riina; Ehrlich, Kersti; Kilk, Kalle; Zilmer, Mihkel; Soomets, Ursel

2012-01-01

The main goal of the present paper was to examine the influence of the replacement of γ-Glu moiety to α-Glu in glutathione and in its antioxidative tetrapeptidic analogue UPF1 (Tyr(Me)-γ-Glu-Cys-Gly), resulting in α-GSH and UPF17 (Tyr(Me)-Glu-Cys-Gly), on the antioxidative defense system in K562 cells. UPF1 and GSH increased while UPF17 and α-GSH decreased the activity of CuZnSOD in K562 cells, at peptide concentration of 10 μM by 42% and 38% or 35% and 24%, respectively. After three-hour incubation, UPF1 increased and UPF17 decreased the intracellular level of total GSH. Additionally, it was shown that UPF1 is not degraded by γ-glutamyltranspeptidase, which performs glutathione breakdown. These results indicate that effective antioxidative character of peptides does not depend only on the reactivity of the thiol group, but also of the other functional groups, and on the spatial structure of peptides.

Targeted inhibition of mutant IDH2 in leukemia cells induces cellular differentiation.

PubMed

Wang, Fang; Travins, Jeremy; DeLaBarre, Byron; Penard-Lacronique, Virginie; Schalm, Stefanie; Hansen, Erica; Straley, Kimberly; Kernytsky, Andrew; Liu, Wei; Gliser, Camelia; Yang, Hua; Gross, Stefan; Artin, Erin; Saada, Veronique; Mylonas, Elena; Quivoron, Cyril; Popovici-Muller, Janeta; Saunders, Jeffrey O; Salituro, Francesco G; Yan, Shunqi; Murray, Stuart; Wei, Wentao; Gao, Yi; Dang, Lenny; Dorsch, Marion; Agresta, Sam; Schenkein, David P; Biller, Scott A; Su, Shinsan M; de Botton, Stephane; Yen, Katharine E

2013-05-03

A number of human cancers harbor somatic point mutations in the genes encoding isocitrate dehydrogenases 1 and 2 (IDH1 and IDH2). These mutations alter residues in the enzyme active sites and confer a gain-of-function in cancer cells, resulting in the accumulation and secretion of the oncometabolite (R)-2-hydroxyglutarate (2HG). We developed a small molecule, AGI-6780, that potently and selectively inhibits the tumor-associated mutant IDH2/R140Q. A crystal structure of AGI-6780 complexed with IDH2/R140Q revealed that the inhibitor binds in an allosteric manner at the dimer interface. The results of steady-state enzymology analysis were consistent with allostery and slow-tight binding by AGI-6780. Treatment with AGI-6780 induced differentiation of TF-1 erythroleukemia and primary human acute myelogenous leukemia cells in vitro. These data provide proof-of-concept that inhibitors targeting mutant IDH2/R140Q could have potential applications as a differentiation therapy for cancer.

GATA1 and PU.1 Bind to Ribosomal Protein Genes in Erythroid Cells: Implications for Ribosomopathies

PubMed Central

Amanatiadou, Elsa P.; Papadopoulos, Giorgio L.; Strouboulis, John; Vizirianakis, Ioannis S.

2015-01-01

The clear connection between ribosome biogenesis dysfunction and specific hematopoiesis-related disorders prompted us to examine the role of critical lineage-specific transcription factors in the transcriptional regulation of ribosomal protein (RP) genes during terminal erythroid differentiation. By applying EMSA and ChIP methodologies in mouse erythroleukemia cells we show that GATA1 and PU.1 bind in vitro and in vivo the proximal promoter region of the RPS19 gene which is frequently mutated in Diamond-Blackfan Anemia. Moreover, ChIPseq data analysis also demonstrates that several RP genes are enriched as potential GATA1 and PU.1 gene targets in mouse and human erythroid cells, with GATA1 binding showing an association with higher ribosomal protein gene expression levels during terminal erythroid differentiation in human and mouse. Our results suggest that RP gene expression and hence balanced ribosome biosynthesis may be specifically and selectively regulated by lineage specific transcription factors during hematopoiesis, a finding which may be clinically relevant to ribosomopathies. PMID:26447946

Regulation of myeloid leukemia factor-1 interacting protein (MLF1IP) expression in glioblastoma.

PubMed

Hanissian, Silva H; Teng, Bin; Akbar, Umar; Janjetovic, Zorica; Zhou, Qihong; Duntsch, Christopher; Robertson, Jon H

2005-06-14

The myelodysplasia/myeloid leukemia factor 1-interacting protein MLF1IP is a novel gene which encodes for a putative transcriptional repressor. It is localized to human chromosome 4q35.1 and is expressed in both the nuclei and cytoplasm of cells. Northern and Western blot analyses have revealed MLF1IP to be present at very low amounts in normal brain tissues, whereas a number of human and rat glioblastoma (GBM) cell lines demonstrated a high level expression of the MLF1IP protein. Immunohistochemical analysis of rat F98 and C6 GBM tumor models showed that MLF1IP was highly expressed in the tumor core where it was co-localized with MLF1 and nestin. Moreover, MLF1IP expression was elevated in the contralateral brain where no tumor cells were detected. These observations, together with previous data demonstrating a role for MLF1IP in erythroleukemias, suggest a possible function for this protein in glioma pathogenesis and potentially in other types of malignancies.

AML Therapy With Irradiated Allogeneic Cells

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-02-01

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Altered interaction of HDAC5 with GATA-1 during MEL cell differentiation.

PubMed

Watamoto, Kouichi; Towatari, Masayuki; Ozawa, Yukiyasu; Miyata, Yasuhiko; Okamoto, Mitsunori; Abe, Akihiro; Naoe, Tomoki; Saito, Hidehiko

2003-12-11

The transcription factor GATA-1 plays a significant role in erythroid differentiation and association with CBP stimulates its activity by acetylation. It is possible that histone deacetylases (HDACs) repress the activity of GATA-1. In the present study, we investigated whether class I and class II HDACs interact with GATA-1 to regulate its function and indeed, GATA-1 is directly associated with HDAC3, HDAC4 and HDAC5. The expression profiling and our previous observation that GATA-2 interacts with members of the HDAC family prompted us to investigate further the biological relevance of the interaction between GATA-1 and HDAC5. Coexpression of HDAC5 suppressed the transcriptional potential of GATA-1. Our results demonstrated that GATA-1 and HDAC5 colocalized to the nucleus of murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells. Furthermore, a portion of HDAC5 moved to the cytoplasm concomitant with MEL cell erythroid differentiation, which was induced by treatment with N,N'-hexamethylenebisacetamide. These observations support the suggestion that control of the HDAC5 nucleocytoplasmic distribution might be associated with MEL cell differentiation, possibly through regulated GATA-1 transactivation.

Nonviral transfection of suspension cells in ultrasound standing wave fields.

PubMed

Lee, Yu-Hsiang; Peng, Ching-An

2007-05-01

Ultrasound-induced cavitation has been widely used for delivering DNA vectors into cells. However, this approach may seriously disrupt cell membranes and cause lethal damage when cells are exposed to the inertial cavitation field. In this study, instead of using sonoporation, ultrasound standing wave fields (USWF) were explored for nonviral transfection of suspension cells. Acoustic resonance in a tubular chamber was generated from the interference of waves emitted from a piezoelectric transducer and consequently reflected from a borosilicate glass coverslip. The suspended K562 erythroleukemia cells were transfected by polyethyleneimine (PEI)/DNA complexes with and without exposure to 1-MHz USWF for 5 min. During USWF exposure, K562 cells moved to the pressure nodal planes first and formed cell bands by the primary radiation force. Nanometer-sized PEI/DNA complexes, circulated between nodal planes by acoustic microstreaming, then used the cell agglomerates as the nucleating sites on which to attach. After incubation at 37 degrees C for 48 h, the efficiency of nonviral transfection based on EGFP transgene expression was determined by fluorescent microscopy and fluorometry. Both studies showed that USWF brought suspended K562 cells and PEI/DNA complexes into close contact at the pressure nodal planes, yielding an approximately 10-fold increment of EGFP transgene expression compared with the group without ultrasonic treatment.

Pharmacological activation of lysophosphatidic acid receptors regulates erythropoiesis

PubMed Central

Lin, Kuan-Hung; Ho, Ya-Hsuan; Chiang, Jui-Chung; Li, Meng-Wei; Lin, Shi-Hung; Chen, Wei-Min; Chiang, Chi-Ling; Lin, Yu-Nung; Yang, Ya-Jan; Chen, Chiung-Nien; Lu, Jenher; Huang, Chang-Jen; Tigyi, Gabor; Yao, Chao-Ling; Lee, Hsinyu

2016-01-01

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), a growth factor-like phospholipid, regulates numerous physiological functions, including cell proliferation and differentiation. In a previous study, we have demonstrated that LPA activates erythropoiesis by activating the LPA 3 receptor subtype (LPA3) under erythropoietin (EPO) induction. In the present study, we applied a pharmacological approach to further elucidate the functions of LPA receptors during red blood cell (RBC) differentiation. In K562 human erythroleukemia cells, knockdown of LPA2 enhanced erythropoiesis, whereas knockdown of LPA3 inhibited RBC differentiation. In CD34+ human hematopoietic stem cells (hHSC) and K526 cells, the LPA3 agonist 1-oleoyl-2-methyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphothionate (2S-OMPT) promoted erythropoiesis, whereas the LPA2 agonist dodecyl monophosphate (DMP) and the nonlipid specific agonist GRI977143 (GRI) suppressed this process. In zebrafish embryos, hemoglobin expression was significantly increased by 2S-OMPT treatment but was inhibited by GRI. Furthermore, GRI treatment decreased, whereas 2S-OMPT treatment increased RBC counts and amount of hemoglobin level in adult BALB/c mice. These results indicate that LPA2 and LPA3 play opposing roles during RBC differentiation. The pharmacological activation of LPA receptor subtypes represent a novel strategies for augmenting or inhibiting erythropoiesis. PMID:27244685

Pharmacological activation of lysophosphatidic acid receptors regulates erythropoiesis.

PubMed

Lin, Kuan-Hung; Ho, Ya-Hsuan; Chiang, Jui-Chung; Li, Meng-Wei; Lin, Shi-Hung; Chen, Wei-Min; Chiang, Chi-Ling; Lin, Yu-Nung; Yang, Ya-Jan; Chen, Chiung-Nien; Lu, Jenher; Huang, Chang-Jen; Tigyi, Gabor; Yao, Chao-Ling; Lee, Hsinyu

2016-05-31

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), a growth factor-like phospholipid, regulates numerous physiological functions, including cell proliferation and differentiation. In a previous study, we have demonstrated that LPA activates erythropoiesis by activating the LPA 3 receptor subtype (LPA3) under erythropoietin (EPO) induction. In the present study, we applied a pharmacological approach to further elucidate the functions of LPA receptors during red blood cell (RBC) differentiation. In K562 human erythroleukemia cells, knockdown of LPA2 enhanced erythropoiesis, whereas knockdown of LPA3 inhibited RBC differentiation. In CD34(+) human hematopoietic stem cells (hHSC) and K526 cells, the LPA3 agonist 1-oleoyl-2-methyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphothionate (2S-OMPT) promoted erythropoiesis, whereas the LPA2 agonist dodecyl monophosphate (DMP) and the nonlipid specific agonist GRI977143 (GRI) suppressed this process. In zebrafish embryos, hemoglobin expression was significantly increased by 2S-OMPT treatment but was inhibited by GRI. Furthermore, GRI treatment decreased, whereas 2S-OMPT treatment increased RBC counts and amount of hemoglobin level in adult BALB/c mice. These results indicate that LPA2 and LPA3 play opposing roles during RBC differentiation. The pharmacological activation of LPA receptor subtypes represent a novel strategies for augmenting or inhibiting erythropoiesis.

Gravitational Effects on Signal Transduction

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sytkowski, Arthur J.

1999-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate in ground-based experiments, the effect of microgravity on in vitro erythroid differentiation triggered by the hematopoietic growth factor erythropoietin (Epo) and to begin to determine whether this is associated with the anemia of space flight. We chose to use a model cell culture system with which we have had a long and successful experience. These cells, designated Rauscher murine erythroleukemia, grow independently in suspension culture. We first compared the growth rate of Rauscher cells under conditions of simulated microgravity with that of cells grown at 1XG in standard tissue culture flasks. Therefore, since there were fewer cells in the RWV at each specified time, glucose consumption per cell was increased in simulated microgravity. We next began to study the effect of simulated microgravity on erythropoietin induced differentiation of these cells. In another experiment, we allow the cells to grown in flasks or in the RWV for 24 hours prior to the addition of Epo. We initiated studies of c-myb, a proto-oncogene the down-regulation of which is necessary for erythroid differentiation. These preliminary results suggest that simulated microgravity interferes with the signal to c-myb. This may be part of the mechanism that blocks differentiation. A flight experiment is planned within the next 18- 24 months.

Induction of experimental bone metastasis in mice by transfection of integrin alpha 4 beta 1 into tumor cells.

PubMed Central

Matsuura, N.; Puzon-McLaughlin, W.; Irie, A.; Morikawa, Y.; Kakudo, K.; Takada, Y.

1996-01-01

Cell adhesion receptors (eg, integrins and CD44) play an important role in invasion and metastasis during tumor progression. The increase in integrin alpha 4 beta 1 expression on primary melanomas has been reported to significantly correlate with the development of metastases. alpha 4 beta 1 is a cell surface heterodimer that mediates cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions through adhesion to vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM)-1 and to the IIICS region of fibronectin. To test the effects of alpha 4 beta 1 expression on tumor cell metastasis, Chinese hamster ovary cells were transfected with human alpha 4 cDNA. Whereas alpha 4-negative Chinese hamster ovary cells developed only pulmonary metastasis, alpha 4-positive Chinese hamster ovary cells developed bone and pulmonary metastasis in 3 to 4 weeks when injected intravenously into nude mice. Bone metastasis was inhibited by antibody against alpha 4 or VCAM-1. Expression of alpha 3 beta 1, alpha 6 beta 1, or alpha V beta 1 did not induce bone metastasis. Expression of alpha 4 beta 1 also induced bone metastasis in K562 human erythroleukemia cells injected into SCID mice. These results demonstrate that alpha 4 beta 1 can induce tumor cell trafficking to bone, probably via interaction with VCAM-1 that is constitutively expressed on bone marrow stromal cells. Images Figure 1 Figure 3 PMID:8546226

The flavonoid tangeretin activates the unfolded protein response and synergizes with imatinib in the erythroleukemia cell line K562.

PubMed

Lust, Sofie; Vanhoecke, Barbara; Van Gele, Mireille; Philippé, Jan; Bracke, Marc; Offner, Fritz

2010-06-01

We explored the mechanism of cell death of the polymethoxyflavone tangeretin (TAN) in K562 breakpoint cluster region-abelson murine leukemia (Bcr-Abl+) cells. Flow cytometric analysis showed that TAN arrested the cells in the G(2)/M phase and stimulated an accumulation of the cells in the sub-G(0) phase. TAN-induced cell death was evidenced by poly(ADP)-ribose polymerase cleavage, DNA laddering fragmentation, activation of the caspase cascade and downregulation of the antiapoptotic proteins Mcl-1 and Bcl-x(L). Pretreatment with the pancaspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK_blocked caspase activation and cell cycle arrest but did not inhibit apoptosis which suggest that other cell killing mechanisms like endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated cell death pathways could be involved. We demonstrated that TAN-induced apoptosis was preceded by a rapid activation of the proapoptotic arm of the unfolded protein response, namely PKR-like ER kinase. This was accompanied by enhanced levels of glucose-regulated protein of 78 kDa and of spliced X-box binding protein 1. Furthermore, TAN sensitized K562 cells to the cell killing effects of imatinib via an apoptotic mechanism. In conclusion, our results suggest that TAN is able to induce apoptosis in Bcr-Abl+ cells via cell cycle arrest and the induction of the unfolded protein response, and has synergistic cytotoxicity with imatinib.

Enhanced retroviral gene delivery in ultrasonic standing wave fields.

PubMed

Lee, Y-H; Peng, C-A

2005-04-01

Enhancement of retroviral transduction efficiency has been achieved by several physical and chemical approaches. However, the application of those methods is hampered by not easily scalable configurations. In this study, instead of looking into the effect of sonoporation, the potential of ultrasonic standing wave fields (USWF) to facilitate retroviral transduction rate was explored. We reasoned that, driven by the primary acoustic radiation force, suspended cells moved to the pressure nodal planes first and formed cell bands. Nanometer-sized retroviruses, circulated between nodal planes by acoustic microstreaming, then used the preformed cell bands as the nucleating sites to attach on. As a result, the encounter opportunity between retroviruses and cells was increased and further facilitated the gene delivery efficiency. Our results showed that mega-Hertz USWF brought K562 erythroleukemia cells (10(6) cells/ml) and vesicular stomatitis virus G-protein (VSV-G) pseudotyped retroviruses (titer of 5 x 10(6) CFU/ml) into close contact at the pressure nodal planes, yielding a four-fold increment of enhanced green fluorescent protein transgene expression after 5-min USWF exposure in the presence of Polybrene. Furthermore, with a fixed titer of retrovirus, the transduction rate was augmented with the increase of cell concentration. In summary, USWF offer a feasible means to enhance retroviral transduction efficiency in large-scale settings.

Megakaryocytic differentiation induced by constitutive activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase.

PubMed Central

Whalen, A M; Galasinski, S C; Shapiro, P S; Nahreini, T S; Ahn, N G

1997-01-01

The K562 erythroleukemia cell line was used to study the molecular mechanisms regulating lineage commitment of hematopoietic stem cells. Phorbol esters, which initiate megakaryocyte differentiation in this cell line, caused a rapid increase in extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK), which remained elevated for 2 h and returned to near-basal levels by 24 h. In the absence of extracellular stimuli, ERK could be activated by expression of constitutively active mutants of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase kinase (MKK), resulting in cell adhesion and spreading, increased cell size, inhibition of cell growth, and induction of the platelet-specific integrin alphaIIb beta3, all hallmarks of megakaryocytic differentiation. In contrast, expression of wild-type MKK had little effect. In addition, constitutively active MKK suppressed the expression of an erythroid marker, alpha-globin, indicating the ability to suppress cellular responses necessary for alternative cell lineages. The MKK inhibitor PD98059 blocked MKK/ERK activation and cellular responses to phorbol ester, demonstrating that activation of MKK is necessary and sufficient to induce a differentiation program along the megakaryocyte lineage. Thus, the MAP kinase cascade, which promotes cell growth and proliferation in many cell types, instead inhibits cell proliferation and initiates lineage-specific differentiation in K562 cells, establishing a model system to investigate the mechanisms by which this signal transduction pathway specifies cell fate and developmental processes. PMID:9121442

Megakaryocytic differentiation induced by constitutive activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase.

PubMed

Whalen, A M; Galasinski, S C; Shapiro, P S; Nahreini, T S; Ahn, N G

1997-04-01

The K562 erythroleukemia cell line was used to study the molecular mechanisms regulating lineage commitment of hematopoietic stem cells. Phorbol esters, which initiate megakaryocyte differentiation in this cell line, caused a rapid increase in extracellular-signal-regulated kinase (ERK), which remained elevated for 2 h and returned to near-basal levels by 24 h. In the absence of extracellular stimuli, ERK could be activated by expression of constitutively active mutants of mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase kinase (MKK), resulting in cell adhesion and spreading, increased cell size, inhibition of cell growth, and induction of the platelet-specific integrin alphaIIb beta3, all hallmarks of megakaryocytic differentiation. In contrast, expression of wild-type MKK had little effect. In addition, constitutively active MKK suppressed the expression of an erythroid marker, alpha-globin, indicating the ability to suppress cellular responses necessary for alternative cell lineages. The MKK inhibitor PD98059 blocked MKK/ERK activation and cellular responses to phorbol ester, demonstrating that activation of MKK is necessary and sufficient to induce a differentiation program along the megakaryocyte lineage. Thus, the MAP kinase cascade, which promotes cell growth and proliferation in many cell types, instead inhibits cell proliferation and initiates lineage-specific differentiation in K562 cells, establishing a model system to investigate the mechanisms by which this signal transduction pathway specifies cell fate and developmental processes.

Antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of propolis from Melipona orbignyi (Hymenoptera, Apidae).

PubMed

Campos, Jaqueline Ferreira; dos Santos, Uilson Pereira; Macorini, Luis Fernando Benitez; de Melo, Adriana Mary Mestriner Felipe; Balestieri, José Benedito Perrella; Paredes-Gamero, Edgar Julian; Cardoso, Claudia Andrea Lima; de Picoli Souza, Kely; dos Santos, Edson Lucas

2014-03-01

Propolis from stingless bees is well known for its biologic properties; however, few studies have demonstrated these effects. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the chemical composition and antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of propolis from the stingless bee Melipona orbignyi, found in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. The chemical composition of the ethanol extract of propolis (EEP) indicated the presence of aromatic acids, phenolic compounds, alcohols, terpenes and sugars. The EEP was active against the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus and the fungus Candida albicans. The EEP showed antioxidant activity by scavenging free radicals and inhibiting hemolysis and lipid peroxidation in human erythrocytes incubated with an oxidizing agent. Additionally, EEP promoted cytotoxic activity and primarily necrotic death in K562 erythroleukemia cells. Taken together, these results indicate that propolis from M. orbignyi has therapeutic potential for the treatment and/or prevention of diseases related to microorganism activity, oxidative stress and tumor cell proliferation. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemistry and Selective Tumor Cell Growth Inhibitory Activity of Polyketides from the South China Sea Sponge Plakortis sp.

PubMed

Li, Jiao; Li, Cui; Riccio, Raffaele; Lauro, Gianluigi; Bifulco, Giuseppe; Li, Tie-Jun; Tang, Hua; Zhuang, Chun-Lin; Ma, Hao; Sun, Peng; Zhang, Wen

2017-05-03

Simplextone E ( 1 ), a new metabolite of polyketide origin, was isolated with eight known analogues ( 2 - 9 ) from the South China Sea sponge Plakortis sp. The relative configuration of the new compound was elucidated by a detailed analysis of the spectroscopic data and quantum mechanical calculation of NMR chemical shifts, aided by the newly reported DP4+ approach. Its absolute configuration was determined by the TDDFT/ECD calculation. Simplextone E ( 1 ) is proven to be one of the isomers of simplextone D. The absolute configuration at C-8 in alkyl chain of plakortone Q ( 2 ) was also assigned based on the NMR calculation. In the preliminary in vitro bioassay, compounds 6 and 7 showed a selective growth inhibitory activity against HCT-116 human colon cancer cells with IC 50 values of 8.3 ± 2.4 and 8.4 ± 2.3 μM, corresponding to that of the positive control, adriamycin (IC 50 4.1 μM). The two compounds also showed selective activities towards MCF-7 human breast cancer and K562 human erythroleukemia cells while compound 3 only displayed weak activity against K562 cells.

Mpl traffics to the cell surface through conventional and unconventional routes

PubMed Central

Cleyrat, Cédric; Darehshouri, Anza; Steinkamp, Mara P.; Vilaine, Mathias; Boassa, Daniela; Ellisman, Mark H.; Hermouet, Sylvie; Wilson, Bridget S.

2014-01-01

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are often characterized by JAK2 or calreticulin mutations, indicating aberrant trafficking in pathogenesis. This study focuses on Mpl trafficking and Jak2 association using two model systems: Human Erythroleukemia cells (HEL; JAK2V617F) and K562 myeloid leukemia cells (JAK2WT). Consistent with a putative chaperone role for Jak2, Mpl and Jak2 associate on both intracellular and plasma membranes (shown by proximity ligation assay) and siRNA-mediated knockdown of Jak2 led to Mpl trapping in the ER. Even in Jak2 sufficient cells, Mpl accumulates in punctate structures that partially co-localize with ER-Tracker, the ER exit site marker (ERES) Sec31a, the autophagy marker LC3 and LAMP1. Mpl was fused to miniSOG, a genetically-encoded tag for correlated light and electron microscopy. Results suggest that a fraction of Mpl is taken up into autophagic structures from the ER and routed to autolyososomes. Surface biotinylation shows that both immature and mature Mpl reach the cell surface; in K562 cells Mpl is also released in exosomes. Both forms rapidly internalize upon ligand addition, while recovery is primarily attributed to immature Mpl. Mpl appears to reach the plasma membrane via both conventional ER-Golgi and autolysosome secretory pathways, as well as recycling. PMID:24931576

Functional studies of P-glycoprotein in inside-out plasma membrane vesicles derived from murine erythroleukemia cells overexpressing MDR 3. Properties and kinetics of the interaction of vinblastine with P-glycoprotein and evidence for its active mediated transport.

PubMed

Schlemmer, S R; Sirotnak, F M

1994-12-09

Active [3H]vinblastine (VBL) transport (efflux) was documented for inside-out plasma membrane vesicles from murine erythroleukemia cells (MEL/VCR-6) resistant to vinca alkaloids and overexpressing MDR 3 P-glycoprotein (P-gp) 80-fold. Uptake of [3H]VBL at 37 degrees C by these inside-out vesicles, but not rightside-out vesicles or inside-out vesicles from wild-type cells, was obtained in the form of a rapid, initial phase (0-1 min) and a slower, later phase (> 1 min). The rapidity of each phase correlated with relative P-gp content among different MEL/VCR cell lines. The initial MDR-specific phase was temperature- and pH-dependent (optimum at pH 7), osmotically insensitive, and did not require ATP. The second MDR-specific phase was temperature-dependent, osmotically sensitive, and strictly dependent upon the presence of ATP (Km = 0.37 +/- 0.04 mM). Although other triphosphate nucleotides were partially effective in replacing ATP, the nonhydrolyzable analogue ATP gamma S (adenosine 5'-O-(thiotriphosphate)) was ineffective. This time course appears to represent tandem binding of [3H]VBL by P-gp and its mediated transport, with the latter process representing the rate-limiting step. In support of this conclusion, both binding and transport were inhibited by verapamil, quinidine, and reserpine, all known to be inhibitors of photoaffinity labeling of P-gp, but only transport was inhibited by C219 anti-P-gp antibody or orthovanadate. Although the rate of transport of [3H]VBL was 7-7.5-fold lower than the rate of binding (Vmax = 104 +/- 15 pmol/min/mg protein, Kon = 1.5 - 2 x 10(5) mol-1 s-1) to P-gp, each phase exhibited saturation kinetics and values for apparent Km and KD for each process were approximately the same (215 +/- 35 and 195 +/- 30 nM). Intravesicular accumulation of [3H]VBL was almost completely eliminated by high concentrations of nonradioactive VBL, suggesting that simple diffusion does not contribute appreciably to total accumulation of [3H]VBL in this vesicle system. This could be at least partially explained by the fact that these inside-out vesicles under the conditions employed did not maintain a P-gp mediated pH gradient. However, ATP-dependent, intravesicular accumulation of osmotically sensitive [3H]VBL occurred against a substantial permeant concentration gradient in both a time- and concentration-dependent manner consistent with an active, saturable process.

Human hematopoietic progenitors express erythropoietin.

PubMed

Stopka, T; Zivny, J H; Stopkova, P; Prchal, J F; Prchal, J T

1998-05-15

Erythropoietin (EPO) is a factor essential for erythroid cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival. The production of EPO by the kidneys in response to hypoxia and anemia is well documented. To determine whether EPO is also produced by hematopoietic cells, we analyzed the expression of EPO in normal human hematopoietic progenitors and in their progeny. Undifferentiated CD34(+)lin- hematopoietic progenitors do not have detectable EPO mRNA. Differentiating CD34(+) cells that are stimulated with recombinant human EPO in serum-free liquid cultures express both EPO and EPO receptor (EPOR). Because CD34(+) cells represent a heterogeneous cell population, we analyzed individual burst-forming units-erythroid (BFU-E) and nonerythroid colony-forming unit-granulocyte-macrophage colonies for EPO mRNA. Only BFU-E colonies were positive for EPO mRNA. Lysates from pooled BFU-E colonies stained positively for EPO by immunoblotting. To further confirm the intrinsic nature of erythroid EPO, we replaced extrinsic EPO in erythroid colony cultures with EPO-mimicking peptide (EMP). We show EPO expression in the EMP-stimulated BFU-Es at both mRNA and protein levels. Stimulation of bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) with EMP upregulated EPO expression. Furthermore, we found EPO and EPOR mRNAs as well as EPO protein in K562 cells, a human erythroleukemia cell line. Stimulation of K562 cells with EMP upregulated EPO expression. We suggest that EPO of erythroid origin may have a role in the regulation of erythropoiesis.

Leukemic blast cell colony formation in semisolid culture with erythropoietin: a case report of acute poorly differentiated erythroid leukemia.

PubMed

Tomonaga, M; Jinnai, I; Tagawa, M; Amenomori, T; Nishino, K; Yao, E; Nonaka, H; Kuriyama, K; Yoshida, Y; Matsuo, T

1987-02-01

The bone marrow of a patient with acute undifferentiated leukemia developed unique colonies after a 14-day culture in erythropoietin (EPO)-containing methylcellulose. The colonies consisted of 20 to 200 nonhemoglobinized large blast cells. Cytogenetic analysis of single colonies revealed hypotetraploid karyotypes with several marker chromosomes that were identical to those found in directly sampled bone marrow. The concurrently formed erythroid bursts showed only normal karyotypes. No leukemic colony formation was observed in other culture systems with either colony-stimulating activity (CSA) or phytohemagglutinin-stimulated leukocyte-conditioned medium (PHA-LCM). The leukemic colonies exhibited a complete EPO-dose dependency similar to that of the patient's normal BFU-E. Although cytochemical and immunologic marker studies of the bone marrow cells failed to clarify the cell lineage of the leukemic cells with extraordinarily large cell size, ultrastructural study revealed erythroid differentiation such as siderosome formation in the cytoplasm and ferritin particles in the rhophecytosis invaginations. These findings indicate that the patient had poorly differentiated erythroid leukemia and that some of the clonogenic cells might respond to EPO in vitro. Corresponding to this biological feature, the leukemic cells were markedly decreased in number in response to repeated RBC transfusions, and partial remission was obtained. These observations suggest that erythroid leukemia distinct from erythroleukemia (M6) with a myeloblastic component, can develop as a minor entity of human acute leukemia.

17-N-Allylamino-17-Demethoxygeldanamycin and Bortezomib in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Hematologic Cancer

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-06-03

Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma; Angioimmunoblastic T-cell Lymphoma; Extranodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma of Mucosa-associated Lymphoid Tissue; Nodal Marginal Zone B-cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Diffuse Large Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Adult T-cell Leukemia/Lymphoma; Recurrent Cutaneous T-cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 1 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 2 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Grade 3 Follicular Lymphoma; Recurrent Mantle Cell Lymphoma; Recurrent Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Recurrent Mycosis Fungoides/Sezary Syndrome; Recurrent Small Lymphocytic Lymphoma; Refractory Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia; Small Intestine Lymphoma; Splenic Marginal Zone Lymphoma; Waldenström Macroglobulinemia

The Stilbenoid Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitor, G6, Suppresses Jak2-V617F-mediated Human Pathological Cell Growth in Vitro and in Vivo*

PubMed Central

Kirabo, Annet; Embury, Jennifer; Kiss, Róbert; Polgár, Tímea; Gali, Meghanath; Majumder, Anurima; Bisht, Kirpal S.; Cogle, Christopher R.; Keserű, György M.; Sayeski, Peter P.

2011-01-01

Using structure-based virtual screening, we previously identified a novel stilbenoid inhibitor of Jak2 tyrosine kinase named G6. Here, we hypothesized that G6 suppresses Jak2-V617F-mediated human pathological cell growth in vitro and in vivo. We found that G6 inhibited proliferation of the Jak2-V617F expressing human erythroleukemia (HEL) cell line by promoting marked cell cycle arrest and inducing apoptosis. The G6-dependent increase in apoptosis levels was concomitant with increased caspase 3/7 activity and cleavage of PARP. G6 also selectively inhibited phosphorylation of STAT5, a downstream signaling target of Jak2. Using a mouse model of Jak2-V617F-mediated hyperplasia, we found that G6 significantly decreased the percentage of blast cells in the peripheral blood, reduced splenomegaly, and corrected a pathologically low myeloid to erythroid ratio in the bone marrow by eliminating HEL cell engraftment in this tissue. In addition, drug efficacy correlated with the presence of G6 in the plasma, marrow, and spleen. Collectively, these data demonstrate that the stilbenoid compound, G6, suppresses Jak2-V617F-mediated aberrant cell growth. As such, G6 may be a potential therapeutic lead candidate against Jak2-mediated, human disease. PMID:21127060

Skeletal muscle and liver contain a soluble ATP + ubiquitin-dependent proteolytic system.

PubMed Central

Fagan, J M; Waxman, L; Goldberg, A L

1987-01-01

Although protein breakdown in most cells seems to require metabolic energy, it has only been possible to establish a soluble ATP-dependent proteolytic system in extracts of reticulocytes and erythroleukemia cells. We have now succeeded in demonstrating in soluble extracts and more purified preparations from rabbit skeletal muscle a 12-fold stimulation by ATP of breakdown of endogenous proteins and a 6-fold stimulation of 125I-lysozyme degradation. However, it has still not been possible to demonstrate such large effects of ATP in similar preparations from liver. Nevertheless, after fractionation by DEAE-chromatography and gel filtration, we found that extracts from liver as well as muscle contain both the enzymes which conjugate ubiquitin to 125I-lysozyme and an enzyme which specifically degrades the ubiquitin-protein conjugates. When this proteolytic activity was recombined with the conjugating enzymes, ATP + ubiquitin-dependent degradation of many proteins was observed. This proteinase is unusually large, approx. 1500 kDa, requires ATP hydrolysis for activity and resembles the ubiquitin-protein-conjugate degrading activity isolated from reticulocytes. Thus the ATP + ubiquitin-dependent pathway is likely to be present in all mammalian cells, although certain tissues may contain inhibitory factors. Images Fig. 2. PMID:2820375

Reduced Intensity Donor Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplant in Treating Patients With De Novo or Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-05-24

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Mpl traffics to the cell surface through conventional and unconventional routes.

PubMed

Cleyrat, Cédric; Darehshouri, Anza; Steinkamp, Mara P; Vilaine, Mathias; Boassa, Daniela; Ellisman, Mark H; Hermouet, Sylvie; Wilson, Bridget S

2014-09-01

Myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) are often characterized by JAK2 or calreticulin (CALR) mutations, indicating aberrant trafficking in pathogenesis. This study focuses on Mpl trafficking and Jak2 association using two model systems: human erythroleukemia cells (HEL; JAK2V617F) and K562 myeloid leukemia cells (JAK2WT). Consistent with a putative chaperone role for Jak2, Mpl and Jak2 associate on both intracellular and plasma membranes (shown by proximity ligation assay) and siRNA-mediated knockdown of Jak2 led to Mpl trapping in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Even in Jak2 sufficient cells, Mpl accumulates in punctate structures that partially colocalize with ER-tracker, the ER exit site marker (ERES) Sec31a, the autophagy marker LC3 and LAMP1. Mpl was fused to miniSOG, a genetically encoded tag for correlated light and electron microscopy. Results suggest that a fraction of Mpl is taken up into autophagic structures from the ER and routed to autolyososomes. Surface biotinylation shows that both immature and mature Mpl reach the cell surface; in K562 cells Mpl is also released in exosomes. Both forms rapidly internalize upon ligand addition, while recovery is primarily attributed to immature Mpl. Mpl appears to reach the plasma membrane via both conventional ER-Golgi and autolysosome secretory pathways, as well as recycling. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Cyclic RGD peptidomimetics containing 4- and 5-amino-cyclopropane pipecolic acid (CPA) templates as dual αVβ3 and α5β1 integrin ligands.

PubMed

Sernissi, Lorenzo; Trabocchi, Andrea; Scarpi, Dina; Bianchini, Francesca; Occhiato, Ernesto G

2016-02-15

4-Amino- and 5-amino-cyclopropane pipecolic acids (CPAs) with cis relative stereochemistry between the carboxylic and amino groups were used as templates to prepare cyclic peptidomimetics containing the RGD sequence as possible integrin binders. The peptidomimetic c(RGD8) built on the 5-amino-CPA displayed an inhibition activity (IC50=2.4nM) toward the αvβ3 integrin receptor (expressed in M21 human melanoma cell line) comparable to that of the most potent antagonists reported so far and it was ten times more active than the corresponding antagonist c(RGD7) derived from the isomeric 4-amino-CPA. Both compounds were also nanomolar ligands of the α5β1 integrin (expressed in human erythroleukemia cell line K562). These results suggest that the CPA-derived templates are suitable for the preparation of dual αvβ3 and α5β1 ligands to suppress integrin-mediated events as well as for targeted drug delivery in cancer therapy. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Constitutive expression of the promyelocytic leukemia-associated oncogene PML-RARalpha in TF1 cells: isoform-specific and retinoic acid-dependent effects on growth, bcl-2 expression, and apoptosis.

PubMed

Slack, J L; Yu, M

1998-05-01

Two major isoforms of PML-RARalpha are associated with (15;17)-positive acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL); however, functional differences between these isoforms have been difficult to define, and the molecular mechanism by which each isoform contributes to the pathogenesis of APL is not fully understood. To address these issues, the 'short' (S) and 'long' (L) isoforms of PML-RARalpha were constitutively expressed in the factor-dependent human erythroleukemia cell line, TF1. Expression of the L, but not the S, isoform inhibited growth of these cells in the presence of granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). In the absence of GM-CSF, the S isoform partially protected against apoptosis, while the L isoform accelerated cell death. Treatment with all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) inhibited cell growth and caused apoptosis only in PML-RARalpha-expressing cells, and these effects of ATRA were more marked in cells expressing the L isoform. ATRA treatment also led to downregulation of bcl-2 and endogenous RARalpha in PML-RARalpha-expressing cells, but had little effect on the level of exogenously expressed PML-RARalpha. We conclude that (1) subtle differences exist in the biologic activities of the L and S isoforms of PML-RARalpha, and (2) both isoforms are capable of transducing an ATRA-mediated signal that leads to downregulation of bcl-2 and induction of programmed cell death.

Acute erythroid neoplastic proliferations. A biological study based on 62 patients.

PubMed

Domingo-Claros, Alicia; Larriba, Itziar; Rozman, Maruja; Irriguible, Dolors; Vallespí, Teresa; Aventin, Anna; Ayats, Ramon; Millá, Fuensanta; Solé, Francesc; Florensa, Lourdes; Gallart, Miquel; Tuset, Esperanza; Lopez, Carmen; Woessner, Soledad

2002-02-01

The terms acute erythroleukemia and AML-M6 are defined in the FAB classification as proliferations of dysplastic erythroid elements mixed with blasts of myeloid origin, but pure erythroid leukemias are not included. The recent WHO classification has a category of acute myeloid leukemia not otherwise categorized, which includes acute erythroid leukemia (M6) of two subtypes: M6a-erythroleukemia (erythroid/myeloid) and M6b-pure erythroid leukemia. The aims of this co-operative study were to discover the incidences of these different subtypes, and pay special attention to the morphology of these entities. We reviewed a series of 62 patients with erythroid neoplastic proliferations. Previous medical history, age, sex, peripheral blood and bone marrow cell counts, cytochemical stains, immunophenotype, and cytogenetics were evaluated at presentation. We analyzed the incidence of erythrocyte, leukocyte and platelet abnormalities in the peripheral blood. In bone marrow we analyzed dysplastic features of erythroblasts, granulocytic elements and the megakaryocytic lineage. Fifty-three patients met the criteria of M6a subtype of the WHO classification, and 2 were classified as having pure erythremia (M6b); 7 cases could not be classified according to the WHO criteria. Fifty-five patients presented with de novo acute leukemia, and seven patients had secondary acute leukemia. The most frequent dysplastic features in blood smears were: schistocytes, tear-drop and pincered cells in erythrocytes; hypogranulation and hyposegmentation in leukocytes; gigantism and hypogranulation in platelets. In bone marrow, megaloblastic changes, multinuclearity, karyorrhexis and basophilic stippling in erythroblasts; hypogranulation and gigantism in granulocytic series, and micromegakaryocytes and unconnected nuclei in megakarocytes were the most dysplastic features. A positive PAS reaction and increase of bone marrow iron with ring sideroblasts were common features. Trilineage dysplasia was present in 54% of cases. Dysplastic features in granulocytic elements were absent in 26% of patients and minimal erythroblastic dysplasia was observed in seven patients. A complex karyotype was seen in 27% of patients; chromosomes 5 and 7 were the most frequently involved. De novo acute erythroid leukemia was more frequent than secondary cases in our series. The most frequent type of acute erythroid proliferation was the WHO M6a subtype and the least the pure erythroid leukemia. We found a group of seven patients (11%) who could not be classified according to the WHO criteria. Morphologic findings of erythrocytes in peripheral blood, such as schistocytes, tear-drop and pincered cells, were outstanding features. Morphologic aspects remain one of the most important tools for diagnosing these entities.

MRG15 Regulates Embryonic Development and Cell Proliferation

PubMed Central

Tominaga, Kaoru; Kirtane, Bhakti; Jackson, James G.; Ikeno, Yuji; Ikeda, Takayoshi; Hawks, Christina; Smith, James R.; Matzuk, Martin M.; Pereira-Smith, Olivia M.

2005-01-01

MRG15 is a highly conserved protein, and orthologs exist in organisms from yeast to humans. MRG15 associates with at least two nucleoprotein complexes that include histone acetyltransferases and/or histone deacetylases, suggesting it is involved in chromatin remodeling. To study the role of MRG15 in vivo, we generated knockout mice and determined that the phenotype is embryonic lethal, with embryos and the few stillborn pups exhibiting developmental delay. Immunohistochemical analysis indicates that apoptosis in Mrg15−/− embryos is not increased compared with wild-type littermates. However, the number of proliferating cells is significantly reduced in various tissues of the smaller null embryos compared with control littermates. Cell proliferation defects are also observed in Mrg15−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts. The hearts of the Mrg15−/− embryos exhibit some features of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The increase in size of the cardiomyocytes is most likely a response to decreased growth of the cells. Mrg15−/− embryos appeared pale, and microarray analysis revealed that α-globin gene expression was decreased in null versus wild-type embryos. We determined by chromatin immunoprecipitation that MRG15 was recruited to the α-globin promoter during dimethyl sulfoxide-induced mouse erythroleukemia cell differentiation. These findings demonstrate that MRG15 has an essential role in embryonic development via chromatin remodeling and transcriptional regulation. PMID:15798182

Inhibitory Effects of Bangladeshi Medicinal Plant Extracts on Interactions between Transcription Factors and Target DNA Sequences

PubMed Central

Lampronti, Ilaria; Khan, Mahmud T.H.; Borgatti, Monica; Bianchi, Nicoletta

2008-01-01

Several transcription factors (TFs) play crucial roles in governing the expression of different genes involved in the immune response, embryo or cell lineage development, cell apoptosis, cell cycle progression, oncogenesis, repair and fibrosis processes and inflammation. As far as inflammation, TFs playing pivotal roles are nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB), activator protein (AP-1), signal transducer and activator of transcription (STATs), cAMP response element binding protein (CREB) and GATA-1 factors. All these TFs regulate the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines and are involved in the pathogenesis of a number of human disorders, particularly those with an inflammatory component. Since several medicinal plants can be employed to produce extracts exhibiting biological effects and because alteration of gene transcription represents a very interesting approach to control the expression of selected genes, this study sought to verify the ability of several extracts derived from Bangladeshi medicinal plants in interfering with molecular interactions between different TFs and specific DNA sequences. We first analyzed the antiproliferative activity of 19 medicinal plants on different human cell lines, including erythroleukemia K562, B lymphoid Raji and T lymphoid Jurkat cell lines. Secondly, we employed the electrophoretic mobility shift assay as a suitable technique for a fast screening of plant extracts altering the binding between NF-kB, AP-1, GATA-1, STAT-3, CREB and the relative target DNA elements. PMID:18830455

Erythroid colony induction without erythropoietin by Friend leukemia virus in vitro.

PubMed

Clarke, B J; Axelrad, A A; Shreeve, M M; McLeod, D L

1975-09-01

Erythroid colonies could be produced without the addition of erythropeietin in plasma cultures seeded with bone marrow cells from normal C3Hf/Bi mice by exposure of the cells in vitro to medium from a cell line (IS) that continuously produces Friend leukemia virus in culture. The activity in the culture medium was viral rather than erythropoietin-like, since it was sedimentable by high-speed centrifugation and heat labile. Erythroid colonies did not develop when the bone marrow cells exposed to virus-containing medium were from mice genetically resistant to Friend virus. IS culture medium contained both Friend spleen focus-forming and XC-plaque-forming activities. No erythroid colonies were induced when genetically sensitive cells were exposed to a preparation from which the spleen focus-forming activity had been removed, but which contained XC plaque-forming activity in high concentration. Thus the spleen focus-forming component of Friend virus appeared to be responsible for inducing erythroid colony formation without erythropoietin in vitro. Some erythroid colonies were also found in control cultures to which neither virus nor erythropoietin had been added. Reduction in the concentration of fetal calf serum in the culture medium substantially decreased the number of these colonies but had only a minor effect on the number of virus-induced colonies. The number of erythroid colonies produced after 2 days of culture without erythropoietin or fetal calf serum was approximately proportional to the titer of Friend spleen focus-forming virus to whcih the bone marrow cells had been exposed. This system should prove useful for investigation in vitro of Friend virus--host cell interactions which lead to erythropoietin-independent erythropoiesis.

Polychromatic Light (480-3400 nm) Upregulates Sensitivity of Tumor Cells to Lysis by Natural Killers.

PubMed

Knyazev, Nickolay A; Samoilova, Kira A; Abrahamse, Heidi; Filatova, Natalia A

2016-09-01

This study evaluates the participation of immunological mechanisms of downregulation of murine hepatoma cells MH22a after direct exposure to polychromatic polarized light. Previous studies have shown that exposure to a combination of visible (VIS) and infrared (IR) light leads to decreased tumorigenicity of the murine hepatoma cells MH22a, which correlated with an increase in the amount of cells with reorganized cytoskeleton in the submembrane region. The mechanism of tumor inhibition and elimination has not been determined. Polychromatic light (480-3400 nm) has been used at doses of 4.8 and 9.6 J/cm(2) to determine the sensitivity of murine MH22a cells and human erythroleukemia cells K562 exposed to this light, to lysis by effector cells of innate immunity (NK cells), and enhancement of the glycocalyx of the studied tumor cells. This was determined using flow cytometry, the H(3)-uridine cytotoxic test followed by spectrophotometry. VIS-IR light increases the sensitivity of MH-22a cells at a dose 4.8 J/cm(2) and K562 cells at 9.6 J/cm(2). The enhancement of sensitivity of tumor cells to NK lysis changed their ability to absorb alcian blue, reflecting a change in the expression of the glycocalyx. Increasing the sensitivity of the murine tumor cells MH22a and human K562 irradiated VIS-IR light correlated with a change in the expression of their glycocalyx. The results of the present study demonstrate that the reduction of tumorigenicity of irradiated tumor cells is due to their sensitivity to lysis by NK cells of the immune system.

Cooperation between Hsp90 and mortalin/GRP75 in resistance to cell death induced by complement C5b-9.

PubMed

Rozenberg, Perri; Ziporen, Lea; Gancz, Dana; Saar-Ray, Moran; Fishelson, Zvi

2018-02-02

Cancer cells are commonly more resistant to cell death activated by the membranolytic protein complex C5b-9. Several surface-expressed and intracellular proteins that protect cells from complement-dependent cytotoxicity (CDC) have been identified. In this study, we investigated the function of heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90), an essential and ubiquitously expressed chaperone, overexpressed in cancer cells, in C5b-9-induced cell death. As shown, inhibition of Hsp90 with geldanamycin or radicicol is enhancing sensitivity of K562 erythroleukemia cells to CDC. Similarly, Hsp90 inhibition confers in Ramos B cell lymphoma cells elevated sensitivity to treatment with rituximab and complement. C5b-9 deposition is elevated on geldanamycin-treated cells. Purified Hsp90 binds directly to C9 and inhibits zinc-induced C9 polymerization, indicating that Hsp90 may act directly on the C5b-9 complex. Mortalin, also known as stress protein 70 or GRP75, is a mitochondrial chaperone that confers resistance to CDC. The postulated cooperation between Hsp90 and mortalin in protection from CDC was tested. Geldanamycin failed to sensitize toward CDC cells with knocked down mortalin. Direct binding of Hsp90 to mortalin was shown by co-immunoprecipitation in cell extracts after triggering with complement as well as by using purified recombinant proteins. These results provide an insight into the protective mechanisms utilized by cancer cells to evade CDC. They suggest that Hsp90 protects cells from CDC by inhibiting, together with mortalin, C5b-9 assembly and/or stability at the plasma membrane.

Histone mRNA degradation in vivo: the first detectable step occurs at or near the 3' terminus.

PubMed Central

Ross, J; Peltz, S W; Kobs, G; Brewer, G

1986-01-01

The first detectable step in the degradation of human H4 histone mRNA occurs at the 3' terminus in a cell-free mRNA decay system (J. Ross and G. Kobs, J. Mol. Biol. 188:579-593, 1986). Most or all of the remainder of the mRNA is then degraded in a 3'-to-5' direction. The experiments described here were designed to determine whether a similar degradation pathway is followed in whole cells. Two sets of short-lived histone mRNA decay products were detected in logarithmically growing erythroleukemia (K562) cells. These products, designated the -5 and -12 RNAs, were generated by the loss of approximately 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 nucleotides, respectively, from the 3' terminus of histone mRNA. The same decay products were observed after a brief incubation in vitro. They were in low abundance or absent from cells that were not degrading histone mRNA. In contrast, they were readily detectable in cells that degraded the mRNA at an accelerated rate, i.e., in cells cultured with a DNA synthesis inhibitor, either cytosine arabinoside or hydroxyurea. During the initial stages of the decay process, as the 3' terminus of the mRNA was being degraded, the 5'-terminal region remained intact. These results indicate that the first detectable step in human H4 histone mRNA decay occurs at the 3' terminus and that degradation proceeds 3' to 5', both in cells and in cell-free reactions. Images PMID:3467177

Histone mRNA degradation in vivo: the first detectable step occurs at or near the 3' terminus.

PubMed

Ross, J; Peltz, S W; Kobs, G; Brewer, G

1986-12-01

The first detectable step in the degradation of human H4 histone mRNA occurs at the 3' terminus in a cell-free mRNA decay system (J. Ross and G. Kobs, J. Mol. Biol. 188:579-593, 1986). Most or all of the remainder of the mRNA is then degraded in a 3'-to-5' direction. The experiments described here were designed to determine whether a similar degradation pathway is followed in whole cells. Two sets of short-lived histone mRNA decay products were detected in logarithmically growing erythroleukemia (K562) cells. These products, designated the -5 and -12 RNAs, were generated by the loss of approximately 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 nucleotides, respectively, from the 3' terminus of histone mRNA. The same decay products were observed after a brief incubation in vitro. They were in low abundance or absent from cells that were not degrading histone mRNA. In contrast, they were readily detectable in cells that degraded the mRNA at an accelerated rate, i.e., in cells cultured with a DNA synthesis inhibitor, either cytosine arabinoside or hydroxyurea. During the initial stages of the decay process, as the 3' terminus of the mRNA was being degraded, the 5'-terminal region remained intact. These results indicate that the first detectable step in human H4 histone mRNA decay occurs at the 3' terminus and that degradation proceeds 3' to 5', both in cells and in cell-free reactions.

The search for novel anticancer agents: a differentiation-based assay and analysis of a folklore product.

PubMed

Dinnen, R D; Ebisuzaki, K

1997-01-01

One alternative approach to the current use of cytotoxic anticancer drugs involves the use of differentiation-inducing agents. However, a wider application of this strategy would require the development of assays to search for new differentiation-inducing agents. In this report we describe an in vitro assay using the murine erythroleukemia (clone 3-1) cells. Tests for the efficacy of this assay for the analysis of antineoplastic activity in natural products led to studies on pau d'arco, a South American folklore product used in the treatment of cancer. Purification of the activity in aqueous extracts by solvent partition and thin layer chromatography (TLC) indicated the presence of two activities, one of which was identified as lapachol. The activity in the pau d'arco extracts and of lapachol was inhibited by vitamin K1. As a vitamin K antagonist, lapachol might target such vitamin K-dependent reactions as the activation of a ligand for the Axl receptor tyrosine kinase.

Veliparib and Topotecan With or Without Carboplatin in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Leukemia, High-Risk Myelodysplasia, or Aggressive Myeloproliferative Disorders

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-04-20

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Minimal Differentiation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21); (q22; q22.1); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22.3;q23.3); MLLT3-KMT2A; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Essential Thrombocythemia; Hematopoietic and Lymphoid Cell Neoplasm; Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Philadelphia Chromosome Negative, BCR-ABL1 Positive Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Polycythemia Vera; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Disease; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndrome

Busulfan, Fludarabine Phosphate, and Anti-Thymocyte Globulin Followed By Donor Stem Cell Transplant and Azacitidine in Treating Patients With High-Risk Myelodysplastic Syndrome and Older Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-03-05

Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Minimal Differentiation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21); (q22; q22.1); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22.3;q23.3); MLLT3-KMT2A; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Alkylating Agent-Related Acute Myeloid Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Myelodysplastic Syndrome With Excess Blasts; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Red blood cell aquaporin-1 expression is decreased in hereditary spherocytosis.

PubMed

Crisp, Renée L; Maltaneri, Romina E; Vittori, Daniela C; Solari, Liliana; Gammella, Daniel; Schvartzman, Gabriel; García, Eliana; Rapetti, María C; Donato, Hugo; Nesse, Alcira

2016-10-01

Aquaporin-1 (AQP1) is the membrane water channel responsible for changes in erythrocyte volume in response to the tonicity of the medium. As the aberrant distribution of proteins in hereditary spherocytosis (HS) generates deficiencies of proteins other than those codified by the mutated gene, we postulated that AQP1 expression might be impaired in spherocytes. AQP1 expression was evaluated through flow cytometry in 5 normal controls, 1 autoimmune hemolytic anemia, 10 HS (2 mild, 3 moderate, 2 severe, and 3 splenectomized), and 3 silent carriers. The effect of AQP1 inhibitors was evaluated through water flow-based tests: osmotic fragility and hypertonic cryohemolysis. Serum osmolality was measured in 20 normal controls and 13 HS. The effect of erythropoietin (Epo) on AQP1 expression was determined in cultures of erythroleukemia UT-7 cells, dependent on Epo to survive. Independent of erythrocyte size, HS patients showed a lower content of AQP1 in erythrocyte membranes which correlated with the severity of the disease. Accordingly, red blood cells from HS subjects were less sensitive to cryohemolysis than normal erythrocytes after inhibition of the AQP1 water channel. A lower serum osmolality in HS with respect to normal controls suggests alterations during reticulocyte remodeling. The decreased AQP1 expression could contribute to explain variable degrees of anemia in hereditary spherocytosis. The finding of AQP1 expression induced by Epo in a model of erythroid cells may be interpreted as a mechanism to restore the balance of red cell water fluxes.

Erythroid cell growth and differentiation in vitro in the simulated microgravity environment of the NASA rotating wall vessel bioreactor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sytkowski, A. J.; Davis, K. L.

2001-01-01

Prolonged exposure of humans and experimental animals to the altered gravitational conditions of space flight has adverse effects on the lymphoid and erythroid hematopoietic systems. Although some information is available regarding the cellular and molecular changes in lymphocytes exposed to microgravity, little is known about the erythroid cellular changes that may underlie the reduction in erythropoiesis and resultant anemia. We now report a reduction in erythroid growth and a profound inhibition of erythropoietin (Epo)-induced differentiation in a ground-based simulated microgravity model system. Rauscher murine erythroleukemia cells were grown either in tissue culture vessels at 1 x g or in the simulated microgravity environment of the NASA-designed rotating wall vessel (RWV) bioreactor. Logarithmic growth was observed under both conditions; however, the doubling time in simulated microgravity was only one-half of that seen at 1 x g. No difference in apoptosis was detected. Induction with Epo at the initiation of the culture resulted in differentiation of approximately 25% of the cells at 1 x g, consistent with our previous observations. In contrast, induction with Epo at the initiation of simulated microgravity resulted in only one-half of this degree of differentiation. Significantly, the growth of cells in simulated microgravity for 24 h prior to Epo induction inhibited the differentiation almost completely. The results suggest that the NASA RWV bioreactor may serve as a suitable ground-based microgravity simulator to model the cellular and molecular changes in erythroid cells observed in true microgravity.

Impact of transcytolemmal water exchange on estimates of tissue microstructural properties derived from diffusion MRI.

PubMed

Li, Hua; Jiang, Xiaoyu; Xie, Jingping; Gore, John C; Xu, Junzhong

2017-06-01

To investigate the influence of transcytolemmal water exchange on estimates of tissue microstructural parameters derived from diffusion MRI using conventional PGSE and IMPULSED methods. Computer simulations were performed to incorporate a broad range of intracellular water life times τ in (50-∞ ms), cell diameters d (5-15 μm), and intrinsic diffusion coefficient D in (0.6-2 μm 2 /ms) for different values of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (10 to 50). For experiments, murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cancer cells were cultured and treated with saponin to selectively change cell membrane permeability. All fitted microstructural parameters from simulations and experiments in vitro were compared with ground-truth values. Simulations showed that, for both PGSE and IMPULSED methods, cell diameter d can be reliably fit with sufficient SNR (≥ 50), whereas intracellular volume fraction f in is intrinsically underestimated due to transcytolemmal water exchange. D in can be reliably fit only with sufficient SNR and using the IMPULSED method with short diffusion times. These results were confirmed with those obtained in the cell culture experiments in vitro. For the sequences and models considered in this study, transcytolemmal water exchange has minor effects on the fittings of d and D in with physiologically relevant membrane permeabilities if the SNR is sufficient (> 50), but f in is intrinsically underestimated. Magn Reson Med 77:2239-2249, 2017. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Structure-Function Correlation of G6, a Novel Small Molecule Inhibitor of Jak2

PubMed Central

Majumder, Anurima; Govindasamy, Lakshmanan; Magis, Andrew; Kiss, Róbert; Polgár, Tímea; Baskin, Rebekah; Allan, Robert W.; Agbandje-McKenna, Mavis; Reuther, Gary W.; Keserű, György M.; Bisht, Kirpal S.; Sayeski, Peter P.

2010-01-01

Somatic mutations in the Jak2 protein, such as V617F, cause aberrant Jak/STAT signaling and can lead to the development of myeloproliferative neoplasms. This discovery has led to the search for small molecule inhibitors that target Jak2. Using structure-based virtual screening, our group recently identified a novel small molecule inhibitor of Jak2 named G6. Here, we identified a structure-function correlation of this compound. Specifically, five derivative compounds of G6 having structural similarity to the original lead compound were obtained and analyzed for their ability to (i) inhibit Jak2-V617F-mediated cell growth, (ii) inhibit the levels of phospho-Jak2, phospho-STAT3, and phospho-STAT5; (iii) induce apoptosis in human erythroleukemia cells; and (iv) suppress pathologic cell growth of Jak2-V617F-expressing human bone marrow cells ex vivo. Additionally, we computationally examined the interactions of these compounds with the ATP-binding pocket of the Jak2 kinase domain. We found that the stilbenoid core-containing derivatives of G6 significantly inhibited Jak2-V617F-mediated cell proliferation in a time- and dose-dependent manner. They also inhibited phosphorylation of Jak2, STAT3, and STAT5 proteins within cells, resulting in higher levels of apoptosis via the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. Finally, the stilbenoid derivatives inhibited the pathologic growth of Jak2-V617F-expressing human bone marrow cells ex vivo. Collectively, our data demonstrate that G6 has a stilbenoid core that is indispensable for maintaining its Jak2 inhibitory potential. PMID:20667821

CYT387, a selective JAK1/JAK2 inhibitor: in vitro assessment of kinase selectivity and preclinical studies using cell lines and primary cells from polycythemia vera patients.

PubMed

Pardanani, A; Lasho, T; Smith, G; Burns, C J; Fantino, E; Tefferi, A

2009-08-01

Somatic mutations in Janus kinase 2 (JAK2), including JAK2V617F, result in dysregulated JAK-signal transducer and activator transcription (STAT) signaling, which is implicated in myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) pathogenesis. CYT387 is an ATP-competitive small molecule that potently inhibits JAK1/JAK2 kinases (IC(50)=11 and 18 nM, respectively), with significantly less activity against other kinases, including JAK3 (IC(50)=155 nM). CYT387 inhibits growth of Ba/F3-JAK2V617F and human erythroleukemia (HEL) cells (IC(50) approximately 1500 nM) or Ba/F3-MPLW515L cells (IC(50)=200 nM), but has considerably less activity against BCR-ABL harboring K562 cells (IC=58 000 nM). Cell lines harboring mutated JAK2 alleles (CHRF-288-11 or Ba/F3-TEL-JAK2) were inhibited more potently than the corresponding pair harboring mutated JAK3 alleles (CMK or Ba/F3-TEL-JAK3), and STAT-5 phosphorylation was inhibited in HEL cells with an IC(50)=400 nM. Furthermore, CYT387 selectively suppressed the in vitro growth of erythroid colonies harboring JAK2V617F from polycythemia vera (PV) patients, an effect that was attenuated by exogenous erythropoietin. Overall, our data indicate that the JAK1/JAK2 selective inhibitor CYT387 has potential for efficacious treatment of MPN harboring mutated JAK2 and MPL alleles.

Caspofungin Acetate or Fluconazole in Preventing Invasive Fungal Infections in Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia Who Are Undergoing Chemotherapy

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-11-13

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Fungal Infection; Neutropenia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Other Myeloid Malignancies

cDNA cloning and functional characterization of the mouse Ca2+-gated K+ channel, mIK1. Roles in regulatory volume decrease and erythroid differentiation.

PubMed

Vandorpe, D H; Shmukler, B E; Jiang, L; Lim, B; Maylie, J; Adelman, J P; de Franceschi, L; Cappellini, M D; Brugnara, C; Alper, S L

1998-08-21

We have cloned from murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells, thymus, and stomach the cDNA encoding the Ca2+-gated K+ (KCa) channel, mIK1, the mouse homolog of hIK1 (Ishii, T. M., Silvia, C., Hirschberg, B., Bond, C. T., Adelman, J. P., and Maylie, J. (1997) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci.(U. S. A. 94, 11651-11656). mIK1 mRNA was detected at varied levels in many tissue types. mIK1 KCa channel activity expressed in Xenopus oocytes closely resembled the Kca of red cells (Gardos channel) and MEL cells in its single channel conductance, lack of voltage-sensitivity of activation, inward rectification, and Ca2+ concentration dependence. mIK1 also resembled the erythroid channel in its pharmacological properties, mediating whole cell and unitary currents sensitive to low nM concentrations of both clotrimazole (CLT) and its des-imidazolyl metabolite, 2-chlorophenyl-bisphenyl-methanol, and to low nM concentrations of iodocharybdotoxin. Whereas control oocytes subjected to hypotonic swelling remained swollen, mIK1 expression conferred on oocytes a novel, Ca2+-dependent, CLT-sensitive regulatory volume decrease response. Hypotonic swelling of voltage-clamped mIK1-expressing oocytes increased outward currents that were Ca2+-dependent, CLT-sensitive, and reversed near the K+ equilibrium potential. mIK1 mRNA levels in ES cells increased steadily during erythroid differentiation in culture, in contrast to other KCa mRNAs examined. Low nanomolar concentrations of CLT inhibited proliferation and erythroid differentiation of peripheral blood stem cells in liquid culture.

A web-server of cell type discrimination system.

PubMed

Wang, Anyou; Zhong, Yan; Wang, Yanhua; He, Qianchuan

2014-01-01

Discriminating cell types is a daily request for stem cell biologists. However, there is not a user-friendly system available to date for public users to discriminate the common cell types, embryonic stem cells (ESCs), induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and somatic cells (SCs). Here, we develop WCTDS, a web-server of cell type discrimination system, to discriminate the three cell types and their subtypes like fetal versus adult SCs. WCTDS is developed as a top layer application of our recent publication regarding cell type discriminations, which employs DNA-methylation as biomarkers and machine learning models to discriminate cell types. Implemented by Django, Python, R, and Linux shell programming, run under Linux-Apache web server, and communicated through MySQL, WCTDS provides a friendly framework to efficiently receive the user input and to run mathematical models for analyzing data and then to present results to users. This framework is flexible and easy to be expended for other applications. Therefore, WCTDS works as a user-friendly framework to discriminate cell types and subtypes and it can also be expended to detect other cell types like cancer cells.

A Web-Server of Cell Type Discrimination System

PubMed Central

Zhong, Yan

2014-01-01

Discriminating cell types is a daily request for stem cell biologists. However, there is not a user-friendly system available to date for public users to discriminate the common cell types, embryonic stem cells (ESCs), induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), and somatic cells (SCs). Here, we develop WCTDS, a web-server of cell type discrimination system, to discriminate the three cell types and their subtypes like fetal versus adult SCs. WCTDS is developed as a top layer application of our recent publication regarding cell type discriminations, which employs DNA-methylation as biomarkers and machine learning models to discriminate cell types. Implemented by Django, Python, R, and Linux shell programming, run under Linux-Apache web server, and communicated through MySQL, WCTDS provides a friendly framework to efficiently receive the user input and to run mathematical models for analyzing data and then to present results to users. This framework is flexible and easy to be expended for other applications. Therefore, WCTDS works as a user-friendly framework to discriminate cell types and subtypes and it can also be expended to detect other cell types like cancer cells. PMID:24578634

The T-Cell Oncogene Tal2 Is a Target of PU.1 and Upregulated during Osteoclastogenesis

PubMed Central

Courtial, Nadine; Mücke, Christian; Herkt, Stefanie; Kolodziej, Stephan; Hussong, Helge; Lausen, Jörn

2013-01-01

Transcription factors play a crucial role in regulating differentiation processes during human life and are important in disease. The basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors Tal1 and Lyl1 play a major role in the regulation of gene expression in the hematopoietic system and are involved in human leukemia. Tal2, which belongs to the same family of transcription factors as Tal1 and Lyl1, is also involved in human leukaemia. However, little is known regarding the expression and regulation of Tal2 in hematopoietic cells. Here we show that Tal2 is expressed in hematopoietic cells of the myeloid lineage. Interestingly, we found that usage of the Tal2 promoter is different in human and mouse cells. Two promoters, hP1 and hP2 drive Tal2 expression in human erythroleukemia K562 cells, however in mouse RAW cells only the mP1 promoter is used. Furthermore, we found that Tal2 expression is upregulated during oesteoclastogenesis. We show that Tal2 is a direct target gene of the myeloid transcription factor PU.1, which is a key transcription factor for osteoclast gene expression. Strikingly, PU.1 binding to the P1 promoter is conserved between mouse and human, but PU.1 binding to P2 was only detected in human K562 cells. Additionally, we provide evidence that Tal2 influences the expression of the osteoclastic differentiation gene TRACP. These findings provide novel insight into the expression control of Tal2 in hematopoietic cells and reveal a function of Tal2 as a regulator of gene expression during osteoclast differentiation. PMID:24086757

cDNA cloning and characterization of a novel gene encoding the MLF1-interacting protein MLF1IP.

PubMed

Hanissian, Silva H; Akbar, Umar; Teng, Bin; Janjetovic, Zorica; Hoffmann, Anne; Hitzler, Johann K; Iscove, Norman; Hamre, Kristin; Du, Xiaoping; Tong, Yiai; Mukatira, Suraj; Robertson, Jon H; Morris, Stephan W

2004-04-29

Myelodysplasia/acute myeloid leukemia (MDS/AML) is characterized by a t(3;5)(q25.1;q34) chromosomal translocation that forms a fusion gene between nucleophosmin (NPM) and MDS/myeloid leukemia factor 1 (MLF1). We identified a novel protein, MLF1-interacting protein (MLF1IP), that specifically associates with MLF1 by yeast two-hybrid analysis and in pulldown assays, and colocalizes with it in both the nuclei and cytoplasm of cells. The MLF1IP gene locus is at chromosome 4q35.1 and is composed of 14 exons spanning 75.8 kb of genomic DNA. The MLF1IP cDNA encodes a 46-kDa protein that contains two bipartite and two classical nuclear localization signals, two nuclear receptor-binding motifs (LXXLL), two leucine zippers, two PEST residues and several potential phosphorylation sites. MLF1IP transcripts are expressed in a variety of tissues (e.g. fetal liver, bone marrow, thymus and testis). MLF1IP appears to be a lineage-specific gene whose expression is confined exclusively to the CFU-E erythroid precursor cells, but not in mature erythrocytes. These observations, together with previous data demonstrating a role for MLF1 in suppressing red cell maturation, suggest a possible role for MLF1IP and MLF1 deregulation in the genesis of erythroleukemias.

Optimization of human granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (hGM-CSF) expression using asparaginase and xylanase gene's signal sequences in Escherichia coli.

PubMed

Khasa, Yogender Pal; Khushoo, Amardeep; Tapryal, Suman; Mukherjee, K J

2011-09-01

The toxicity of the recombinant protein towards the expression host remains a significant deterrent for bioprocess development. In this study, the expression of human granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (hGM-CSF), which is known to be toxic to its host, was enhanced many folds using a combination of genetic and bioprocess strategies in Escherichia coli. The N terminus attachment of endoxylanase and asparaginase signal sequences from Bacillus subtilis and E. coli, respectively, in combination with and without His-tag, considerably improved expression levels. Induction and media optimization studies in shake flask cultures resulted in a maximal hGM-CSF concentration of 365 mg/L in the form of inclusion bodies (IBs) with a specific product yield (Y (P/X)) of 120 mg/g dry cell weight in case of the asparaginase signal. Culturing the cells in nutrient rich Terrific broth maintained the specific product yields (Y (P/X)) while a 6.6-fold higher volumetric concentration of both product and biomass was obtained. The purification and refolding steps were optimized resulting in a 95% pure protein with a fairly high refolding yield of 45%. The biological activity of the refolded protein was confirmed by a cell proliferation assay on hGM-CSF dependent human erythroleukemia TF-1 cells. This study demonstrated that this indeed is a viable route for the efficient production of hGM-CSF.

Expression of sialosyl-Tn in colony-forming unit-erythroid, erythroblasts, B cells, and a subset of CD4+ cells.

PubMed

Muroi, K; Suda, T; Nakamura, M; Okada, S; Nojiri, H; Amemiya, Y; Miura, Y; Hakomori, S

1994-01-01

The epitopes Tn and sialosyl-Tn are expressed on erythrocytes of individuals with a very rare blood group, who often suffer from "Tn syndrome." We surveyed expression of Tn and sialosyl-Tn in normal blood cells, malignant transformed cells, and progenitor stem cells from bone marrow (BM). An anti-Tn antibody, IE3, and an anti-sialosyl-Tn antibody, TKH2, were used in this study. TKH2 reacted with erythroblasts, B cells, and a subset of CD4+ cells; but not with erythrocytes. Erythroblastic cell lines (K562, HEL, and UT7/EPO) and B-cell lines (Daudi, Raji, and B-cell lines transformed by Epstein-Barr virus) showed reactivity to TKH2. Similar results from the reactivity of TKH2 with transformed cells from leukemia patients and lymphoma patients were obtained; TKH2 reacted with blasts from erythroleukemia (M6; for 4 of 4 cases) and with lymphocytes from B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (3 of 3), B-cell lymphoma (5 of 5), and CD4+ adult T-cell leukemia (4 of 4), but did not react with blasts from acute myeloid leukemia (M0 to M5; 0 of 22) or acute lymphoid leukemia (B-lymphoid leukemia, 0 of 11; T-lymphoid leukemia, 0 of 2; undifferentiated leukemia, 0 of 1). IE3 did not react with all of the tested cells. CD2-CD19-TKH2+ normal BM cells (BMC) contained blasts and various maturation stages of erythroblasts. The TKH2+ cells produced a large number of colony-forming unit-erythroid (CFU-E) colonies, whereas they produced a small number of burst-forming unit-erythroid colonies and CFU-granulocyte-macrophage colonies. CD34+ normal BMC did not express Tn and sialosyl-Tn. These findings suggest that sialosyl-Tn expresses in CFU-E to erythroblasts.

Mouse bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells inhibit leukemia/lymphoma cell proliferation in vitro and in a mouse model of allogeneic bone marrow transplant

PubMed Central

SONG, NINGXIA; GAO, LEI; QIU, HUIYING; HUANG, CHONGMEI; CHENG, HUI; ZHOU, HONG; LV, SHUQING; CHEN, LI; WANG, JIANMIN

2015-01-01

The allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) contributes to the reconstitution of hematopoiesis by ameliorating acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD). However, the role of MSCs in graft-versus-leukemia remains to be determined. In the present study, we co-cultured C57BL/6 mouse bone marrow (BM)-derived MSCs with A20 murine B lymphoma, FBL3 murine erythroleukemia and P388 murine acute lymphocytic leukemia cells. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle progression and the amount of cytokine secretion were then measured using a Cell Counting kit-8, Annexin V/propidium iodide staining, flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. We also established a model of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) using BALB/c mice. Following the administration of A20 cells and MSCs, we recorded the symptoms and the survival of the mice for 4 weeks, assessed the T cell subsets present in peripheral blood, and, after the mice were sacrifice, we determined the infiltration of MSCs into the organs by histological staining. Our results revealed that the MSCs inhibited the proliferation of the mouse lymphoma and leukemia cells in vitro, leading to cell cycle arrest and reducing the secretion of interleukin (IL)-10. In our model of allogeneic BMT, the intravenous injection of MSCs into the mice injected wth A20 cells decreased the incidence of lymphoma, improved survival, increased the fraction of CD3+CD8+ T cells, decreased the fraction of CD3+CD4+ T cells and CD4+CD25+ T cells in peripheral blood, and ameliorated the manifestation of aGVHD. The results from the present study indicate that MSCs may be safe and effective when used in allogeneic BMT for the treatment of hemotological malignancies. PMID:25901937

Mouse bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells inhibit leukemia/lymphoma cell proliferation in vitro and in a mouse model of allogeneic bone marrow transplant.

PubMed

Song, Ningxia; Gao, Lei; Qiu, Huiying; Huang, Chongmei; Cheng, Hui; Zhou, Hong; Lv, Shuqing; Chen, Li; Wang, Jianmin

2015-07-01

The allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) contributes to the reconstitution of hematopoiesis by ameliorating acute graft‑versus‑host disease (aGVHD). However, the role of MSCs in graft‑versus‑leukemia remains to be determined. In the present study, we co‑cultured C57BL/6 mouse bone marrow (BM)‑derived MSCs with A20 murine B lymphoma, FBL3 murine erythroleukemia and P388 murine acute lymphocytic leukemia cells. Cell proliferation, apoptosis, cell cycle progression and the amount of cytokine secretion were then measured using a Cell Counting kit‑8, Annexin V/propidium iodide staining, flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. We also established a model of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) using BALB/c mice. Following the administration of A20 cells and MSCs, we recorded the symptoms and the survival of the mice for 4 weeks, assessed the T cell subsets present in peripheral blood, and, after the mice were sacrifice, we determined the infiltration of MSCs into the organs by histological staining. Our results revealed that the MSCs inhibited the proliferation of the mouse lymphoma and leukemia cells in vitro, leading to cell cycle arrest and reducing the secretion of interleukin (IL)‑10. In our model of allogeneic BMT, the intravenous injection of MSCs into the mice injected wth A20 cells decreased the incidence of lymphoma, improved survival, increased the fraction of CD3+CD8+ T cells, decreased the fraction of CD3+CD4+ T cells and CD4+CD25+ T cells in peripheral blood, and ameliorated the manifestation of aGVHD. The results from the present study indicate that MSCs may be safe and effective when used in allogeneic BMT for the treatment of hemotological malignancies.

Differanisole A, an inducer of the differentiation of Friend leukemic cells, induces stalk cell differentiation in Dictyostelium discoideum.

PubMed

Kubohara, Y; Okamoto, K; Tanaka, Y; Asahi, K; Sakurai, A; Takahashi, N

1993-05-03

Differanisole A isolated from the conditioned medium of a soil microorganism, Chaetomium strain RB-001, is an inducer of the differentiation of the Friend leukemic cells (mouse leukemia cells). The chemical structure of this substance is very similar to that of stalk cell differentiation-inducing factor (DIF) isolated from the cellular slime mould, Dictyostelium discoideum. We examined the effects of differanisole A on Dictyostelium HM44 cells, a mutant strain which is defective in DIF production, and found this substance to be an inducer of stalk cell differentiation in D. discoideum.

High Fractional Occupancy of a Tandem Maf Recognition Element and Its Role in Long-Range β-Globin Gene Regulation

PubMed Central

Stees, Jared R.; Hossain, Mir A.; Sunose, Tomoki; Kudo, Yasushi; Pardo, Carolina E.; Nabilsi, Nancy H.; Darst, Russell P.; Poudyal, Rosha; Igarashi, Kazuhiko; Kladde, Michael P.

2015-01-01

Enhancers and promoters assemble protein complexes that ultimately regulate the recruitment and activity of RNA polymerases. Previous work has shown that at least some enhancers form stable protein complexes, leading to the formation of enhanceosomes. We analyzed protein-DNA interactions in the murine β-globin gene locus using the methyltransferase accessibility protocol for individual templates (MAPit). The data show that a tandem Maf recognition element (MARE) in locus control region (LCR) hypersensitive site 2 (HS2) reveals a remarkably high degree of occupancy during differentiation of mouse erythroleukemia cells. Most of the other transcription factor binding sites in LCR HS2 or in the adult β-globin gene promoter regions exhibit low fractional occupancy, suggesting highly dynamic protein-DNA interactions. Targeting of an artificial zinc finger DNA-binding domain (ZF-DBD) to the HS2 tandem MARE caused a reduction in the association of MARE-binding proteins and transcription complexes at LCR HS2 and the adult βmajor-globin gene promoter but did not affect expression of the βminor-globin gene. The data demonstrate that a stable MARE-associated footprint in LCR HS2 is important for the recruitment of transcription complexes to the adult βmajor-globin gene promoter during erythroid cell differentiation. PMID:26503787

Friend leukemia virus transformed cells exposed to microgravity in the presence of DMSO (7-IML-1)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cogoli, Augusto

1992-01-01

The purpose of this experiment is to study the adaptation of living cells to microgravity. The in vitro transformation of Friend cells by Dimethylsufoxide (DMSO) is a good model for the study of cell differentiation and protein biosynthesis. Cultures of cells will be prepared shortly before launch. Once in space, transformation will be induced by injection of DMSO. One set of cultures will be chemically fixed with glutaraldehyde for electron microscope investigations; another set will be preserved for determining the amount of hemogloben produced and the extent of cell proliferation.

Dye sensitized solar cell based on environmental friendly eosin Y dye and Al doped titanium dioxide nano particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulkarni, Swati S.; Bodkhe, Gajanan A.; Shirsat, Sumedh M.; Hussaini, S. S.; Shejwal, N. N.; Shirsat, Mahendra D.

2018-03-01

Present communication deals with the development of cost effective dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) with eco-friendly materials. Eco-friendly Eosin Y dye was used to sensitize photo anode which was fabricated using undoped and Aluminium doped titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles. Undoped and Aluminium doped TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by simple and cost effective sol-gel method. Aluminium doped and undoped TiO2 nanoparticles were characterized using UV-visible, FT-IR spectroscopy, x-ray Diffraction, and Scanning Electron Micrograph with EDX. The photo-voltaic activity of the cell was studied under light irradiation of 100 milliwatt cm-2. Aluminium doped TiO2 nanoparticle photo electrode exhibits more than 60% increase in cell efficiency as compared to the undoped TiO2 nanoparticle photo electrode.

Preservation of large-scale chromatin structure in FISH experiments

PubMed Central

Hepperger, Claudia; Otten, Simone; von Hase, Johann

2006-01-01

The nuclear organization of specific endogenous chromatin regions can be investigated only by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). One of the two fixation procedures is typically applied: (1) buffered formaldehyde or (2) hypotonic shock with methanol acetic acid fixation followed by dropping of nuclei on glass slides and air drying. In this study, we compared the effects of these two procedures and some variations on nuclear morphology and on FISH signals. We analyzed mouse erythroleukemia and mouse embryonic stem cells because their clusters of subcentromeric heterochromatin provide an easy means to assess preservation of chromatin. Qualitative and quantitative analyses revealed that formaldehyde fixation provided good preservation of large-scale chromatin structures, while classical methanol acetic acid fixation after hypotonic treatment severely impaired nuclear shape and led to disruption of chromosome territories, heterochromatin structures, and large transgene arrays. Our data show that such preparations do not faithfully reflect in vivo nuclear architecture. Electronic supplementary material Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00412-006-0084-2 and is accessible for authorized users. PMID:17119992

7-Hydroxystaurosporine and Perifosine in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Leukemia, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia or High Risk Myelodysplastic Syndromes

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-09-27

Accelerated Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (M3); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasms; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; T-cell Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Transforming growth factor-beta1 transcriptionally activates CD34 and prevents induced differentiation of TF-1 cells in the absence of any cell-cycle effects.

PubMed

Marone, M; Scambia, G; Bonanno, G; Rutella, S; de Ritis, D; Guidi, F; Leone, G; Pierelli, L

2002-01-01

A number of cytokines modulate self-renewal and differentiation of hematopoietic elements. Among these is transforming growth factor beta1 (TGF-beta1), which regulates cell cycle and differentiation of hematopoietic cells, but has pleiotropic activities depending on the state of responsiveness of the target cells. It has been previously shown by us and other authors that TGF-beta1 maintains human CD34(+) hematopoietic progenitors in an undifferentiated state, independently of any cell cycle effects, and that depletion of TGF-beta1 triggers differentiation accompanied by a decrease in CD34 antigen expression. In the present work, we show that exogenous TGF-beta1 upregulates the human CD34 antigen in the CD34(+) cell lines TF-1 and KG-1a, but not in the more differentiated CD34(-) cell lines HL-60 and K-562. We further studied this effect in the pluripotent erythroleukemia cell line TF-1. Here, TGF-beta1 did not effect cell growth, but induced transcriptional activation of full-length CD34 and prevented differentiation induced by differentiating agents. This effect was associated with nuclear translocation of Smad-2, activation of TAK-1, and with a dramatic decrease in p38 phosphorylation. In other systems TGF-beta1 has been shown to activate a TGF-beta-activated kinase 1 (TAK1), which in turn, activates p38. The specific inhibitor of p38 phosphorylation, SB202190, also increased CD34 RNA expression, indicating the existence of a link between p-38 inhibition by TGF-beta1 and CD34 overexpression. Our data demonstrate that TGF-beta1 transcriptionally activates CD34 and prevents differentiation of TF-1 cells by acting independently through the Smad, TAK1 and p38 pathways, and thus provide important clues for the understanding of hematopoietic development and a potential tool to modify response of hematopoietic cells to mitogens or differentiating agents.

Cell-friendly inverse opal-like hydrogels for a spatially separated co-culture system.

PubMed

Kim, Jaeyun; Bencherif, Sidi A; Li, Weiwei Aileen; Mooney, David J

2014-09-01

Three-dimensional macroporous scaffolds have extensively been studied for cell-based tissue engineering but their use is mostly limited to mechanical support for cell adhesion and growth on the surface of macropores. Here, a templated fabrication method is described to prepare cell-friendly inverse opal-like hydrogels (IOHs) allowing both cell encapsulation within the hydrogel matrix and cell seeding on the surface of macropores. Ionically crosslinked alginate microbeads and photocrosslinkable biocompatible polymers are used as a sacrificial template and as a matrix, respectively. The alginate microbeads are easily removed by a chelating agent, with minimal toxicity for the encapsulated cells during template removal. The outer surface of macropores in IOHs can also provide a space for cell adherence. The cells encapsulated or attached in IOHs are able to remain viable and to proliferate over time. The elastic modulus and cell-adhesion properties of IOHs can be easily controlled and tuned. Finally, it is demonstrated that IOH can be used to co-culture two distinct cell populations in different spatial positions. This cell-friendly IOH system provides a 3D scaffold for organizing different cell types in a controllable microenvironment to investigate biological processes such as stem cell niches or tumor microenvironments. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The Role of B Cells for in Vivo T Cell Responses to a Friend Virus-Induced Leukemia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schultz, Kirk R.; Klarnet, Jay P.; Gieni, Randall S.; Hayglass, Kent T.; Greenberg, Philip D.

1990-08-01

B cells can function as antigen-presenting cells and accessory cells for T cell responses. This study evaluated the role of B cells in the induction of protective T cell immunity to a Friend murine leukemia virus (F-MuLV)-induced leukemia (FBL). B cell-deficient mice exhibited significantly reduced tumor-specific CD4^+ helper and CD8^+ cytotoxic T cell responses after priming with FBL or a recombinant vaccinia virus containing F-MuLV antigens. Moreover, these mice had diminished T cell responses to the vaccinia viral antigens. Tumor-primed T cells transferred into B cell-deficient mice effectively eradicated disseminated FBL. Thus, B cells appear necessary for efficient priming but not expression of tumor and viral T cell immunity.

Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Young Patients With Down Syndrome and Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Myelodysplastic Syndromes

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-07-10

Childhood Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Childhood Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Other Myeloid Malignancies

The t(3;5)(q25.1;q34) of myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia produces a novel fusion gene, NPM-MLF1.

PubMed

Yoneda-Kato, N; Look, A T; Kirstein, M N; Valentine, M B; Raimondi, S C; Cohen, K J; Carroll, A J; Morris, S W

1996-01-18

A t(3;5)(q25.1;q34) chromosomal translocation associated with myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) was found to rearrange part of the nucleophosmin (NPM) gene on chromosome 5 with sequences from a novel gene on chromosome 3. Chimeric transcripts expressed by these cells contain 5' NPM coding sequences fused in-frame to those of the new gene, which we named myelodysplasia/myeloid leukemia factor 1 (MLF1). RNA-based polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed identical NPM-MLF1 mRNA fusions in each of the three t(3;5)-positive cases of AML examined. The predicted MLF1 amino acid sequence lacked homology to previously characterized proteins and did not contain known functional motifs. Normal MLF1 transcripts were expressed in a variety of tissues, most abundantly in testis, ovary, skeletal muscle, heart, kidney and colon. Anti-MLF1 antibodies detected the wild-type 31 kDa protein in K562 and HEL erythroleukemia cell lines, but not in HL-60, U937 or KG-1 myeloid leukemia lines. By contrast, t(3;5)-positive leukemia cells expressed a 54 kDa NPM-MLF1 protein, but not normal MLF1. Immunostaining experiments indicated that MLF1 is normally located in the cytoplasm, whereas NPM-MLF1 is targeted to the nucleus, with highest levels in the nucleolus. The nuclear/nucleolar localization of NPM-MLF1 mirrors that of NPM, indicating that NPM trafficking signals direct MLF1 to an inappropriate cellular compartment in myeloid leukemia cells.

Mithramycin encapsulated in polymeric micelles by microfluidic technology as novel therapeutic protocol for beta-thalassemia

PubMed Central

Capretto, Lorenzo; Mazzitelli, Stefania; Brognara, Eleonora; Lampronti, Ilaria; Carugo, Dario; Hill, Martyn; Zhang, Xunli; Gambari, Roberto; Nastruzzi, Claudio

2012-01-01

This report shows that the DNA-binding drug, mithramycin, can be efficiently encapsulated in polymeric micelles (PM-MTH), based on Pluronic® block copolymers, by a new microfluidic approach. The effect of different production parameters has been investigated for their effect on PM-MTH characteristics. The compared analysis of PM-MTH produced by microfluidic and conventional bulk mixing procedures revealed that microfluidics provides a useful platform for the production of PM-MTH with improved controllability, reproducibility, smaller size, and polydispersity. Finally, an investigation of the effects of PM-MTH, produced by microfluidic and conventional bulk mixing procedures, on the erythroid differentiation of both human erythroleukemia and human erythroid precursor cells is reported. It is demonstrated that PM-MTH exhibited a slightly lower toxicity and more pronounced differentiative activity when compared to the free drug. In addition, PM-MTH were able to upregulate preferentially γ-globin messenger ribonucleic acid production and to increase fetal hemoglobin (HbF) accumulation, the percentage of HbF-containing cells, and their HbF content without stimulating α-globin gene expression, which is responsible for the clinical symptoms of β-thalassemia. These results represent an important first step toward a potential clinical application, since an increase in HbF could alleviate the symptoms underlying β-thalassemia and sickle cell anemia. In conclusion, this report suggests that PM-MTH produced by microfluidic approach warrants further evaluation as a potential therapeutic protocol for β-thalassemia. PMID:22287841

Zero-valent Fe confined mesoporous silica nanocarriers (Fe(0) @ MCM-41) for targeting experimental orthotopic glioma in rats

PubMed Central

Shevtsov, M. A.; Parr, M. A.; Ryzhov, V. A.; Zemtsova, E. G.; Arbenin, A. Yu; Ponomareva, A. N.; Smirnov, V. M.; Multhoff, G.

2016-01-01

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) impregnated with zero-valent Fe (Fe(0) @ MCM-41) represent an attractive nanocarrier system for drug delivery into tumor cells. The major goal of this work was to assess whether MSNs can penetrate the blood-brain barrier in a glioblastoma rat model. Synthesized MSNs nanomaterials were characterized by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, measurements of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and Mössbauer spectroscopy. For the detection of the MSNs by MR and for biodistribution studies MSNs were labeled with zero-valent Fe. Subsequent magnetometry and nonlinear-longitudinal-response-M2 (NLR-M2) measurements confirmed the MR negative contrast enhancement properties of the nanoparticles. After incubation of different tumor (C6 glioma, U87 glioma, K562 erythroleukemia, HeLa cervix carcinoma) and normal cells such as fibroblasts and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) MSNs rapidly get internalized into the cytosol. Intracellular residing MSNs result in an enhanced cytotoxicity as Fe(0) @ MCM-41 promote the reactive oxygen species production. MRI and histological studies indicated an accumulation of intravenously injected Fe(0) @ MCM-41 MSNs in orthotopic C6 glioma model. Biodistribution studies with measurements of second harmonic of magnetization demonstrated an increased and dose-dependent retention of MSNs in tumor tissues. Taken together, this study demonstrates that MSNs can enter the blood-brain barrier and accumulate in tumorous tissues. PMID:27386761

Involvement of Prolonged Ras Activation in Thrombopoietin-Induced Megakaryocytic Differentiation of a Human Factor-Dependent Hematopoietic Cell Line

PubMed Central

Matsumura, Itaru; Nakajima, Koichi; Wakao, Hiroshi; Hattori, Seisuke; Hashimoto, Koji; Sugahara, Hiroyuki; Kato, Takashi; Miyazaki, Hiroshi; Hirano, Toshio; Kanakura, Yuzuru

1998-01-01

Thrombopoietin (TPO) is a hematopoietic growth factor that plays fundamental roles is both megakaryopoiesis and thrombopoiesis through binding to its receptor, c-mpl. Although TPO has been shown to activate various types of intracellular signaling molecules, such as the Janus family of protein tyrosine kinases, signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs), and ras, the precise mechanisms underlying TPO-induced proliferation and differentiation remain unknown. In an effort to clarify the mechanisms of TPO-induced proliferation and differentiation, c-mpl was introduced into F-36P, a human interleukin-3 (IL-3)-dependent erythroleukemia cell line, and the effects of TPO on the c-mpl-transfected F-36P (F-36P-mpl) cells were investigated. F-36P-mpl cells were found to proliferate and differentiate at a high rate into mature megakaryocytes in response to TPO. Dominant-negative (dn) forms of STAT1, STAT3, STAT5, and ras were inducibly expressed in F-36P-mpl cells, and their effects on TPO-induced proliferation and megakaryocytic differentiation were analyzed. Among these dn molecules, both dn ras and dn STAT5 reduced TPO- or IL-3-induced proliferation of F-36P-mpl cells by ∼30%, and only dn ras could inhibit TPO-induced megakaryocytic differentiation. In accord with this result, overexpression of activated ras (H-rasG12V) for 5 days led to megakaryocytic differentiation of F-36P-mpl cells. In a time course analysis on H-rasG12V-induced differentiation, activation of the ras pathway for 24 to 28 h was required and sufficient to induce megakaryocytic differentiation. Consistent with this result, the treatment of F-36P-mpl cells with TPO was able to induce prolonged activation of ras for more than 24 h, whereas IL-3 had only a transient effect. These results suggest that prolonged ras activation may be involved in TPO-induced megakaryocytic differentiation. PMID:9632812

Friend and Moloney murine leukemia viruses specifically recombine with different endogenous retroviral sequences to generate mink cell focus-forming viruses.

PubMed

Evans, L H; Cloyd, M W

1985-01-01

A group of mink cell focus-forming (MCF) viruses was derived by inoculation of NFS/N mice with Moloney murine leukemia virus (Mo-MuLV 1387) and was compared to a similarly derived group of MCF viruses from mice inoculated with Friend MuLV (Fr-MuLV 57). Antigenic analyses using monoclonal antibodies specific for MCF virus and xenotropic MuLV envelope proteins and genomic structural analyses by RNase T1-resistant oligonucleotide finger-printing indicated that the Moloney and Friend MCF viruses arose by recombination of the respective ecotropic MuLVs with different endogenous retrovirus sequences of NFS mice.

Specific receptors for phorbol diesters on freshly isolated human myeloid and lymphoid leukemia cells: comparable binding characteristics despite different cellular responses.

PubMed

Goodwin, B J; Moore, J O; Weinberg, J B

1984-02-01

Freshly isolated human leukemia cells have been shown in the past to display varying in vitro responses to phorbol diesters, depending on their cell type. Specific receptors for the phorbol diesters have been demonstrated on numerous different cells. This study was designed to characterize the receptors for phorbol diesters on leukemia cells freshly isolated from patients with different kinds of leukemia and to determine if differences in binding characteristics for tritium-labeled phorbol 12,13-dibutyrate (3H-PDBu) accounted for the different cellular responses elicited in vitro by phorbol diesters. Cells from 26 patients with different kinds of leukemia were studied. PDBu or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) caused cells from patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML), acute promyelocytic (APML), acute myelomonocytic (AMML), acute monocytic (AMoL), acute erythroleukemia (AEL), chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML) in blast crisis (myeloid), acute undifferentiated leukemia (AUL), and hairy cell leukemia (HCL) (n = 15) to adhere to plastic and spread. However, they caused no adherence or spreading and only slight aggregation of cells from patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), or CML-blast crisis (lymphoid) (n = 11). All leukemia cells studied, irrespective of cellular type, displayed specific receptors for 3H-PDBu. The time courses for binding by all leukemia types were similar, with peak binding at 5-10 min at 37 degrees C and 120 min at 4 degrees C. The binding affinities were similar for patients with ALL (96 +/- 32 nM, n = 4), CLL (126 +/- 32 nM, n = 6), and acute nonlymphoid leukemia (73 +/- 14 nM, n = 11). Likewise, the numbers of specific binding sites/cell were comparable for the patients with ALL (6.2 +/- 1.3 X 10(5) sites/cell, n = 4), CLL (5.0 +/- 2.0 X 10(5) sites/cell, n = 6), and acute nonlymphoid leukemia (4.4 +/- 1.9 X 10(5) sites/cell, n = 11). Thus, the differing responses to phorbol diesters of various types of freshly isolated leukemia cells appear to be due to differences other than initial ligand-receptor binding.

Combination Chemotherapy With or Without Bone Marrow Transplantation in Treating Children With Acute Myelogenous Leukemia or Myelodysplastic Syndrome

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-01-15

Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Refractory Anemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts in Transformation; Refractory Anemia With Ringed Sideroblasts; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Other Myeloid Malignancies

Testosterone Administration Inhibits Hepcidin Transcription and is Associated with Increased Iron Incorporation into Red Blood Cells

PubMed Central

Guo, Wen; Bachman, Eric; Li, Michelle; Roy, Cindy N.; Blusztajn, Jerzy; Wong, Siu; Chan, Stephen Y.; Serra, Carlo; Jasuja, Ravi; Travison, Thomas G.; Muckenthaler, Martina U.; Nemeth, Elizabeta; Bhasin, Shalender

2013-01-01

Testosterone administration increases hemoglobin levels and has been used to treat anemia of chronic disease. Erythrocytosis is the most frequent adverse event associated with testosterone therapy of hypogonadal men, especially older men. However, the mechanisms by which testosterone increases hemoglobin remain unknown. Testosterone administration in male and female mice was associated with a greater increase in hemoglobin and hematocrit, reticulocyte count, reticulocyte hemoglobin concentration, and serum iron and transferring saturation than placebo. Testosterone downregulated hepatic hepcidin mRNA expression, upregulated renal erythropoietin mRNA expression, and increased erythropoietin levels. Testosterone-induced suppression of hepcidin expression was independent of its effects on erythropoietin or hypoxia-sensing mechanisms. Transgenic mice with liver-specific constitutive hepcidin over-expression failed to exhibit the expected increase in hemoglobin in response to testosterone administration. Testosterone upregulated splenic ferroportin expression and reduced iron retention in spleen. After intravenous administration of transferrin-bound 58Fe, the amount of 58Fe incorporated into red blood cells was significantly greater in testosterone-treated mice than in placebo-treated mice. Serum from testosterone-treated mice stimulated hemoglobin synthesis in K562 erythroleukemia cells more than that from vehicle-treated mice. Testosterone administration promoted the association of androgen receptor (AR) with Smad1 and Smad4 to reduce their binding to BMP-response elements in hepcidin promoter in the liver. Ectopic expression of AR in hepatocytes suppressed hepcidin transcription; this effect was blocked dose-dependently by AR antagonist flutamide. Testosterone did not affect hepcidin mRNA stability. Conclusion: Testosterone inhibits hepcidin transcription through its interaction with BMP-Smad signaling. Testosterone administration is associated with increased iron incorporation into red blood cells. PMID:23399021

Crystal structure of reovirus attachment protein σ1 in complex with sialylated oligosaccharides.

PubMed

Reiter, Dirk M; Frierson, Johnna M; Halvorson, Elizabeth E; Kobayashi, Takeshi; Dermody, Terence S; Stehle, Thilo

2011-08-01

Many viruses attach to target cells by binding to cell-surface glycans. To gain a better understanding of strategies used by viruses to engage carbohydrate receptors, we determined the crystal structures of reovirus attachment protein σ1 in complex with α-2,3-sialyllactose, α-2,6-sialyllactose, and α-2,8-di-siallylactose. All three oligosaccharides terminate in sialic acid, which serves as a receptor for the reovirus serotype studied here. The overall structure of σ1 resembles an elongated, filamentous trimer. It contains a globular head featuring a compact β-barrel, and a fibrous extension formed by seven repeating units of a triple β-spiral that is interrupted near its midpoint by a short α-helical coiled coil. The carbohydrate-binding site is located between β-spiral repeats two and three, distal from the head. In all three complexes, the terminal sialic acid forms almost all of the contacts with σ1 in an identical manner, while the remaining components of the oligosaccharides make little or no contacts. We used this structural information to guide mutagenesis studies to identify residues in σ1 that functionally engage sialic acid by assessing hemagglutination capacity and growth in murine erythroleukemia cells, which require sialic acid binding for productive infection. Our studies using σ1 mutant viruses reveal that residues 198, 202, 203, 204, and 205 are required for functional binding to sialic acid by reovirus. These findings provide insight into mechanisms of reovirus attachment to cell-surface glycans and contribute to an understanding of carbohydrate binding by viruses. They also establish a filamentous, trimeric carbohydrate-binding module that could potentially be used to endow other trimeric proteins with carbohydrate-binding properties.

Genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the weak A phenotype in Ael blood type with IVS6 + 5G>A ABO gene mutation.

PubMed

Chen, D-P; Sun, C-F; Ning, H-C; Peng, C-T; Wang, W-T; Tseng, C-P

2015-01-01

Ael is a rare blood type that is characterized by weak agglutination of RBCs when reacts with anti-A antibody in adsorption-elution test. Although IVS6 + 5G→A mutation is known to associate with the Ael blood type, genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the weak agglutination of Ael with IVS6 + 5G→A mutation has not yet been completely addressed. In this study, five cases of confirmed Ael individuals were analysed. The cDNAs for the A(el) alleles were obtained by cloning method for sequence analyses. The erythroleukemia K562 cells were used as the cell study model and were transfected with the A(el) expression construct. Flow cytometry analysis was then performed to determine the levels of surface antigen expression. The results indicated that IVS6 + 5G→A attributes to all cases of Ael . RT-PCR analyses revealed the presence of at least 10 types of aberrant A(el) splicing transcripts. Most of the transcripts caused early termination and produced non-functional protein during translation. Nevertheless, the transcript without exons 5-6 was predicted to generate functional Ael glycosyltransferase lacking 57 amino acids at the N-terminal segment. When the exons 5-6 deletion transcript was stably expressed in the K562 cells, weak agglutination of the cells can be induced by adding anti-A antibody followed by adsorption-elution test. This study demonstrates that aberrant splicing of A transcripts contributes to weak A expression and the weak agglutination of Ael -RBCs, adding to the complexity for the regulatory mechanisms of ABO gene expression. © 2014 International Society of Blood Transfusion.

Dependence of erythroid differentiation on cell replication in dimethyl sulfoxide-treated friend leukemia-virus-infected cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wiens, A.W.; McClintock, P.R.; Papaconstantinou, J.

1976-01-01

The dimethyl sulfoxide (Me/sub 2/SO)-mediated induction of hemoglobin synthesis in Friend leukemia cells (a murine erythroblastoid cell line) is coupled with the number of cell replications occurring in the presence of inducer. Varying concentrations of proflavine increase the generation time of these cells from 24 hours to over 50 hours, and in each case the induction of hemoglobin synthesis follows the completion of two cell doublings. Once the induction is initiated, the rate of hemoglobin accumulation is not affected by proflavine. These data indicate that proflavine does not affect the transcription or translation of globin mRNA and that the delaymore » in induction of hemoglobin synthesis is due to its effect on the rate of cellular replication. In experiments using high concentrations of thymidine to block replication, hemoglobin accumulation is prevented only if the cells are blocked prior to 36 hours after Me/sub 2/SO addition. If the cells have completed two generations in the presence of Me/sub 2/SO, there is no effect upon their ability to synthesize hemoglobin even though their growth is arrested. Thus, the inhibition of hemoglobin synthesis by proflavine is not merely the result of a toxic effect on newly subcultured cells but is due to its effect on cellular replication. These experiments confirm that, after addition of Me/sub 2/SO, Friend leukemia cells require more than one complete cell cycle in order to synthesize hemoglobin.« less

A High-Performance and Recyclable Al-Air Coin Cell Based on Eco-Friendly Chitosan Hydrogel Membranes.

PubMed

Liu, Yisi; Sun, Qian; Yang, Xiaofei; Liang, Jianneng; Wang, Biqiong; Koo, Alicia; Li, Ruying; Li, Jie; Sun, Xueliang

2018-05-18

Aluminum-air batteries are a promising power supply for electronics due to its low cost and high energy density. However, portable coin-type Al-air batteries operating under ambient air condition for small electronic appliances have rarely been reported. Herein, coin cell-type Al-air batteries using cost-effective and eco-friendly chitosan hydrogel membranes modified by SiO2, SnO2, and ZnO have been prepared and assembled. The Al-air coin cell employing chitosan hydrogel membrane containing 10 wt.% SiO2 as a separator exhibits better discharge performance with a higher flat voltage plateau, longer discharge duration, and higher power density than the cells using a chitosan hydrogel membrane containing SnO2 or ZnO. Moreover, we also demonstrate that the presented Al-air coin cell can be recycled by a series of eco-friendly procedures using food grade ingredients, resulting in recycled products that are environmentally safe and ready for reuse. The Al-air coin cell adopting a recycled cathode from a fully discharged Al-air coin cell using the above-mentioned procedure has shown comparable performance to cells assembled with a new cathode. With these merits of enhanced electrochemical performance and recyclability, this new Al-air coin cell with modified chitosan hydrogel membrane can find wide applications for powering portable and small-size electronics.

Induction of complex immune responses and strong protection against retrovirus challenge by adenovirus-based immunization depends on the order of vaccine delivery.

PubMed

Kaulfuß, Meike; Wensing, Ina; Windmann, Sonja; Hrycak, Camilla Patrizia; Bayer, Wibke

2017-02-06

In the Friend retrovirus mouse model we developed potent adenovirus-based vaccines that were designed to induce either strong Friend virus GagL 85-93 -specific CD8 + T cell or antibody responses, respectively. To optimize the immunization outcome we evaluated vaccination strategies using combinations of these vaccines. While the vaccines on their own confer strong protection from a subsequent Friend virus challenge, the simple combination of the vaccines for the establishment of an optimized immunization protocol did not result in a further improvement of vaccine effectivity. We demonstrate that the co-immunization with GagL 85-93 /leader-gag encoding vectors together with envelope-encoding vectors abrogates the induction of GagL 85-93 -specific CD8 + T cells, and in successive immunization protocols the immunization with the GagL 85-93 /leader-gag encoding vector had to precede the immunization with an envelope encoding vector for the efficient induction of GagL 85-93 -specific CD8 + T cells. Importantly, the antibody response to envelope was in fact enhanced when the mice were adenovirus-experienced from a prior immunization, highlighting the expedience of this approach. To circumvent the immunosuppressive effect of envelope on immune responses to simultaneously or subsequently administered immunogens, we developed a two immunizations-based vaccination protocol that induces strong immune responses and confers robust protection of highly Friend virus-susceptible mice from a lethal Friend virus challenge.

Study on the Preparation Process and Influential Factors of Large Area Environment-friendly Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell Matrix

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ruiyun; Xu, Shisen; Cheng, Jian; Wang, Hongjian; Ren, Yongqiang

2017-07-01

Low-cost and high-performance matrix materials used in mass production of molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) were prepared by automatic casting machine with α-LiAlO2 powder material synthesized by gel-solid method, and distilled water as solvent. The single cell was assembled for generating test, and the good performance of the matrix was verified. The paper analyzed the factors affecting aqueous tape casting matrix preparation, such as solvent content, dispersant content, milling time, blade height and casting machine running speed, providing a solid basis for the mass production of large area environment-friendly matrix used in molten carbonate fuel cell.

Identification of de Novo Fanconi Anemia in Younger Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2016-05-13

Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Fanconi Anemia; Refractory Anemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts in Transformation; Refractory Anemia With Ringed Sideroblasts; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Other Myeloid Malignancies

Phosphorylation of Ribosomal Protein S6 Kinase 1 at Thr421/Ser424 and Dephosphorylation at Thr389 Regulates SP600125-Induced Polyploidization of Megakaryocytic Cell Lines

PubMed Central

Lin, Di; Zhao, Yong-Shan; Liu, Shuo; Xing, Si-Ning; Zhao, Song; Chen, Cong-Qin; Jiang, Zhi-Ming; Pu, Fei-Fei; Cao, Jian-Ping; Ma, Dong-Chu

2014-01-01

Megakaryocytes (MKs) are one of the few cell types that become polyploid; however, the mechanisms by which these cells are designated to become polyploid are not fully understood. In this investigation, we successfully established two relatively synchronous polyploid cell models by inducing Dami and CMK cells with SP600125. We found that SP600125 induced the polyploidization of Dami and CMK cells, concomitant with the phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6 kinase 1 (S6K1) at Thr421/Ser424 and dephosphorylation at Thr389. The polyploidization was partially blocked by H-89, a cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) inhibitor, through direct binding to S6K1, leading to dephosphorylation at Thr421/Ser424 and phosphorylation at Thr389, independent of PKA. Overexpression of a rapamycin-resistant mutant of S6K1 further enhanced the inhibitory effect of LY294002 on the SP600125-induced polyploidization of Dami and CMK cells. SP600125 also induced the polyploidization of Meg-01 cells, which are derived from a patient with chronic myelogenous leukemia, without causing a significant change in S6K1 phosphorylation. Additionally, SP600125 induced the polyploidization of HEL cells, which are derived from a patient with erythroleukemia, and phosphorylation at Thr389 of S6K1 was detected. However, the polyploidization of both Meg-01 cells and HEL cells as a result of SP600125 treatment was lower than that of SP600125-induced Dami and CMK cells, and it was not blocked by H-89 despite the increased phosphorylation of S6K1 at Thr389 in both cell lines in response to H-89. Given that the Dami and CMK cell lines were derived from patients with acute megakaryocytic leukemia (AMKL) and expressed high levels of platelet-specific antigens, our data suggested that SP600125-induced polyploidization is cell-type specific, that these cell lines were more differentiated, and that phosphorylation at Thr421/Ser424 and dephosphorylation at Thr389 of S6K1 may play an important role in the SP600125-induced polyploidization of these cell lines synergistically with other signaling pathways. PMID:25486532

Phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6 kinase 1 at Thr421/Ser424 and dephosphorylation at Thr389 regulates SP600125-induced polyploidization of megakaryocytic cell lines.

PubMed

Li, Chang-Ling; Yang, Jin-Gang; Lin, Di; Zhao, Yong-Shan; Liu, Shuo; Xing, Si-Ning; Zhao, Song; Chen, Cong-Qin; Jiang, Zhi-Ming; Pu, Fei-Fei; Cao, Jian-Ping; Ma, Dong-Chu

2014-01-01

Megakaryocytes (MKs) are one of the few cell types that become polyploid; however, the mechanisms by which these cells are designated to become polyploid are not fully understood. In this investigation, we successfully established two relatively synchronous polyploid cell models by inducing Dami and CMK cells with SP600125. We found that SP600125 induced the polyploidization of Dami and CMK cells, concomitant with the phosphorylation of ribosomal protein S6 kinase 1 (S6K1) at Thr421/Ser424 and dephosphorylation at Thr389. The polyploidization was partially blocked by H-89, a cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) inhibitor, through direct binding to S6K1, leading to dephosphorylation at Thr421/Ser424 and phosphorylation at Thr389, independent of PKA. Overexpression of a rapamycin-resistant mutant of S6K1 further enhanced the inhibitory effect of LY294002 on the SP600125-induced polyploidization of Dami and CMK cells. SP600125 also induced the polyploidization of Meg-01 cells, which are derived from a patient with chronic myelogenous leukemia, without causing a significant change in S6K1 phosphorylation. Additionally, SP600125 induced the polyploidization of HEL cells, which are derived from a patient with erythroleukemia, and phosphorylation at Thr389 of S6K1 was detected. However, the polyploidization of both Meg-01 cells and HEL cells as a result of SP600125 treatment was lower than that of SP600125-induced Dami and CMK cells, and it was not blocked by H-89 despite the increased phosphorylation of S6K1 at Thr389 in both cell lines in response to H-89. Given that the Dami and CMK cell lines were derived from patients with acute megakaryocytic leukemia (AMKL) and expressed high levels of platelet-specific antigens, our data suggested that SP600125-induced polyploidization is cell-type specific, that these cell lines were more differentiated, and that phosphorylation at Thr421/Ser424 and dephosphorylation at Thr389 of S6K1 may play an important role in the SP600125-induced polyploidization of these cell lines synergistically with other signaling pathways.

Enviro-Friendly Hydrogen Generation from Steel Mill-Scale via Metal-Steam Reforming

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Azad, Abdul-Majeed; Kesavan, Sathees

2006-01-01

An economically viable and environmental friendly method of generating hydrogen for fuel cells is by the reaction of certain metals with steam, called metal-steam reforming (MSR). This technique does not generate any toxic by-products nor contributes to the undesirable greenhouse effect. From the standpoint of favorable thermodynamics, total…

Recyclable organic solar cells on cellulose nanocrystal substrates

PubMed Central

Zhou, Yinhua; Fuentes-Hernandez, Canek; Khan, Talha M.; Liu, Jen-Chieh; Hsu, James; Shim, Jae Won; Dindar, Amir; Youngblood, Jeffrey P.; Moon, Robert J.; Kippelen, Bernard

2013-01-01

Solar energy is potentially the largest source of renewable energy at our disposal, but significant advances are required to make photovoltaic technologies economically viable and, from a life-cycle perspective, environmentally friendly, and consequently scalable. Cellulose nanomaterials are emerging high-value nanoparticles extracted from plants that are abundant, renewable, and sustainable. Here, we report on the first demonstration of efficient polymer solar cells fabricated on optically transparent cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) substrates. The solar cells fabricated on the CNC substrates display good rectification in the dark and reach a power conversion efficiency of 2.7%. In addition, we demonstrate that these solar cells can be easily separated and recycled into their major components using low-energy processes at room temperature, opening the door for a truly recyclable solar cell technology. Efficient and easily recyclable organic solar cells on CNC substrates are expected to be an attractive technology for sustainable, scalable, and environmentally-friendly energy production. PMID:23524333

Recyclable organic solar cells on cellulose nanocrystal substrates.

PubMed

Zhou, Yinhua; Fuentes-Hernandez, Canek; Khan, Talha M; Liu, Jen-Chieh; Hsu, James; Shim, Jae Won; Dindar, Amir; Youngblood, Jeffrey P; Moon, Robert J; Kippelen, Bernard

2013-01-01

Solar energy is potentially the largest source of renewable energy at our disposal, but significant advances are required to make photovoltaic technologies economically viable and, from a life-cycle perspective, environmentally friendly, and consequently scalable. Cellulose nanomaterials are emerging high-value nanoparticles extracted from plants that are abundant, renewable, and sustainable. Here, we report on the first demonstration of efficient polymer solar cells fabricated on optically transparent cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) substrates. The solar cells fabricated on the CNC substrates display good rectification in the dark and reach a power conversion efficiency of 2.7%. In addition, we demonstrate that these solar cells can be easily separated and recycled into their major components using low-energy processes at room temperature, opening the door for a truly recyclable solar cell technology. Efficient and easily recyclable organic solar cells on CNC substrates are expected to be an attractive technology for sustainable, scalable, and environmentally-friendly energy production.

Mutations in type 3 reovirus that determine binding to sialic acid are contained in the fibrous tail domain of viral attachment protein sigma1.

PubMed

Chappell, J D; Gunn, V L; Wetzel, J D; Baer, G S; Dermody, T S

1997-03-01

The reovirus attachment protein, sigma1, determines numerous aspects of reovirus-induced disease, including viral virulence, pathways of spread, and tropism for certain types of cells in the central nervous system. The sigma1 protein projects from the virion surface and consists of two distinct morphologic domains, a virion-distal globular domain known as the head and an elongated fibrous domain, termed the tail, which is anchored into the virion capsid. To better understand structure-function relationships of sigma1 protein, we conducted experiments to identify sequences in sigma1 important for viral binding to sialic acid, a component of the receptor for type 3 reovirus. Three serotype 3 reovirus strains incapable of binding sialylated receptors were adapted to growth in murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells, in which sialic acid is essential for reovirus infectivity. MEL-adapted (MA) mutant viruses isolated by serial passage in MEL cells acquired the capacity to bind sialic acid-containing receptors and demonstrated a dependence on sialic acid for infection of MEL cells. Analysis of reassortant viruses isolated from crosses of an MA mutant virus and a reovirus strain that does not bind sialic acid indicated that the sigma1 protein is solely responsible for efficient growth of MA mutant viruses in MEL cells. The deduced sigma1 amino acid sequences of the MA mutant viruses revealed that each strain contains a substitution within a short region of sequence in the sigma1 tail predicted to form beta-sheet. These studies identify specific sequences that determine the capacity of reovirus to bind sialylated receptors and suggest a location for a sialic acid-binding domain. Furthermore, the results support a model in which type 3 sigma1 protein contains discrete receptor binding domains, one in the head and another in the tail that binds sialic acid.

A Portrait of Ribosomal DNA Contacts with Hi-C Reveals 5S and 45S rDNA Anchoring Points in the Folded Human Genome

PubMed Central

Yu, Shoukai; Lemos, Bernardo

2016-01-01

Ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs) account for >60% of all RNAs in eukaryotic cells and are encoded in the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) arrays. The rRNAs are produced from two sets of loci: the 5S rDNA array resides exclusively on human chromosome 1, whereas the 45S rDNA array resides on the short arm of five human acrocentric chromosomes. The 45S rDNA gives origin to the nucleolus, the nuclear organelle that is the site of ribosome biogenesis. Intriguingly, 5S and 45S rDNA arrays exhibit correlated copy number variation in lymphoblastoid cells (LCLs). Here we examined the genomic architecture and repeat content of the 5S and 45S rDNA arrays in multiple human genome assemblies (including PacBio MHAP assembly) and ascertained contacts between the rDNA arrays and the rest of the genome using Hi-C datasets from two human cell lines (erythroleukemia K562 and lymphoblastoid cells). Our analyses revealed that 5S and 45S arrays each have thousands of contacts in the folded genome, with rDNA-associated regions and genes dispersed across all chromosomes. The rDNA contact map displayed conserved and disparate features between two cell lines, and pointed to specific chromosomes, genomic regions, and genes with evidence of spatial proximity to the rDNA arrays; the data also showed a lack of direct physical interaction between the 5S and 45S rDNA arrays. Finally, the analysis identified an intriguing organization in the 5S array with Alu and 5S elements adjacent to one another and organized in opposite orientation along the array. Portraits of genome folding centered on the ribosomal DNA array could help understand the emergence of concerted variation, the control of 5S and 45S expression, as well as provide insights into an organelle that contributes to the spatial localization of human chromosomes during interphase. PMID:27797956

Natural single amino acid polymorphism (F19Y) in human galectin-8: detection of structural alterations and increased growth-regulatory activity on tumor cells.

PubMed

Ruiz, Federico M; Scholz, Barbara A; Buzamet, Eliza; Kopitz, Jürgen; André, Sabine; Menéndez, Margarita; Romero, Antonio; Solís, Dolores; Gabius, Hans-Joachim

2014-03-01

Natural amino acid substitution by single-site nucleotide polymorphism can become a valuable tool for structure-activity correlations, especially if evidence for association to disease parameters exists. Focusing on the F19Y change in human galectin-8, connected clinically to rheumatoid arthritis, we here initiate the study of consequences of a single-site substitution in the carbohydrate recognition domain of this family of cellular effectors. We apply a strategically combined set of structural and cell biological techniques for comparing properties of the wild-type and variant proteins. The overall hydrodynamic behavior of the full-length protein and of the separate N-domain is not noticeably altered, but displacements in the F0 β-strand of the β-sandwich fold in the N-domain are induced, as evidenced by protein crystallography. Analysis of thermal stability by circular dichroism spectroscopy revealed perceptible differences for the full-length proteins, pointing to an impact of the substitution beyond the N-domain. In addition, small differences in thermodynamic parameters of carbohydrate binding are detected. On the level of two types of tumor cells, characteristics of binding appeared rather similar. In further comparison of the influence on proliferation, the variant proved to be more active as growth regulator in the six tested lines of neuroblastoma, erythroleukemia and colon adenocarcinoma. The seemingly subtle structural change identified here thus has functional implications in vitro, encouraging further analysis in autoimmune regulation and, in a broad context, in work with other natural single-site variants, using the documented combined strategy. The atomic coordinates and structure factors (codes 4BMB, 4BME) have been deposited in the Protein Data Bank. © 2014 FEBS.

Interleukin-6 Directly Impairs the Erythroid Development of Human TF-1 Erythroleukemic Cells

PubMed Central

McCranor, Bryan J.; Kim, Min Jung; Cruz, Nicole M.; Xue, Qian-Li; Berger, Alan E.; Walston, Jeremy D.; Civin, Curt I.; Roy, Cindy N.

2013-01-01

Anemia of inflammation or chronic disease is a highly prevalent form of anemia. The inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) negatively correlates with hemoglobin concentration in many disease states. The IL-6-hepcidin antimicrobial peptide axis promotes iron-restricted anemia; however the full role of IL-6 in anemia of inflammation is not well-defined. We previously reported that chronic inflammation had a negative impact on maturation of erythroid progenitors in a mouse model. We hypothesized that IL-6 may be responsible for impaired erythropoiesis, independent of iron restriction. To test the hypothesis we utilized the human erythroleukemia TF-1 cell line to model erythroid maturation and exposed them to varying doses of IL-6 over six days. At 10 ng/ml, IL-6 significantly repressed erythropoietin-dependent TF-1 erythroid maturation. While IL-6 did not decrease the expression of genes associated with hemoglobin synthesis, we observed impaired hemoglobin synthesis as demonstrated by decreased benzidine staining. We also observed that IL-6 down regulated expression of the gene SLC4a1 which is expressed late in erythropoiesis. Those findings suggested that IL-6-dependent inhibition of hemoglobin synthesis might occur. We investigated the impact of IL-6 on mitochondria. IL-6 decreased the mitochondrial membrane potential at all treatment doses, and significantly decreased mitochondrial mass at the highest dose. Our studies indicate that IL-6 may impair mitochondrial function in maturing erythroid cells resulting in impaired hemoglobin production and erythroid maturation. Our findings may indicate a novel pathway of action for IL-6 in the anemia of inflammation, and draw attention to the potential for new therapeutic targets that affect late erythroid development. PMID:24119518

CCAR1/CoCoA pair-mediated recruitment of the Mediator defines a novel pathway for GATA1 function.

PubMed

Mizuta, Shumpei; Minami, Tomoya; Fujita, Haruka; Kaminaga, Chihiro; Matsui, Keiji; Ishino, Ruri; Fujita, Azusa; Oda, Kasumi; Kawai, Asami; Hasegawa, Natsumi; Urahama, Norinaga; Roeder, Robert G; Ito, Mitsuhiro

2014-01-01

The MED1 subunit of the Mediator transcriptional coregulator complex coactivates GATA1 and induces erythropoiesis. Here, we show the dual mechanism of GATA1- and MED1-mediated transcription. MED1 expression levels in K562 erythroleukemia cells paralleled the levels of GATA1-targeted gene transcription and erythroid differentiation. An N-terminal fragment of MED1, MED1(1-602), which is incapable of interacting with GATA1, enhanced GATA1-targeted gene transcription and erythroid differentiation, and introduction of MED1(1-602) into Med1(-/-) mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) partially rescued GATA1-mediated transcription. The C-terminal zinc-finger domain of GATA1 interacts with the MED1(1-602)-interacting coactivator CCAR1, CoCoA and MED1(681-715). CCAR1 and CoCoA synergistically enhanced GATA1-mediated transcription from the γ-globin promoter in MEFs. Recombinant GATA1, CCAR1, CoCoA and MED1(1-602) formed a complex in vitro, and GATA1, CCAR1, CoCoA and MED1 were recruited to the γ-globin promoter in K562 cells during erythroid differentiation. Therefore, in addition to the direct interaction between GATA1 and MED1, CoCoA and CCAR1 appear to relay the GATA1 signal to MED1, and multiple modes of the GATA1-MED1 axis may help to fine-tune GATA1 function during GATA1-mediated homeostasis events. © 2013 The Authors Genes to Cells © 2013 by the Molecular Biology Society of Japan and Wiley Publishing Asia Pty Ltd.

Friend or foe: Endoplasmic reticulum protein 29 (ERp29) in epithelial cancer

PubMed Central

Chen, Shaohua; Zhang, Daohai

2015-01-01

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) protein 29 (ERp29) is a molecular chaperone that plays a critical role in protein secretion from the ER in eukaryotic cells. Recent studies have also shown that ERp29 plays a role in cancer. It has been demonstrated that ERp29 is inversely associated with primary tumor development and functions as a tumor suppressor by inducing cell growth arrest in breast cancer. However, ERp29 has also been reported to promote epithelial cell morphogenesis, cell survival against genotoxic stress and distant metastasis. In this review, we summarize the current understanding on the biological and pathological functions of ERp29 in cancer and discuss the pivotal aspects of ERp29 as “friend or foe” in epithelial cancer. PMID:25709888

Do cell phones, iPods/MP3 players, siblings and friends matter? Predictors of child body mass in a U.S. Southern Border City Middle School.

PubMed

Ynalvez, Marcus Antonius; Ynalvez, Ruby; Torregosa, Marivic; Palacios, Horacio; Kilburn, John

2012-01-01

This study examines the association of children's (i) micro-social environment, specifically siblings [kin-friends] and friends from school and neighborhood [non-kin-friends], and (ii) ownership of information and communication technologies (ICT), specifically cell phones and iPod/MP3 players, with body mass index percentile (BMIp). Fifty-five randomly selected 6th graders with a mean age of 12 years, stratified by gender (23 boys and 32 girls), from a Texas middle school located in a city along the U.S. southern border. The linear regression of BMIp on number of siblings and of non-kin-friends, and ownership of cell phone and of iPod/MP3 player was examined using two models: M1 was based on the manual selection of predictors from a pool of potential predictors. M2 was derived from the predictors specified in M1 using backward elimination technique. Because sample size was small, the significance of regression coefficients was evaluated using robust standard errors to calculate t-values. Data for predictors were obtained through a survey. Height and weight were obtained through actual anthropometric measurements. BMIp was calculated using the on-line BMI calculator of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Findings reveal that children's social environment and ICT ownership predict BMIp; specifically, number of siblings (M2: β = -0.34, p-value < .001), and ownership of iPod/MP3 players (M2: β = 0.33, p-value < .001). These results underscore the importance of family in configuring, and of new personal technical devices (that encourage solitary, and oftentimes sedentary, activities) in predicting child body mass. © 2012 Asian Oceanian Association for the Study of Obesity . Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Eco-friendly Energy Storage System: Seawater and Ionic Liquid Electrolyte.

PubMed

Kim, Jae-Kwang; Mueller, Franziska; Kim, Hyojin; Jeong, Sangsik; Park, Jeong-Sun; Passerini, Stefano; Kim, Youngsik

2016-01-08

As existing battery technologies struggle to meet the requirements for widespread use in the field of large-scale energy storage, novel concepts are urgently needed concerning batteries that have high energy densities, low costs, and high levels of safety. Here, a novel eco-friendly energy storage system (ESS) using seawater and an ionic liquid is proposed for the first time; this represents an intermediate system between a battery and a fuel cell, and is accordingly referred to as a hybrid rechargeable cell. Compared to conventional organic electrolytes, the ionic liquid electrolyte significantly enhances the cycle performance of the seawater hybrid rechargeable system, acting as a very stable interface layer between the Sn-C (Na storage) anode and the NASICON (Na3 Zr2 Si2 PO12) ceramic solid electrolyte, making this system extremely promising for cost-efficient and environmentally friendly large-scale energy storage. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

NF-E2 and GATA binding motifs are required for the formation of DNase I hypersensitive site 4 of the human beta-globin locus control region.

PubMed Central

Stamatoyannopoulos, J A; Goodwin, A; Joyce, T; Lowrey, C H

1995-01-01

The beta-like globin genes require the upstream locus control region (LCR) for proper expression. The active elements of the LCR coincide with strong erythroid-specific DNase I-hypersensitive sites (HSs). We have used 5' HS4 as a model to study the formation of these HSs. Previously, we identified a 101 bp element that is required for the formation of this HS. This element binds six proteins in vitro. We now report a mutational analysis of the HS4 HS-forming element (HSFE). This analysis indicates that binding sites for the hematopoietic transcription factors NF-E2 and GATA-1 are required for the formation of the characteristic chromatin structure of the HS following stable transfection into murine erythroleukemia cells. Similarly arranged NF-E2 and GATA binding sites are present in the other HSs of the human LCR, as well as in the homologous mouse and goat sequences and the chicken beta-globin enhancer. A combination of DNase I and micrococcal nuclease sensitivity assays indicates that the characteristic erythroid-specific hypersensitivity of HS4 to DNase I is the result of tissue-specific alterations in both nucleosome positioning and tertiary DNA structure. Images PMID:7828582

Cholecalciferol in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia Undergoing Intensive Induction Chemotherapy

ClinicalTrials.gov

2015-06-18

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Sirolimus, Idarubicin, and Cytarabine in Treating Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-04-23

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Lithium Carbonate and Tretinoin in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-04-25

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Vorinostat, Azacitidine, and Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin for Older Patients With Relapsed or Refractory AML

ClinicalTrials.gov

2015-01-22

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Realizing a facile and environmental-friendly fabrication of high-performance multi-crystalline silicon solar cells by employing ZnO nanostructures and an Al2O3 passivation layer

PubMed Central

Chen, Hong-Yan; Lu, Hong-Liang; Sun, Long; Ren, Qing-Hua; Zhang, Hao; Ji, Xin-Ming; Liu, Wen-Jun; Ding, Shi-Jin; Yang, Xiao-Feng; Zhang, David Wei

2016-01-01

Nowadays, the multi-crystalline silicon (mc-Si) solar cells dominate the photovoltaic industry. However, the current acid etching method on mc-Si surface used by firms can hardly suppress the average reflectance value below 25% in the visible light spectrum. Meanwhile, the nitric acid and the hydrofluoric contained in the etching solution is both environmental unfriendly and highly toxic to human. Here, a mc-Si solar cell based on ZnO nanostructures and an Al2O3 spacer layer is demonstrated. The eco-friendly fabrication is realized by low temperature atomic layer deposition of Al2O3 layer as well as ZnO seed layer. Moreover, the ZnO nanostructures are prepared by nontoxic and low cost hydro-thermal growth process. Results show that the best passivation quality of the n+ -type mc-Si surface can be achieved by balancing the Si dangling bond saturation level and the negative charge concentration in the Al2O3 film. Moreover, the average reflectance on cell surface can be suppressed to 8.2% in 400–900 nm range by controlling the thickness of ZnO seed layer. With these two combined refinements, a maximum solar cell efficiency of 15.8% is obtained eventually. This work offer a facile way to realize the environmental friendly fabrication of high performance mc-Si solar cells. PMID:27924911

Realizing a facile and environmental-friendly fabrication of high-performance multi-crystalline silicon solar cells by employing ZnO nanostructures and an Al2O3 passivation layer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Hong-Yan; Lu, Hong-Liang; Sun, Long; Ren, Qing-Hua; Zhang, Hao; Ji, Xin-Ming; Liu, Wen-Jun; Ding, Shi-Jin; Yang, Xiao-Feng; Zhang, David Wei

2016-12-01

Nowadays, the multi-crystalline silicon (mc-Si) solar cells dominate the photovoltaic industry. However, the current acid etching method on mc-Si surface used by firms can hardly suppress the average reflectance value below 25% in the visible light spectrum. Meanwhile, the nitric acid and the hydrofluoric contained in the etching solution is both environmental unfriendly and highly toxic to human. Here, a mc-Si solar cell based on ZnO nanostructures and an Al2O3 spacer layer is demonstrated. The eco-friendly fabrication is realized by low temperature atomic layer deposition of Al2O3 layer as well as ZnO seed layer. Moreover, the ZnO nanostructures are prepared by nontoxic and low cost hydro-thermal growth process. Results show that the best passivation quality of the n+ -type mc-Si surface can be achieved by balancing the Si dangling bond saturation level and the negative charge concentration in the Al2O3 film. Moreover, the average reflectance on cell surface can be suppressed to 8.2% in 400-900 nm range by controlling the thickness of ZnO seed layer. With these two combined refinements, a maximum solar cell efficiency of 15.8% is obtained eventually. This work offer a facile way to realize the environmental friendly fabrication of high performance mc-Si solar cells.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Larkin, Robert M.; Stefano, Giovanni; Ruckle, Michael E.

Eukaryotic cells require mechanisms to establish the proportion of cellular volume devoted to particular organelles. These mechanisms are poorly understood. From a screen for plastid-to-nucleus signaling mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana, we cloned a mutant allele of a gene that encodes a protein of unknown function that is homologous to two other Arabidopsis genes of unknown function and Arabidopsis. In contrast to FRIENDLY, these three homologs of FRIENDLY are found only in photosynthetic organisms. Based on these data, we proposed that FRIENDLY expanded into a small gene family to help regulate the energy metabolism of cells that contain both mitochondria andmore » chloroplasts. Indeed, we found that knocking out these genes caused a number of chloroplast phenotypes, including a reduction in the proportion of cellular volume devoted to chloroplasts to 50% of wild type. Thus, we refer to these genes as REDUCED CHLOROPLAST COVERAGE (REC). The size of the chloroplast compartment was reduced most in rec1 mutants. The REC1 protein accumulated in the cytosol and the nucleus. REC1 was excluded from the nucleus when plants were treated with amitrole, which inhibits cell expansion and chloroplast function. Finally, we conclude that REC1 is an extraplastidic protein that helps to establish the size of the chloroplast compartment, and that signals derived from cell expansion or chloroplasts may regulate REC1.« less

Immunology: Is Actin at the Lytic Synapse a Friend or a Foe?

PubMed

Hammer, John A

2018-02-19

Cytotoxic T cells and natural killer cells defend us against disease by secreting lytic granules. Whether actin facilitates or thwarts lytic granule secretion has been an open question. Recent results now indicate that the answer depends on the maturation stage of the immune cell-target cell contact. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Comprehensive U.S. Government Strategic Communication Policy: The Way Forward

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-06-12

franchised cell. It costs little, is easy to distribute, and has near- immediate worldwide impact. (White 2007) The Smith-Mundt Act The historical...lack of ability to communicate strategically. The United States‘ strategic communication failure has cost the country friends and allies, and it...to communicate strategically. The United States‘ strategic communication failure has cost the country friends and allies, and it also hurts the

Infection in systemic lupus erythematosus: friend or foe?

PubMed Central

Francis, Lisa; Perl, Andras

2010-01-01

Infectious agents have long been implicated in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus. Common viruses, such as the Epstein-Barr virus, transfusion transmitted virus, parvovirus and cytomegalovirus, have an increased prevalence in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. They may contribute to disease pathogenesis through triggering autoimmunity via structural or functional molecular mimicry, encoding proteins that induce cross-reactive immune responses to self antigens or modulate antigen processing, activation, or apoptosis of B and T cells, macrophages or dendritic cells. Alternatively, some infectious agents, such as malaria, Toxoplasma gondii and Helicobacter pylori, may have a protective effect. Vaccinations may play dual roles by protecting against friend and foe alike. PMID:20209114

Th17 Immune Cells in vivo: Friend or Foe? | Center for Cancer Research

Cancer.gov

Upon encountering an antigen, T cells bearing CD4+ (a helper marker) proliferate and become polarized. During this process, the cells produce specific signaling molecules called cytokines.  This signaling stimulates the T cells to become more specialized.  What results is the production of T cell subsets such as Th1, Th17, or others.

Study questions environmental impact of fuel-cell vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stafford, Ned

2015-09-01

Fuel-cell electric vehicles are seen by many as an environmentally friendly technology that can reduce greenhousegas emissions by producing no harmful emissions. But a new study has found that overall a fuel cell electric vehicle has about the same negative environmental impact as a luxury sports car.

Tetherin promotes the innate and adaptive cell-mediated immune response against retrovirus infection in vivo.

PubMed

Li, Sam X; Barrett, Bradley S; Heilman, Karl J; Messer, Ronald J; Liberatore, Rachel A; Bieniasz, Paul D; Kassiotis, George; Hasenkrug, Kim J; Santiago, Mario L

2014-07-01

Tetherin/BST-2 is a host restriction factor that could directly inhibit retroviral particle release by tethering nascent virions to the plasma membrane. However, the immunological impact of Tetherin during retrovirus infection remains unknown. We now show that Tetherin influences antiretroviral cell-mediated immune responses. In contrast to the direct antiviral effects of Tetherin, which are dependent on cell surface expression, the immunomodulatory effects are linked to the endocytosis of the molecule. Mice encoding endocytosis-competent C57BL/6 Tetherin exhibited lower viremia and pathology at 7 d postinfection with Friend retrovirus (FV) compared with mice encoding endocytosis-defective NZW/LacJ Tetherin. Notably, antiretroviral protection correlated with stronger NK cell responses. In addition, Friend retrovirus infection levels were significantly lower in wild-type C57BL/6 mice than in Tetherin knockout mice at 2 wk postinfection, and antiretroviral protection correlated with stronger NK cell and virus-specific CD8+ T cell responses. The results demonstrate that Tetherin acts as a modulator of the cell-mediated immune response against retrovirus infection in vivo.

Automated Expansion of Primary Human T Cells in Scalable and Cell-Friendly Hydrogel Microtubes for Adoptive Immunotherapy.

PubMed

Lin, Haishuang; Li, Qiang; Wang, Ou; Rauch, Jack; Harm, Braden; Viljoen, Hendrik J; Zhang, Chi; Van Wyk, Erika; Zhang, Chi; Lei, Yuguo

2018-05-11

Adoptive immunotherapy is a highly effective strategy for treating many human cancers, such as melanoma, cervical cancer, lymphoma, and leukemia. Here, a novel cell culture technology is reported for expanding primary human T cells for adoptive immunotherapy. T cells are suspended and cultured in microscale alginate hydrogel tubes (AlgTubes) that are suspended in the cell culture medium in a culture vessel. The hydrogel tubes protect cells from hydrodynamic stresses and confine the cell mass less than 400 µm (in radial diameter) to ensure efficient mass transport, creating a cell-friendly microenvironment for growing T cells. This system is simple, scalable, highly efficient, defined, cost-effective, and compatible with current good manufacturing practices. Under optimized culture conditions, the AlgTubes enable culturing T cells with high cell viability, low DNA damage, high growth rate (≈320-fold expansion over 14 days), high purity (≈98% CD3+), and high yield (≈3.2 × 10 8 cells mL -1 hydrogel). All offer considerable advantages compared to current T cell culturing approaches. This new culture technology can significantly reduce the culture volume, time, and cost, while increasing the production. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Observing Cell Phone Use and Enhancing Collaborative Learning Using a Wiki

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tolman, Elizabeth G.

2013-01-01

Cell phone use is evident in society. Individuals have cell phone conversations while waiting in line at the grocery store, glance at their cell phones during meetings, check Facebook while having dinner with friends, have a meaningful phone conversation with a parent, and even text while sitting in church service. This assignment provides…

Lenalidomide in Treating Older Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2014-07-25

Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Bortezomib, Daunorubicin, and Cytarabine in Treating Older Patients With Previously Untreated Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2014-09-04

Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Decitabine Followed by Idarubicin and Cytarabine in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory AML and MDS

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-02-14

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts

Cytarabine With or Without SCH 900776 in Treating Adult Patients With Relapsed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2016-07-20

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Minimal Differentiation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22;q23); MLLT3-MLL; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Alkylating Agent-Related Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Arsenic Trioxide in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-05-16

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Azacitidine and Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin in Treating Older Patients With Previously Untreated Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-04-20

Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21); (q22; q22.1); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22.3;q23.3); MLLT3-KMT2A; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Tipifarnib and Etoposide in Treating Older Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-01-08

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Vorinostat and Gemtuzumab Ozogamicin in Treating Older Patients With Previously Untreated Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-05-30

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Tipifarnib in Treating Older Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2015-03-19

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Minimal Differentiation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22;q23); MLLT3-MLL; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Alkylating Agent-Related Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Eco-friendly synthesis of TiO2, Au and Pt doped TiO2 nanoparticles for dye sensitized solar cell applications and evaluation of toxicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gopinath, K.; Kumaraguru, S.; Bhakyaraj, K.; Thirumal, S.; Arumugam, A.

2016-04-01

Driven by the demand of pure TiO2, Au and Pt doped TiO2 NPs were successfully synthesized using Terminalia arjuna bark extract. The eco-friendly synthesized NPs were characterized by UV-Vis-DRS, ATR-FT-IR, PL, XRD, Raman, SEM with EDX and TEM analysis. The synthesized NPs were investigation for dye sensitized solar cell applications. UV-Vis-Diffused Reflectance Spectra clearly showed that the expected TiO2 inter band absorption below 306 nm, incorporation of gold shows surface plasma resonant (SPR) near 555 nm and platinum incorporated TiO2 NPs shows absorbance at 460 nm. The energy conversion efficiency for Au doped TiO2 NPs when compared to pure and Pt doped TiO2 NPs. In addition to that, Au noble metal present TiO2 matrix and an improve open-circuit voltage (Voc) of DSSC. Synthesized NPs was evaluated into antibacterial and antifungal activities by disk diffusion method. It is observed that NPs have not shown any activities in all tested bacterial and fungal strains. In this eco-friendly synthesis method to provide non toxic and environmental friendly nanomaterials can be used for solar energy device application.

REDUCED CHLOROPLAST COVERAGE genes from Arabidopsis thaliana help to establish the size of the chloroplast compartment

DOE PAGES

Larkin, Robert M.; Stefano, Giovanni; Ruckle, Michael E.; ...

2016-02-09

Eukaryotic cells require mechanisms to establish the proportion of cellular volume devoted to particular organelles. These mechanisms are poorly understood. From a screen for plastid-to-nucleus signaling mutants in Arabidopsis thaliana, we cloned a mutant allele of a gene that encodes a protein of unknown function that is homologous to two other Arabidopsis genes of unknown function and Arabidopsis. In contrast to FRIENDLY, these three homologs of FRIENDLY are found only in photosynthetic organisms. Based on these data, we proposed that FRIENDLY expanded into a small gene family to help regulate the energy metabolism of cells that contain both mitochondria andmore » chloroplasts. Indeed, we found that knocking out these genes caused a number of chloroplast phenotypes, including a reduction in the proportion of cellular volume devoted to chloroplasts to 50% of wild type. Thus, we refer to these genes as REDUCED CHLOROPLAST COVERAGE (REC). The size of the chloroplast compartment was reduced most in rec1 mutants. The REC1 protein accumulated in the cytosol and the nucleus. REC1 was excluded from the nucleus when plants were treated with amitrole, which inhibits cell expansion and chloroplast function. Finally, we conclude that REC1 is an extraplastidic protein that helps to establish the size of the chloroplast compartment, and that signals derived from cell expansion or chloroplasts may regulate REC1.« less

Cancer and necroptosis: friend or foe?

PubMed

Philipp, Stephan; Sosna, Justyna; Adam, Dieter

2016-06-01

Regulated cell death is one major factor to ensure homoeostasis in multicellular organisms. For decades, apoptosis was considered as the sole form of regulated cell death, whereas necrosis was believed to be accidental and unregulated. Due to this view, research on necrosis was somewhat neglected, especially in the field of anti-cancer treatment. However, new interest in necrosis has been sparked by the recent discovery of different forms of necrosis that show indeed regulated pathways. More and more studies now address the molecular pathways of regulated necrosis and its connections within the cellular signaling networks. Necroptosis, a subform of regulated necrosis, has so far hardly been focused on with regard to a future treatment of cancer patients and may emerge as a novel and effective approach to eliminate tumor cells. However, and similar to apoptosis, tumor cells can develop resistances against necroptosis to ensure their own survival. In this context, new molecules that enhance necroptosis are currently being identified to overcome such resistances. This review discusses cancer and necroptosis as friends or foes, i.e. the options to exploit necroptosis in anti-cancer therapies ("foes"), but also potential limitations that may block or actually cause necroptosis to act in a protumoral manner ("friends"). The balance between these two possible roles will determine whether necroptosis can indeed be used as a promising tool for early diagnosis of tumors, prevention of metastasis and anti-cancer treatment.

Reversible differentiation of human monoblastic leukemia U937 cells by ML-9, an inhibitor of myosin light chain kinase.

PubMed

Yamamoto-Yamaguchi, Y; Makishima, M; Kanatani, Y; Kasukabe, T; Honma, Y

1996-05-01

Human monoblastic leukemia U937 cells are induced to differentiate into monocytes and macrophages by various agents. We have shown that 1-(5-chloronaphthalene-1-sulfonyl)-1H-hexahydro-1,4-diazepine hydrochloride (ML-9), an inhibitor of myosin light chain kinase, induces differentiation of monocytoid leukemia cell lines U937 and THP-1 but not of myeloblastic leukemic ML-1 cell or erythroleukemia K562 cells. In the present study, we further analyzed the effect of ML-9 in comparison with that of 1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (VD3) a typical inducer of monocytic differentiation. ML-9 induced nitroblue tetrazolium (NBT)-reducing activity of U937 cell more rapidly than VD3: This differentiation marker was induced significantly after incubation with ML-9 and VD3 for 4 hours and 1 day, respectively. ML-9 also induced alpha-naphthyl acetate esterase (ANAE) activity, another monocytic differentiation marker, more rapidly than VD3. The maximum levels of these markers induced by ML-9 were comparable to those induced by VD3, but after removal of ML-9 from the medium by washing the cells, the expressions of theses markers decreased within 4 hours and reached basal levels in 1 day, indicating that ML-9's induction of expression of differentiation-associated phenotypes was reversible. The growth inhibition of U937 cells by ML-9 was also reversible. Similar effects were observed in another line of human monoblastic cells, THP-1. ML-9 had little or no effect on the morphology of U937 cells but increased the expression of monocyte-macrophage lineage-associated surface antigen, CD14, to some extent. Irreversible terminal differentiation induced by VD3 is associated with down regulation of the expression of c-myc and upregulation of the expression of c-fos and c-jun, but ML-9 did not affect the expression of these oncogenes appreciably. ML-9-induced differentiation was also reversible when the cells were cultured with cultured with ML-9 plus an anti-cancer drug such as 1-beta-D-arabino-furanosylcytosine or daunomycin. it became irreversible, however, upon simultaneous treatment with dexamethasone and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta 1), which did not induce differentiation of U937 cells but caused growth arrest of the cells in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle. These results suggest that ML-9 should be useful for studying the mechanisms of monocytic differentiation.

Cancer-associated lysosomal changes: friends or foes?

PubMed

Kallunki, T; Olsen, O D; Jäättelä, M

2013-04-18

Rapidly dividing and invasive cancer cells are strongly dependent on effective lysosomal function. Accordingly, transformation and cancer progression are characterized by dramatic changes in lysosomal volume, composition and cellular distribution. Depending on one's point of view, the cancer-associated changes in the lysosomal compartment can be regarded as friends or foes. Most of them are clearly transforming as they promote invasive growth, angiogenesis and drug resistance. The same changes can, however, strongly sensitize cells to lysosomal membrane permeabilization and thereby to lysosome-targeting anti-cancer drugs. In this review we compile our current knowledge on cancer-associated changes in lysosomal composition and discuss the consequences of these alterations to cancer progression and the possibilities they can bring to cancer therapy.

The effect of redox-related species of nitrogen monoxide on transferrin and iron uptake and cellular proliferation of erythroleukemia (K562) cells.

PubMed

Richardson, D R; Neumannova, V; Nagy, E; Ponka, P

1995-10-15

The iron-responsive element-binding protein (IRE-BP) modulates both ferritin mRNA translation and transferrin receptor (TfR) mRNA stability by binding to specific mRNA sequences called iron-responsive elements (IREs). The regulation of IRE-BP in situ could possibly occur either through its Fe-S cluster and/or via free cysteine sulphydryl groups such as cysteine 437 (Philpott et al, J Biol Chem 268:17655, 1993; and Hirling et al, EMBO J 13:453, 1994). Recently, nitrogen monoxide (NO) has been shown to have markedly different biologic effects depending on its redox state (Lipton et al, Nature 364:626, 1993). Considering this fact, it is conceivable that the NO group, as either the nitrosonium ion (NO+) or nitric oxide (NO+), may regulate IRE-BP activity by S-nitrosylation of key sulphydryl groups or via ligation of NO. to the Fe-S cluster, respectively. This hypothesis has been examined using the NO+ generator, sodium nitroprusside (SNP); the NO. generator, S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP); and the NO./peroxynitrite (ONOO-) generator, 3-morpholinosydnonimine hydrochloride (SIN-1). Treatment of K562 cells for 18 hours with SNP (1 mmol/L) resulted in a pronounced decrease in both the RNA-binding activity of IRE-BP and the level of TfR mRNA. In addition, Scatchard analysis showed a marked decrease in the number of specific Tf-binding sites, from 590,000/cell (control) to 170,000/cell (test), and there was also a distinct decrease in Fe uptake. Furthermore, SNP did not decrease cellular viability or proliferation. In contrast, the NO. generator, SNAP (1 mmol/L), increased RNA-binding activity of IRE-BP, the level of TfR mRNA, and the number of TfRs in K562 cells. Moreover, both SNAP (1 mmol/L) and SIN-1 (0.5 mmol/L) reduced cellular proliferation. The results are discussed in context of the possible physiologic role of redox-related species of NO in regulating iron metabolism.

A Portrait of Ribosomal DNA Contacts with Hi-C Reveals 5S and 45S rDNA Anchoring Points in the Folded Human Genome.

PubMed

Yu, Shoukai; Lemos, Bernardo

2016-12-31

Ribosomal RNAs (rRNAs) account for >60% of all RNAs in eukaryotic cells and are encoded in the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) arrays. The rRNAs are produced from two sets of loci: the 5S rDNA array resides exclusively on human chromosome 1, whereas the 45S rDNA array resides on the short arm of five human acrocentric chromosomes. The 45S rDNA gives origin to the nucleolus, the nuclear organelle that is the site of ribosome biogenesis. Intriguingly, 5S and 45S rDNA arrays exhibit correlated copy number variation in lymphoblastoid cells (LCLs). Here we examined the genomic architecture and repeat content of the 5S and 45S rDNA arrays in multiple human genome assemblies (including PacBio MHAP assembly) and ascertained contacts between the rDNA arrays and the rest of the genome using Hi-C datasets from two human cell lines (erythroleukemia K562 and lymphoblastoid cells). Our analyses revealed that 5S and 45S arrays each have thousands of contacts in the folded genome, with rDNA-associated regions and genes dispersed across all chromosomes. The rDNA contact map displayed conserved and disparate features between two cell lines, and pointed to specific chromosomes, genomic regions, and genes with evidence of spatial proximity to the rDNA arrays; the data also showed a lack of direct physical interaction between the 5S and 45S rDNA arrays. Finally, the analysis identified an intriguing organization in the 5S array with Alu and 5S elements adjacent to one another and organized in opposite orientation along the array. Portraits of genome folding centered on the ribosomal DNA array could help understand the emergence of concerted variation, the control of 5S and 45S expression, as well as provide insights into an organelle that contributes to the spatial localization of human chromosomes during interphase. © The Author(s) 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

Modulation of TIP60 by Human Papilloma Virus in Breast Cancer

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-04-01

infection caused by adenovirus make us hypothesize that adenovirus can also be a etiological agent or can augment the breast epithelial cells...cells. These cells were cultured in selective HAT medium to select for fused cells called Hybridoma cells. These hybridoma cells were cultured and...KJ, Horowitz JM, Friend SH, Raybuck M, Weinberg RA et al. Association between an oncogenes and an anti -oncogene: the adenovirus EIA protein binds to

Molecular Pathways: Is AMPK a Friend or a Foe in Cancer?

PubMed Central

Hardie, D. Grahame

2015-01-01

The AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a sensor of cellular energy status expressed in essentially all eukaryotic cells. Once activated by energetic stress via a mechanism that detects increases in AMP:ATP and ADP:ATP ratios, AMPK acts to restore energy homeostasis by switching on catabolic pathways that generate ATP, while switching off ATP-consuming processes, including anabolic pathways required for cell growth and proliferation. AMPK activation promotes the glucose-sparing, oxidative metabolism utilized by most quiescent cells, rather than the rapid glucose uptake and glycolysis used by most proliferating cells. Numerous pharmacological activators of AMPK are known, including drugs in long use such as salicylate and metformin, and there is evidence that regular use of either of the latter provides protection against development of cancer. Tumor cells appear to be under selection pressure to down-regulate AMPK, thus limiting its restraining influence on cell growth and proliferation, and several interesting mechanisms by which this occurs are discussed. Paradoxically, however, a complete loss of AMPK function, which appears to be rare in human cancers, may be deleterious to survival of tumor cells. AMPK can therefore either be a friend and a foe in cancer, depending on the context. PMID:26152739

Genetic and Mechanistic Evaluation for the Mixed-Field Agglutination in B3 Blood Type with IVS3+5G>A ABO Gene Mutation

PubMed Central

Wang, Wei-Ting; Sun, Chien-Feng

2012-01-01

Background The ABO blood type B3 is the most common B subtype in the Chinese population with a frequency of 1/900. Although IVS3+5G>A (rs55852701) mutation of B gene has been shown to associate with the development of B3 blood type, genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the unique mixed-field agglutination phenotype has not yet been completely addressed. Methodology/Principal Findings In this study, we analyzed 16 cases of confirmed B3 individuals and found that IVS3+5G>A attributes to all cases of B3. RT-PCR analyses revealed the presence of at least 7 types of aberrant B3 splicing transcripts with most of the transcripts causing early termination and producing non-functional protein during translation. The splicing transcript without exon 3 that was predicted to generate functional B3 glycosyltransferase lacking 19 amino acids at the N-terminal segment constituted only 0.9% of the splicing transcripts. Expression of the B3 cDNA with exon 3 deletion in the K562 erythroleukemia cells revealed that the B3 glycosyltransferase had only 40% of B1 activity in converting H antigen to B antigen. Notably, the typical mixed-field agglutination of B3-RBCs can be mimicked by adding anti-B antibody to the K562-B3 cells. Conclusions/Significance This study thereby demonstrates that both aberrant splicing of B transcripts and the reduced B3 glycosyltransferase activity contribute to weak B expression and the mixed-field agglutination of B3, adding to the complexity for the regulatory mechanisms of ABO gene expression. PMID:22624005

Genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the mixed-field agglutination in B3 blood type with IVS3+5G>A ABO gene mutation.

PubMed

Chen, Ding-Ping; Tseng, Ching-Ping; Wang, Wei-Ting; Sun, Chien-Feng

2012-01-01

The ABO blood type B(3) is the most common B subtype in the Chinese population with a frequency of 1/900. Although IVS3+5G>A (rs55852701) mutation of B gene has been shown to associate with the development of B(3) blood type, genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the unique mixed-field agglutination phenotype has not yet been completely addressed. In this study, we analyzed 16 cases of confirmed B(3) individuals and found that IVS3+5G>A attributes to all cases of B(3). RT-PCR analyses revealed the presence of at least 7 types of aberrant B(3) splicing transcripts with most of the transcripts causing early termination and producing non-functional protein during translation. The splicing transcript without exon 3 that was predicted to generate functional B(3) glycosyltransferase lacking 19 amino acids at the N-terminal segment constituted only 0.9% of the splicing transcripts. Expression of the B(3) cDNA with exon 3 deletion in the K562 erythroleukemia cells revealed that the B(3) glycosyltransferase had only 40% of B(1) activity in converting H antigen to B antigen. Notably, the typical mixed-field agglutination of B(3)-RBCs can be mimicked by adding anti-B antibody to the K562-B(3) cells. This study thereby demonstrates that both aberrant splicing of B transcripts and the reduced B(3) glycosyltransferase activity contribute to weak B expression and the mixed-field agglutination of B(3), adding to the complexity for the regulatory mechanisms of ABO gene expression.

An Rgd Sequence in the P2y2 Receptor Interacts with αVβ3 Integrins and Is Required for Go-Mediated Signal Transduction

PubMed Central

Erb, Laurie; Liu, Jun; Ockerhausen, Jonathan; Kong, Qiongman; Garrad, Richard C.; Griffin, Korey; Neal, Chris; Krugh, Brent; Santiago-Pérez, Laura I.; González, Fernando A.; Gresham, Hattie D.; Turner, John T.; Weisman, Gary A.

2001-01-01

The P2Y2 nucleotide receptor (P2Y2R) contains the integrin-binding domain arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD) in its first extracellular loop, raising the possibility that this G protein–coupled receptor interacts directly with an integrin. Binding of a peptide corresponding to the first extracellular loop of the P2Y2R to K562 erythroleukemia cells was inhibited by antibodies against αVβ3/β5 integrins and the integrin-associated thrombospondin receptor, CD47. Immunofluorescence of cells transfected with epitope-tagged P2Y2Rs indicated that αV integrins colocalized 10-fold better with the wild-type P2Y2R than with a mutant P2Y2R in which the RGD sequence was replaced with RGE. Compared with the wild-type P2Y2R, the RGE mutant required 1,000-fold higher agonist concentrations to phosphorylate focal adhesion kinase, activate extracellular signal–regulated kinases, and initiate the PLC-dependent mobilization of intracellular Ca2+. Furthermore, an anti-αV integrin antibody partially inhibited these signaling events mediated by the wild-type P2Y2R. Pertussis toxin, an inhibitor of Gi/o proteins, partially inhibited Ca2+ mobilization mediated by the wild-type P2Y2R, but not by the RGE mutant, suggesting that the RGD sequence is required for P2Y2R-mediated activation of Go, but not Gq. Since CD47 has been shown to associate directly with Gi/o family proteins, these results suggest that interactions between P2Y2Rs, integrins, and CD47 may be important for coupling the P2Y2R to Go. PMID:11331301

Wound Healing in Mac-1 Deficient Mice

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-05-01

36. Rosenkranz AR, Coxon A, Maurer M, Gurish MF, Austen KF, Friend DS, Galli SJ, Mayadas TN. Impaired mast cell development and innate immunity in Mac...genetically deficient mice. 3 INTRODUCTION Wound healing is a complex yet well-regulated process in which multiple resident cells ...recruited inflammatory cells , and stem cells interact to create an environment that supports the healing process. An optimal inflammatory response is a

Achieving over 9.8% Efficiency in Nonfullerene Polymer Solar Cells by Environmentally Friendly Solvent Processing.

PubMed

Wu, Yue; Zou, Yan; Yang, Hang; Li, Yaowen; Li, Hongkun; Cui, Chaohua; Li, Yongfang

2017-10-25

Nowadays, most of the solution-processed high-efficiency polymer solar cell (PSC) devices are fabricated by halogenated solvents (such as chlorobenzene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, chloroform, etc.) which are harmful to people and the environment. Therefore, it is essential to develop high-efficiency PSC devices processed by environmentally friendly solvent processing for their industrialization. In this regard, we report a new alkylthio chain-based conjugated polymer PBDB-TS as donor material for environmentally friendly solvent-processed PSCs. PBDB-TS possesses a low-lying HOMO energy level at -5.42 eV and a good solubility in toluene and o-xylene. By using o-xylene and 1% N-methylpyrrolidone as processing solvent, following by the thermal annealing treatment for PBDB-TS:ITIC blend films, well-developed morphological features, and balanced charge transport properties are observed, leading to a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 9.85%, higher than that of the device cast from halogenated solvent (PCE = 9.65%). The results suggest that PBDB-TS is an attractive donor material for nonhalogen solvents-processing PSCs.

Removal of either N-glycan site from the envelope receptor binding domain of Moloney and Friend but not AKV mouse ecotropic gammaretroviruses alters receptor usage

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Knoper, Ryan C.; Ferrarone, John; Yan Yuhe

2009-09-01

Three N-linked glycosylation sites were removed from the envelope glycoproteins of Friend, Moloney, and AKV mouse ecotropic gammaretroviruses: gs1 and gs2, in the receptor binding domain; and gs8, in a region implicated in post-binding cell fusion. Mutants were tested for their ability to infect rodent cells expressing 4 CAT-1 receptor variants. Three mutants (Mo-gs1, Mo-gs2, and Fr-gs1) infect NIH 3T3 and rat XC cells, but are severely restricted in Mus dunni cells and Lec8, a Chinese hamster cell line susceptible to ecotropic virus. This restriction is reproduced in ferret cells expressing M. dunni dCAT-1, but not in cells expressing NIHmore » 3T3 mCAT-1. Virus binding assays, pseudotype assays, and the use of glycosylation inhibitors further suggest that restriction is primarily due to receptor polymorphism and, in M. dunni cells, to glycosylation of cellular proteins. Virus envelope glycan size or type does not affect infectivity. Thus, host range variation due to N-glycan deletion is receptor variant-specific, cell-specific, virus type-specific, and glycan site-specific.« less

Trebananib With or Without Low-Dose Cytarabine in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-02-14

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Metformin+Cytarabine for the Treatment of Relapsed/Refractory AML

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-09-12

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Azacitidine, Cytarabine, and Mitoxantrone Hydrochloride in Treating Patients With High-Risk Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-01-02

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Eltrombopag Olamine in Treating Patients With Relapsed/Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2016-04-04

Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Cyclosporine, Pravastatin Sodium, Etoposide, and Mitoxantrone Hydrochloride in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-06-27

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

SC3 - consensus clustering of single-cell RNA-Seq data

PubMed Central

Kiselev, Vladimir Yu.; Kirschner, Kristina; Schaub, Michael T.; Andrews, Tallulah; Yiu, Andrew; Chandra, Tamir; Natarajan, Kedar N; Reik, Wolf; Barahona, Mauricio; Green, Anthony R; Hemberg, Martin

2017-01-01

Single-cell RNA-seq (scRNA-seq) enables a quantitative cell-type characterisation based on global transcriptome profiles. We present Single-Cell Consensus Clustering (SC3), a user-friendly tool for unsupervised clustering which achieves high accuracy and robustness by combining multiple clustering solutions through a consensus approach. We demonstrate that SC3 is capable of identifying subclones based on the transcriptomes from neoplastic cells collected from patients. PMID:28346451

Oxygen - Enemy or Friend for Microbial Fuel Cell Anode Performance?

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Until recently, scientists and engineers have held a strong belief that oxygen intrusion into the anode chamber of a bioelectrochemical system (BES) is detrimental to microbial fuel cell (MFC) performance because oxygen acts as an alternate electron acceptor. This would, according to recent beliefs...

visnormsc: A Graphical User Interface to Normalize Single-cell RNA Sequencing Data.

PubMed

Tang, Lijun; Zhou, Nan

2017-12-26

Single-cell RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) allows the analysis of gene expression with high resolution. The intrinsic defects of this promising technology imports technical noise into the single-cell RNA-seq data, increasing the difficulty of accurate downstream inference. Normalization is a crucial step in single-cell RNA-seq data pre-processing. SCnorm is an accurate and efficient method that can be used for this purpose. An R implementation of this method is currently available. On one hand, the R package possesses many excellent features from R. On the other hand, R programming ability is required, which prevents the biologists who lack the skills from learning to use it quickly. To make this method more user-friendly, we developed a graphical user interface, visnormsc, for normalization of single-cell RNA-seq data. It is implemented in Python and is freely available at https://github.com/solo7773/visnormsc . Although visnormsc is based on the existing method, it contributes to this field by offering a user-friendly alternative. The out-of-the-box and cross-platform features make visnormsc easy to learn and to use. It is expected to serve biologists by simplifying single-cell RNA-seq normalization.

Cell phone-based ecological momentary assessment of substance use context for Latino youth in outpatient treatment: Who, what, when and where.

PubMed

Comulada, W Scott; Swendeman, Dallas; Wu, Nancy

2016-10-01

Relationships between alcohol, marijuana and other drug (AOD) use and contextual factors have mostly been established through retrospective self-report. Given the embeddedness of cell phones in adolescents' daily activities, cell phone-based ecological momentary assessment (CEMA) provides an opportunity to better understand AOD use in youth and how cell phones can be used to self-monitor and deliver interventions. We use CEMA to examine AOD use in Latino youth who have been especially understudied. Twenty-eight mostly Latino youth (ages 13-18) in outpatient substance abuse treatment recorded AOD use, contextual factors, cravings, and affect through once-daily CEMA over one month periods. Random-effects logistic regression was used to compare contextual factors between periods of AOD use and non-use. The most frequent contextual factors reported during AOD use were being with close friends and "hanging out" as the primary activity. During AOD use compared to non-use, youth were more likely to be with close friends (OR=4.76; p<0.01), around users (OR=17.69; p<0.01), and at a friend's house (OR=5.97; p<0.01). Alcohol use was more frequently reported at night (63% vs 34%) and on weekends relative to other substances (64% vs 49%). Strong cravings were more frequently reported on AOD-use days (OR=7.34; p<0.01). Types of positive and negative affect were reported with similar frequencies, regardless of AOD use. Reporting on social context, location, day and time of day, and cravings all show promise in developing cell phone-based interventions triggered by contextual data. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

CellShape: A user-friendly image analysis tool for quantitative visualization of bacterial cell factories inside.

PubMed

Goñi-Moreno, Ángel; Kim, Juhyun; de Lorenzo, Víctor

2017-02-01

Visualization of the intracellular constituents of individual bacteria while performing as live biocatalysts is in principle doable through more or less sophisticated fluorescence microscopy. Unfortunately, rigorous quantitation of the wealth of data embodied in the resulting images requires bioinformatic tools that are not widely extended within the community-let alone that they are often subject to licensing that impedes software reuse. In this context we have developed CellShape, a user-friendly platform for image analysis with subpixel precision and double-threshold segmentation system for quantification of fluorescent signals stemming from single-cells. CellShape is entirely coded in Python, a free, open-source programming language with widespread community support. For a developer, CellShape enhances extensibility (ease of software improvements) by acting as an interface to access and use existing Python modules; for an end-user, CellShape presents standalone executable files ready to open without installation. We have adopted this platform to analyse with an unprecedented detail the tridimensional distribution of the constituents of the gene expression flow (DNA, RNA polymerase, mRNA and ribosomal proteins) in individual cells of the industrial platform strain Pseudomonas putida KT2440. While the CellShape first release version (v0.8) is readily operational, users and/or developers are enabled to expand the platform further. Copyright © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

DNA Methylation as an Epigenetic Factor in the Development and Progression of Polycythemia Vera

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-10-01

vera and idiopathic myelofibrosis. Pathol Biol ( Paris ). 2001;49:164-166. 2. Spivak JL. Diagnosis of the myeloproliferative disorders: resolving...leukemia cell lines with different cellular origin (myeloid cell lines KG1, KG1a, HEL, K562, and TF1; T lymphoid cell lines CEM and JTAg; and B lymphoid...in the cell lines of lymphoid origin versus myeloid leukemia cell lines and a GM-CSF- Services Email this article to a friend Download to

Organic solar cells with graded absorber layers processed from nanoparticle dispersions.

PubMed

Gärtner, Stefan; Reich, Stefan; Bruns, Michael; Czolk, Jens; Colsmann, Alexander

2016-03-28

The fabrication of organic solar cells with advanced multi-layer architectures from solution is often limited by the choice of solvents since most organic semiconductors dissolve in the same aromatic agents. In this work, we investigate multi-pass deposition of organic semiconductors from eco-friendly ethanol dispersion. Once applied, the nanoparticles are insoluble in the deposition agent, allowing for the application of further nanoparticulate layers and hence for building poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl):indene-C60 bisadduct absorber layers with vertically graded polymer and conversely graded fullerene concentration. Upon thermal annealing, we observe some degrees of polymer/fullerene interdiffusion by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Kelvin probe force microscopy. Replacing the common bulk-heterojunction by such a graded photo-active layer yields an enhanced fill factor of the solar cell due to an improved charge carrier extraction, and consequently an overall power conversion efficiency beyond 4%. Wet processing of such advanced device architectures paves the way for a versatile, eco-friendly and industrially feasible future fabrication of organic solar cells with advanced multi-layer architectures.

Omacetaxine Mepesuccinate, Cytarabine, and Decitabine in Treating Older Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2016-04-05

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Treatment for Relapsed/Refractory AML Based on a High Throughput Drug Sensitivity Assay

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-04-11

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, Unclassifiable; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts

Choline Magnesium Trisalicylate and Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-02-01

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Idarubicin, Cytarabine, and Pravastatin Sodium in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Myelodysplastic Syndromes

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-10-16

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, Unclassifiable; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Early Discharge and Outpatients Care in Patients With Myelodysplastic Syndrome or Acute Myeloid Leukemia Previously Treated With Intensive Chemotherapy

ClinicalTrials.gov

2015-02-05

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Alvocidib, Cytarabine, and Mitoxantrone Hydrochloride or Cytarabine and Daunorubicin Hydrochloride in Treating Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-07-03

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Tipifarnib in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-03-20

Acute Myeloid Leukemia Arising From Previous Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia; Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13.1q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Maturation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Minimal Differentiation; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13.1;q22); CBFB-MYH11; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21); (q22; q22.1); RUNX1-RUNX1T1; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(9;11)(p22.3;q23.3); MLLT3-KMT2A; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia Without Maturation; Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia; Adult Erythroleukemia; Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia; Alkylating Agent-Related Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Myelodysplastic Syndrome With Excess Blasts; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

The beta -globin locus control region (LCR) functions primarily by enhancing the transition from transcription initiation to elongation.

PubMed

Sawado, Tomoyuki; Halow, Jessica; Bender, M A; Groudine, Mark

2003-04-15

To investigate the molecular basis of beta-globin gene activation, we analyzed factor recruitment and histone modification at the adult beta-globin gene in wild-type (WT)/locus control region knockout (DeltaLCR) heterozygous mice and in murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cells. Although histone acetylation and methylation (Lys 4) are high before and after MEL differentiation, recruitment of the erythroid-specific activator NF-E2 to the promoter and preinitiation complex (PIC) assembly occur only after differentiation. We reported previously that targeted deletion of the LCR reduces beta-globin gene expression to 1%-4% of WT without affecting promoter histone acetylation. Here, we report that NF-E2 is recruited equally efficiently to the adult beta-globin promoters of the DeltaLCR and WT alleles. Moreover, the LCR deletion reduces PIC assembly only twofold, but has a dramatic effect on Ser 5 phosphorylation of RNA polymerase II and transcriptional elongation. Our results suggest at least three distinct stages in beta-globin gene activation: (1) an LCR-independent chromatin opening stage prior to NF-E2 recruitment to the promoter and PIC assembly; (2) an intermediate stage in which NF-E2 binding (LCR-independent) and PIC assembly (partially LCR-dependent) occur; and (3) an LCR-dependent fully active stage characterized by efficient pol II elongation. Thus, in its native location the LCR functions primarily downstream of activator recruitment and PIC assembly.

Extracellular hemoglobin: the case of a friend turned foe

PubMed Central

Quaye, Isaac K.

2015-01-01

Hemoglobin (Hb) is a highly conserved molecule present in all life forms and functionally tied to the complexity of aerobic organisms on earth in utilizing oxygen from the atmosphere and delivering to cells and tissues. This primary function sustains the energy requirements of cells and maintains cellular homeostasis. Decades of intensive research has presented a paradigm shift that shows how the molecule also functions to facilitate smooth oxygen delivery through the cardiovascular system for cellular bioenergetic homeostasis and signaling for cell function and defense. These roles are particularly highlighted in the binding of Hb to gaseous molecules carbon dioxide (CO2), nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO), while also serving indirectly or directly as sources of these signaling molecules. The functional activities impacted by Hb outside of bioenergetics homeostasis, include fertilization, signaling functions, modulation of inflammatory responses for defense and cell viability. These activities are efficiently executed while Hb is sequestered safely within the confines of the red blood cell (rbc). Outside of rbc confines, Hb disaggregates and becomes a danger molecule to cell survival. In these perpectives, Hb function is broadly dichotomous, either a friend in its natural environment providing and facilitating the means for cell function or foe when dislocated from its habitat under stress or pathological condition disrupting cell function. The review presents insights into how this dichotomy in function manifests. PMID:25941490

Advanced Cell Classifier: User-Friendly Machine-Learning-Based Software for Discovering Phenotypes in High-Content Imaging Data.

PubMed

Piccinini, Filippo; Balassa, Tamas; Szkalisity, Abel; Molnar, Csaba; Paavolainen, Lassi; Kujala, Kaisa; Buzas, Krisztina; Sarazova, Marie; Pietiainen, Vilja; Kutay, Ulrike; Smith, Kevin; Horvath, Peter

2017-06-28

High-content, imaging-based screens now routinely generate data on a scale that precludes manual verification and interrogation. Software applying machine learning has become an essential tool to automate analysis, but these methods require annotated examples to learn from. Efficiently exploring large datasets to find relevant examples remains a challenging bottleneck. Here, we present Advanced Cell Classifier (ACC), a graphical software package for phenotypic analysis that addresses these difficulties. ACC applies machine-learning and image-analysis methods to high-content data generated by large-scale, cell-based experiments. It features methods to mine microscopic image data, discover new phenotypes, and improve recognition performance. We demonstrate that these features substantially expedite the training process, successfully uncover rare phenotypes, and improve the accuracy of the analysis. ACC is extensively documented, designed to be user-friendly for researchers without machine-learning expertise, and distributed as a free open-source tool at www.cellclassifier.org. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

78 FR 73373 - National Impaired Driving Prevention Month, 2013

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-12-05

... prevention programs, and are working to curtail all forms of distracted driving, including texting and cell...-based and community organizations. Together, we can teach young people, friends, and fellow citizens how...

Genetic control of T cell responsiveness to the Friend murine leukemia virus envelope antigen. Identification of class II loci of the H-2 as immune response genes

PubMed Central

1988-01-01

T cells primed specifically for the envelope glycoprotein of Friend murine leukemia helper virus (F-MuLV) were prepared by immunizing mice with a recombinant vaccinia virus that expressed the entire env gene of F-MuLV. Significant proliferative responses of F-MuLV envelope- specific, H-2a/b T cells were observed when the T cells were stimulated with antigen-pulsed peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) having the b allele at the K, A beta, A alpha, and E beta loci of the H-2. On the other hand, PEC having only the kappa allele at these loci did not induce the envelope-specific T cell proliferation, even when the PEC had the b allele at the E alpha, S, or D loci. F-MuLV envelope-specific proliferation of H-2a/b T cells under the stimulation of antigen- pulsed, H-2a/b PEC was specifically blocked with anti-I-Ab and anti-I- Ek mAbs but not with anti-Kb, anti-Kk, or anti-I-Ak mAbs. Moreover, (B10.MBR x A/WySn)F1 mice that have the b allele only at the K locus but not in I-A subregion were nonresponders to the envelope glycoprotein, and the bm12 mutation at the A beta locus completely abolished the T cell responsiveness to this antigen. These results indicate that proliferative T cells recognize a limited number of epitopes on F-MuLV envelope protein in the context of I-Ab, hybrid I- Ak/b, and/or hybrid I-Ek/b class II MHC molecules but fail to recognize the same envelope protein in the context of I-Ak or I-Ek molecules. This influence of the H-2I region on T cell recognition of the envelope glycoprotein appeared to control in vivo induction of protective immunity against Friend virus complex after immunization with the vaccinia-F-MuLV env vaccine. Thus, these results provide, for the first time, direct evidence for Ir gene-controlled responder/nonresponder phenotypes influencing the immune response to a pathogenic virus of mice. PMID:3141552

Environmentally Friendly Plasma-Treated PEDOT:PSS as Electrodes for ITO-Free Perovskite Solar Cells.

PubMed

Vaagensmith, Bjorn; Reza, Khan Mamun; Hasan, Md Nazmul; Elbohy, Hytham; Adhikari, Nirmal; Dubey, Ashish; Kantack, Nick; Gaml, Eman; Qiao, Qiquan

2017-10-18

Solution processed poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) transparent electrodes (TEs) offer great potential as a low cost alternative to expensive indium tin oxide (ITO). However, strong acids are typically used for enhancing the conductivity of PEDOT:PSS TEs, which produce processing complexity and environmental issues. This work presents an environmentally friendly acid free approach to enhance the conductivity of PEDOT:PSS using a light oxygen plasma treatment, in addition to solvent blend additives and post treatments. The plasma treatment was found to significantly reduce the sheet resistance of PEDOT:PSS TEs from 85 to as low as 15 Ω sq -1 , which translates to the highest reported conductivity of 5012 S/cm for PEDOT:PSS TEs. The plasma treated PEDOT:PSS TE resulted in an ITO-free perovskite solar cell efficiency of 10.5%, which is the highest reported efficiency for ITO-free perovskite solar cells with a PEDOT:PSS electrode that excludes the use of acid treatments. This research presents the first demonstration of this technology. Moreover, the PEDOT:PSS TEs enabled better charge extraction from the perovskite solar cells and reduced hysteresis in the current density-voltage (J-V) curves.

Flavopiridol in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, or Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-06-03

Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

Tipifarnib in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-02-01

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Erythroid Leukemia (M6); Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia and Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Idarubicin, Cytarabine, and Tipifarnib in Treating Patients With Newly Diagnosed Myelodysplastic Syndromes or Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2014-05-09

Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Childhood Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts in Transformation; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Clofarabine, Cytarabine, and Filgrastim Followed by Infusion of Non-HLA Matched Ex Vivo Expanded Cord Blood Progenitors in Treating Patients With Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2014-08-13

Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (M3); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Clofarabine or Daunorubicin Hydrochloride and Cytarabine Followed By Decitabine or Observation in Treating Older Patients With Newly Diagnosed Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-12-07

Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Multilineage Dysplasia Following Myelodysplastic Syndrome; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Chitosan biopolymer for fuel cell applications.

PubMed

Ma, Jia; Sahai, Yogeshwar

2013-02-15

Fuel cell is an electrochemical device which converts chemical energy stored in a fuel into electrical energy. Fuel cells have been receiving attention due to its potential applicability as a good alternative power source. Recently, cost-effective and eco-friendly biopolymer chitosan has been extensively studied as a material for membrane electrolytes and electrodes in low to intermediate temperature hydrogen polymer electrolyte fuel cell, direct methanol fuel cell, alkaline fuel cell, and biofuel cell. This paper reviews structure and property of chitosan with respect to its applications in fuel cells. Recent achievements and prospect of its applications have also been included. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Interdisciplinary approach to cell-biomaterial interactions: biocompatibility and cell friendly characteristics of RKKP glass-ceramic coatings on titanium.

PubMed

Ledda, Mario; De Bonis, Angela; Bertani, Francesca Romana; Cacciotti, Ilaria; Teghil, Roberto; Lolli, Maria Grazia; Ravaglioli, Antonio; Lisi, Antonella; Rau, Julietta V

2015-06-04

In this work, titanium (Ti) supports have been coated with glass-ceramic films for possible applications as biomedical implant materials in regenerative medicine. For the film preparation, a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique has been applied. The RKKP glass-ceramic material, used for coating deposition, was a sol-gel derived target of the following composition: Ca-19.4, P-4.6, Si-17.2, O-43.5, Na-1.7, Mg-1.3, F-7.2, K-0.2, La-0.8, Ta-4.1 (all in wt%). The prepared coatings were compact and uniform, characterised by a nanometric average surface roughness. The biocompatibility and cell-friendly properties of the RKKP glass-ceramic material have been tested. Cell metabolic activity and proliferation of human colon carcinoma CaCo-2 cells seeded on RKKP films showed the same exponential trend found in the control plastic substrates. By the phalloidin fluorescence analysis, no significant modifications in the actin distribution were revealed in cells grown on RKKP films. Moreover, in these cells a high mRNA expression of markers involved in protein synthesis, proliferation and differentiation, such as villin (VIL1), alkaline phosphatase (ALP1), β-actin (β-ACT), Ki67 and RPL34, was recorded. In conclusion, the findings, for the first time, demonstrated that the RKKP glass-ceramic material allows the adhesion, growth and differentiation of the CaCo-2 cell line.

Magnetic resonance cell-tracking studies: spectrophotometry-based method for the quantification of cellular iron content after loading with superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles.

PubMed

Böhm, Ingrid

2011-08-01

The purpose of this article is to present a user-friendly tool for quantifying the iron content of superparamagnetic labeled cells before cell tracking by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Iron quantification was evaluated by using Prussian blue staining and spectrophotometry. White blood cells were labeled with superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles. Labeling was confirmed by light microscopy. Subsequently, the cells were embedded in a phantom and scanned on a 3 T magnetic resonance tomography (MRT) whole-body system. Mean peak wavelengths λ(peak) was determined at A(720 nm) (range 719-722 nm). Linearity was proven for the measuring range 0.5 to 10 μg Fe/mL (r  =  .9958; p  =  2.2 × 10(-12)). The limit of detection was 0.01 μg Fe/mL (0.1785 mM), and the limit of quantification was 0.04 μg Fe/mL (0.714 mM). Accuracy was demonstrated by comparison with atomic absorption spectrometry. Precision and robustness were also proven. On T(2)-weighted images, signal intensity varied according to the iron concentration of SPIO-labeled cells. Absorption spectrophotometry is both a highly sensitive and user-friendly technique that is feasible for quantifying the iron content of magnetically labeled cells. The presented data suggest that spectrophotometry is a promising tool for promoting the implementation of magnetic resonance-based cell tracking in routine clinical applications (from bench to bedside).

Facile and one-pot synthesis of uniform PtRu nanoparticles on polydopamine-modified multiwalled carbon nanotubes for direct methanol fuel cell application.

PubMed

Chen, Fengxia; Ren, Junkai; He, Qian; Liu, Jun; Song, Rui

2017-07-01

A facile, environment-friendly and one-pot synthesis method for the preparation of high performance PtRu electrocatalysts on the multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) is reported. Herein, bimetallic PtRu electrocatalysts are deposited onto polydopamine (Pdop) - functionalized MWCNTs by mildly stirring at room temperature. Without the use of expensive chemicals or corrosive acids, this noncovalent functionalization of MWCNTs by Pdop is simple, facile and eco-friendly, and thus preserving the integrity and electronic structure of MWCNTs. Due to the well improved dispersion and the decreased size of alloy nanoparticles, the PtRu electrocatalysts on Pdop-functionalized MWCNTs show much better dispersion, higher electrochemically active surface area, and higher electrocatalytic activity for the electrooxidation of methanol in direct methanol fuel cells, compared with the conventional acid-treated MWCNTs. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The cell adhesion molecules Echinoid and Friend of Echinoid coordinate cell adhesion and cell signaling to regulate the fidelity of ommatidial rotation in the Drosophila eye.

PubMed

Fetting, Jennifer L; Spencer, Susan A; Wolff, Tanya

2009-10-01

Directed cellular movements are a universal feature of morphogenesis in multicellular organisms. Differential adhesion between the stationary and motile cells promotes these cellular movements to effect spatial patterning of cells. A prominent feature of Drosophila eye development is the 90 degrees rotational movement of the multicellular ommatidial precursors within a matrix of stationary cells. We demonstrate that the cell adhesion molecules Echinoid (Ed) and Friend of Echinoid (Fred) act throughout ommatidial rotation to modulate the degree of ommatidial precursor movement. We propose that differential levels of Ed and Fred between stationary and rotating cells at the initiation of rotation create a permissive environment for cell movement, and that uniform levels in these two populations later contribute to stopping the movement. Based on genetic data, we propose that ed and fred impart a second, independent, ;brake-like' contribution to this process via Egfr signaling. Ed and Fred are localized in largely distinct and dynamic patterns throughout rotation. However, ed and fred are required in only a subset of cells - photoreceptors R1, R7 and R6 - for normal rotation, cells that have only recently been linked to a role in planar cell polarity (PCP). This work also provides the first demonstration of a requirement for cone cells in the ommatidial rotation aspect of PCP. ed and fred also genetically interact with the PCP genes, but affect only the degree-of-rotation aspect of the PCP phenotype. Significantly, we demonstrate that at least one PCP protein, Stbm, is required in R7 to control the degree of ommatidial rotation.

Aluminium alloyed iron-silicide/silicon solar cells: A simple approach for low cost environmental-friendly photovoltaic technology.

PubMed

Kumar Dalapati, Goutam; Masudy-Panah, Saeid; Kumar, Avishek; Cheh Tan, Cheng; Ru Tan, Hui; Chi, Dongzhi

2015-12-03

This work demonstrates the fabrication of silicide/silicon based solar cell towards the development of low cost and environmental friendly photovoltaic technology. A heterostructure solar cells using metallic alpha phase (α-phase) aluminum alloyed iron silicide (FeSi(Al)) on n-type silicon is fabricated with an efficiency of 0.8%. The fabricated device has an open circuit voltage and fill-factor of 240 mV and 60%, respectively. Performance of the device was improved by about 7 fold to 5.1% through the interface engineering. The α-phase FeSi(Al)/silicon solar cell devices have promising photovoltaic characteristic with an open circuit voltage, short-circuit current and a fill factor (FF) of 425 mV, 18.5 mA/cm(2), and 64%, respectively. The significant improvement of α-phase FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells is due to the formation p(+-)n homojunction through the formation of re-grown crystalline silicon layer (~5-10 nm) at the silicide/silicon interface. Thickness of the regrown silicon layer is crucial for the silicide/silicon based photovoltaic devices. Performance of the α-FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells significantly depends on the thickness of α-FeSi(Al) layer and process temperature during the device fabrication. This study will open up new opportunities for the Si based photovoltaic technology using a simple, sustainable, and los cost method.

Environmentally friendly, one-pot synthesis of folic acid-decorated graphene oxide-based drug delivery system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Quankui; Huang, Xiaojie; Tang, Junmei; Han, Yuemei; Chen, Hao

2013-12-01

A targeted drug delivery system based on graphene oxide (GO) was produced via one-pot synthesis method, taking advantages of the self-polymerization of the dopamine (DA). The polymerization of dopamine resulted in polydopamine capped GO nanocomposite. Meanwhile, the anti-tumor drug doxorubicin (DOX) can be loaded in the nanocomposite and the tumor cell targeting molecule folic acid (FA) can also been immobilized on the nanocomposite surface simultaneously. The size of the obtained FA-decorated GO-based drug delivery system (DA/GO(DOX)-FA) is about 600 nm. It renders a sustained drug release manner. The cell culture results reveal that the FA-decorated GO-based drug delivery system (DA/GO(DOX)-FA) via one-pot method shows property of targeted killing of cancer cells in vitro. This one-pot method just needs the pH adjusting to induce the self-polymerization of DA, but excludes the fussy chemical grafting process and the organic solvents, which make it an environmentally friendly method to synthesize FA-decorated GO-based drug delivery system.

Nanosphere-based one-step strategy for efficient and nondestructive detection of circulating tumor cells.

PubMed

Wu, Ling-Ling; Wen, Cong-Ying; Hu, Jiao; Tang, Man; Qi, Chu-Bo; Li, Na; Liu, Cui; Chen, Lan; Pang, Dai-Wen; Zhang, Zhi-Ling

2017-08-15

Detecting viable circulating tumor cells (CTCs) without disruption to their functions for in vitro culture and functional study could unravel the biology of metastasis and promote the development of personalized anti-tumor therapies. However, existing CTC detection approaches commonly include CTC isolation and subsequent destructive identification, which damages CTC viability and functions and generates substantial CTC loss. To address the challenge of efficiently detecting viable CTCs for functional study, we develop a nanosphere-based cell-friendly one-step strategy. Immunonanospheres with prominent magnetic/fluorescence properties and extraordinary stability in complex matrices enable simultaneous efficient magnetic capture and specific fluorescence labeling of tumor cells directly in whole blood. The collected cells with fluorescent tags can be reliably identified, free of the tedious and destructive manipulations from conventional CTC identification. Hence, as few as 5 tumor cells in ca. 1mL of whole blood can be efficiently detected via only 20min incubation, and this strategy also shows good reproducibility with the relative standard deviation (RSD) of 8.7%. Moreover, due to the time-saving and gentle processing and the minimum disruption of immunonanospheres to cells, 93.8±0.1% of detected tumor cells retain cell viability and proliferation ability with negligible changes of cell functions, capacitating functional study on cell migration, invasion and glucose uptake. Additionally, this strategy exhibits successful CTC detection in 10/10 peripheral blood samples of cancer patients. Therefore, this nanosphere-based cell-friendly one-step strategy enables viable CTC detection and further functional analyses, which will help to unravel tumor metastasis and guide treatment selection. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Invitations to Cells: Life's Building Blocks. Teacher-Friendly Science Activities with Reproducible Handouts in English and Spanish. Grades 3-5. Living Things Science Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Camp, Carole Ann, Ed.

This booklet, one of six in the Living Things Science series, presents activities about cells which address basic "Benchmarks" suggested by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for the Living Environment for grades 3-5. Contents include background information, vocabulary (in English and Spanish), materials, procedures,…

Bioprocess development for extracellular production of recombinant human interleukin-3 (hIL-3) in Pichia pastoris.

PubMed

Dagar, Vikas Kumar; Adivitiya; Devi, Nirmala; Khasa, Yogender Pal

2016-10-01

Human interleukin-3 (hIL-3) is a therapeutically important cytokine involved in the maturation and differentiation of various cells of the immune system. The codon-optimized hIL-3 gene was cloned in fusion with the N-terminus α-mating factor signal peptide of Saccharomyces cerevisiae under an inducible alcohol oxidase 1 (AOX1) and constitutive glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAP) promoter. A Zeocin concentration up to 2000 mg/L was used to select hyper-producers. The shake flask cultivation studies in the Pichia pastoris GS115 host resulted a maximum recombinant hIL-3 expression level of 145 mg/L in the extracellular medium under the control of AOX1 promoter. The batch fermentation strategy allowed us to attain a fairly pure glycosylated hIL-3 protein in the culture supernatant at a final concentration of 475 mg/L with a high volumetric productivity of 4.39 mg/L/h. The volumetric product concentration achieved at bioreactor level was 3.28 folds greater than the shake flask results. The 6x His-tagged protein was purified using Ni-NTA affinity chromatography and confirmed further by western blot analysis using anti-6x His tag antibody. The glycosylation of recombinant hIL-3 protein was confirmed in a PNGase F deglycosylation reaction where it showed a molecular weight band pattern similar to E. coli produced non-glycosylated hIL-3 protein. The structural properties of recombinant hIL-3 protein were confirmed by CD and fluorescence spectroscopy where protein showed 40 % α-helix, 12 % β-sheets with an emission maxima at 343 nm. MALDI-TOF-TOF analysis was used to establish the protein identity. The biological activity of purified protein was confirmed by the human erythroleukemia TF-1 cell proliferation assay.

Gamma-delta (γδ) T cells: friend or foe in cancer development?

PubMed

Zhao, Yijing; Niu, Chao; Cui, Jiuwei

2018-01-10

γδ T cells are a distinct subgroup of T cells containing T cell receptors (TCRs) γ and TCR δ chains with diverse structural and functional heterogeneity. As a bridge between the innate and adaptive immune systems, γδ T cells participate in various immune responses during cancer progression. Because of their direct/indirect antitumor cytotoxicity and strong cytokine production ability, the use of γδ T cells in cancer immunotherapy has received a lot of attention over the past decade. Despite the promising potential of γδ T cells, the efficacy of γδ T cell immunotherapy is limited, with an average response ratio of only 21%. In addition, research over the past 2 years has shown that γδ T cells could also promote cancer progression by inhibiting antitumor responses, and enhancing cancer angiogenesis. As a result, γδ T cells have a dual effect and can therefore be considered as being both "friends" and "foes" of cancer. In order to solve the sub-optimal efficiency problem of γδ T cell immunotherapy, we review recent observations regarding the antitumor and protumor activities of major structural and functional subsets of human γδ T cells, describing how these subsets are activated and polarized, and how these events relate to subsequent effects in cancer immunity. A mixture of both antitumor or protumor γδ T cells used in adoptive immunotherapy, coupled with the fact that γδ T cells can be polarized from antitumor cells to protumor cells appear to be the likely reasons for the mild efficacy seen with γδ T cells. The future holds the promise of depleting the specific protumor γδ T cell subgroup before therapy, choosing multi-immunocyte adoptive therapy, modifying the cytokine balance in the cancer microenvironment, and using a combination of γδ T cells adoptive immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Activation of beta-major globin gene transcription is associated with recruitment of NF-E2 to the beta-globin LCR and gene promoter.

PubMed

Sawado, T; Igarashi, K; Groudine, M

2001-08-28

The mouse beta-globin gene locus control region (LCR), located upstream of the beta-globin gene cluster, is essential for the activated transcription of genes in the cluster. The LCR contains multiple binding sites for transactivators, including Maf-recognition elements (MAREs). However, little is known about the specific proteins that bind to these sites or the time at which they bind during erythroid differentiation. We have performed chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments to determine the recruitment of the erythroid-specific transactivator p45 NF-E2/MafK (p18 NF-E2) heterodimer and small Maf proteins to various regions in the globin gene locus before and after the induction of murine erythroleukemia (MEL) cell differentiation. We report that, before induction, the LCR is occupied by small Maf proteins, and, on erythroid maturation, the NF-E2 complex is recruited to the LCR and the active globin promoters, even though the promoters do not contain MAREs. This differentiation-coupled recruitment of NF-E2 complex correlates with a greater than 100-fold increase in beta-major globin transcription, but is not associated with a significant change in locus-wide histone H3 acetylation. These findings suggest that the beta-globin gene locus exists in a constitutively open chromatin conformation before terminal differentiation, and we speculate that recruitment of NF-E2 complex to the LCR and active promoters may be a rate-limiting step in the activation of beta-globin gene expression.

Magnesium-Based Corrosion Nano-Cells For Reductive Transformation Of Contaminants

EPA Science Inventory

Magnesium, with its potential to reduce a variety of aqueous contaminants, unique self-limiting corrosion behavior affording long active life times, natural abundance, low cost, and environmentally friendly nature, promises to be an effective technology. However, nanoparticles o...

Geomorphology and Tectonics at the Intersection of Silurian and Death Valleys, Southern California - 2005 Guidebook Pacific Cell Friends of the Pleistocene

USGS Publications Warehouse

Miller, David M.; Valin, Zenon C.

2007-01-01

This publication describes results from new regional and detailed surficial geologic mapping, combined with geomorphologic, geochronologic, and tectonic studies, in Silurian Valley and Death Valley, California. The studies address a long-standing problem, the tectonic and geomorphic evolution of the intersection between three regional tectonic provinces: the eastern California shear zone, the Basin and Range region of southern Nevada and adjacent California, and the eastern Mojave Desert region. The chapters represent work presented on the 2005 Friends of the Pleistocene field trip and meeting as well as the field trip road log.

Small angle neutron scattering as a tool to evaluate moisture-induced swelling in the nanostructure of chemically modified wood cell walls

Treesearch

Nayomi Z. Plaza; Joseph E. Jakes; Charles R. Frihart; Christopher G. Hunt; Daniel J. Yelle; Linda F. Lorenz

2017-01-01

Wood-based products can be a sustainable and more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional construction materials because of their reduced contribution to air and water pollution. An integral component of these products is often an adhesive. Because wood is hygroscopic, moisture-induced swelling in the cell walls near the wood– adhesive bondlines can lead to...

Aluminium alloyed iron-silicide/silicon solar cells: A simple approach for low cost environmental-friendly photovoltaic technology

PubMed Central

Kumar Dalapati, Goutam; Masudy-Panah, Saeid; Kumar, Avishek; Cheh Tan, Cheng; Ru Tan, Hui; Chi, Dongzhi

2015-01-01

This work demonstrates the fabrication of silicide/silicon based solar cell towards the development of low cost and environmental friendly photovoltaic technology. A heterostructure solar cells using metallic alpha phase (α-phase) aluminum alloyed iron silicide (FeSi(Al)) on n-type silicon is fabricated with an efficiency of 0.8%. The fabricated device has an open circuit voltage and fill-factor of 240 mV and 60%, respectively. Performance of the device was improved by about 7 fold to 5.1% through the interface engineering. The α-phase FeSi(Al)/silicon solar cell devices have promising photovoltaic characteristic with an open circuit voltage, short-circuit current and a fill factor (FF) of 425 mV, 18.5 mA/cm2, and 64%, respectively. The significant improvement of α-phase FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells is due to the formation p+−n homojunction through the formation of re-grown crystalline silicon layer (~5–10 nm) at the silicide/silicon interface. Thickness of the regrown silicon layer is crucial for the silicide/silicon based photovoltaic devices. Performance of the α-FeSi(Al)/n-Si solar cells significantly depends on the thickness of α-FeSi(Al) layer and process temperature during the device fabrication. This study will open up new opportunities for the Si based photovoltaic technology using a simple, sustainable, and los cost method. PMID:26632759

Robot-Based High-Throughput Engineering of Alcoholic Polymer: Fullerene Nanoparticle Inks for an Eco-Friendly Processing of Organic Solar Cells.

PubMed

Xie, Chen; Tang, Xiaofeng; Berlinghof, Marvin; Langner, Stefan; Chen, Shi; Späth, Andreas; Li, Ning; Fink, Rainer H; Unruh, Tobias; Brabec, Christoph J

2018-06-27

Development of high-quality organic nanoparticle inks is a significant scientific challenge for the industrial production of solution-processed organic photovoltaics (OPVs) with eco-friendly processing methods. In this work, we demonstrate a novel, robot-based, high-throughput procedure performing automatic poly(3-hexylthio-phene-2,5-diyl) and indene-C 60 bisadduct nanoparticle ink synthesis in nontoxic alcohols. A novel methodology to prepare particle dispersions for fully functional OPVs by manipulating the particle size and solvent system was studied in detail. The ethanol dispersion with a particle diameter of around 80-100 nm exhibits reduced degradation, yielding a power conversion efficiency of 4.52%, which is the highest performance reported so far for water/alcohol-processed OPV devices. By successfully deploying the high-throughput robot-based approach for an organic nanoparticle ink preparation, we believe that the findings demonstrated in this work will trigger more research interest and effort on eco-friendly industrial production of OPVs.

The Microbiome of the Built Environment and Human Behavior: Implications for Emotional Health and Well-Being in Postmodern Western Societies.

PubMed

Stamper, C E; Hoisington, A J; Gomez, O M; Halweg-Edwards, A L; Smith, D G; Bates, K L; Kinney, K A; Postolache, T T; Brenner, L A; Rook, G A W; Lowry, C A

2016-01-01

It is increasingly evident that inflammation is an important determinant of cognitive function and emotional behaviors that are dysregulated in stress-related psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety and affective disorders. Inflammatory responses to physical or psychological stressors are dependent on immunoregulation, which is indicated by a balanced expansion of effector T-cell populations and regulatory T cells. This balance is in part driven by microbial signals. The hygiene or "old friends" hypothesis posits that exposure to immunoregulation-inducing microorganisms is reduced in modern urban societies, leading to an epidemic of inflammatory disease and increased vulnerability to stress-related psychiatric disorders. With the global trend toward urbanization, humans are progressively spending more time in built environments, thereby, experiencing limited exposures to these immunoregulatory "old friends." Here, we evaluate the implications of the global trend toward urbanization, and how this transition may affect human microbial exposures and human behavior. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Use of Boron-doped Diamond Electrode on Yeast-based Microbial Fuel Cell for Electricity Production

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hanzhola, G.; Tribidasari, A. I.; Endang, S.

2018-01-01

The dependency of fossil energy in Indonesia caused the crude oil production to be drastically decreased since 2001, while energy consumption increased. In addition, The use of fossil energy can cause several environmental problems. Therefore, we need an alternative environment-friendly energy as solution for these problems. A microbial fuel cell is one of the prospective alternative source of an environment-friendly energy source to be developed. In this study, Boron-doped diamond electrode was used as working electrode and Candida fukuyamaensis as biocatalyst in microbial fuel cell. Different pH of anode compartment (pH 6.5-7.5) and mediator concentration (10-100 μM) was used to produce an optimal electricity. MFC was operated for 3 hours. During operation, the current and voltage density was measured with potensiostat. The maximum power and current density are 425,82 mW/m2 and 440 mA/m2, respectively, for MFC using pH 7.5 at anode compartment without addition of methylene blue. The addition of redox mediator is lowering the produced electricity because of its anti microbial properties that can kill the microbe.

Genetic Induction of Cytolytic Susceptibility in Breast Cancer Cells

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-07-01

Gryka , M ., Litwak, G., Gebhardt, M ., Bressac, B., Ozturk, M ., Baker, S., Vogelstein, B., and Friend, S. (1990). p5 3 functions as a cell cycle control...Routes, C. Leu, T. Walker, K. Colvin, Exp Cell Res, Submitted for publication (1999). 3. E. White, Genes Dev 10, 1-15 (1996). 4. J. L. Cook, A. M ...6965-6969 (1986). 7. J. L. Cook, D. L. May, A. M . Lewis, Jr., T. A. Walker, J. Virol. 61, 3510-3520 (1987). 8. T. A. Walker, B. A. Wilson, A. M . Lewis

Japan's Eco-School Programme

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mori, Masayuki

2007-01-01

Since 1997, several ministries in Japan have collaborated on an eco-school programme, which applies to both newly constructed and renovated school buildings, in an effort to make its schools more environmentally friendly. The programme equips school buildings with ecological features such as photovoltaic cells, solar thermal collectors, other new…

Bortezomib and Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Younger Patients With Recurrent, Refractory, or Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2018-05-21

Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Del(5q); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Childhood Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Childhood Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Childhood Acute Erythroleukemia (M6); Childhood Acute Megakaryocytic Leukemia (M7); Childhood Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Childhood Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Childhood Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Childhood Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Childhood Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Recurrent Childhood Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Erythroid progenitor cells (CFU-E*) from Friend virus-infected mice undergo VVFe suicide in vitro in the absence of added erythropoietin

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Del Rizzo, D.F.; Axelrad, A.A.

The authors have investigated the effect of VVFe on the survival in suspension of erythropoietin (epo)-independent erythroid progenitor cells (CFU-E*) induced by Friend polycythemia virus (FV). Spleen cells from C3Hf/Bi mice previously infected with FV were exposed to carrier-free VVFe, and the survival of CFU-E* as a function of time in liquid medium was determined from the number of erythroid colonies that developed from these cells seeded in plasma cultures without added epo. The results showed that spleen CFU-E* were highly vulnerable to VVFe. Marrow CFU-E* behaved in a similar manner. The VVFe responsible for their suicide had been presentedmore » to the progenitor cells only during the 4-h period of incubation, after which they were washed and plated in excess nonradioactive iron. They therefore conclude that CFU-E* themselves, and not only their progeny, are capable of actively incorporating iron. Under the same conditions in the absence of added epo, the effect of VVFe on the survival of normal spleen or marrow CFU-E could not be assessed because two few normal CFU-E survived the incubation period. Normal bone marrow cells incubated in complete medium containing epo retained their capacity for erythrocytic colony formation, and CFU-E could then be shown to be vulnerable to VVFe. Thus, either the iron-incorporating system of normal CFU-E was inducible by epo, or else epo permitted survival of the CFU-E so that the activity of a constitutive iron-incorporating system could be recognized.« less

Advanced chemical hydride-based hydrogen generation/storage system for fuel cell vehicles

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Breault, R.W.; Rolfe, J.

1998-08-01

Because of the inherent advantages of high efficiency, environmental acceptability, and high modularity, fuel cells are potentially attractive power supplies. Worldwide concerns over clean environments have revitalized research efforts on developing fuel cell vehicles (FCV). As a result of intensive research efforts, most of the subsystem technology for FCV`s are currently well established. These include: high power density PEM fuel cells, control systems, thermal management technology, and secondary power sources for hybrid operation. For mobile applications, however, supply of hydrogen or fuel for fuel cell operation poses a significant logistic problem. To supply high purity hydrogen for FCV operation, Thermomore » Power`s Advanced Technology Group is developing an advanced hydrogen storage technology. In this approach, a metal hydride/organic slurry is used as the hydrogen carrier and storage media. At the point of use, high purity hydrogen will be produced by reacting the metal hydride/organic slurry with water. In addition, Thermo Power has conceived the paths for recovery and regeneration of the spent hydride (practically metal hydroxide). The fluid-like nature of the spent hydride/organic slurry will provide a unique opportunity for pumping, transporting, and storing these materials. The final product of the program will be a user-friendly and relatively high energy storage density hydrogen supply system for fuel cell operation. In addition, the spent hydride can relatively easily be collected at the pumping station and regenerated utilizing renewable sources, such as biomass, natural, or coal, at the central processing plants. Therefore, the entire process will be economically favorable and environmentally friendly.« less

Inflammation and hypoxia in the kidney: friends or foes?

PubMed

Haase, Volker H

2015-08-01

Hypoxic injury is commonly associated with inflammatory-cell infiltration, and inflammation frequently leads to the activation of cellular hypoxia response pathways. The molecular mechanisms underlying this cross-talk during kidney injury are incompletely understood. Yamaguchi and colleagues identify CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein δ as a cytokine- and hypoxia-regulated transcription factor that fine-tunes hypoxia-inducible factor-1 signaling in renal epithelial cells and thus provide a novel molecular link between hypoxia and inflammation in kidney injury.

New Media: The Key to Influence in Irregular Warfare

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-05-20

Pew-Internet-Social-Networking-full-detail.aspx. 13 May 2013. 5 Most Global Internet Users Turn to the Web for Emails (85%) and Social Networking Sites (62...sent from within Libya on various social networking sites after his friends within Libya had recorded them on his cell phone. 33 When cell...to the Web for Emails (85%) and Social Networking Sites (62%), New York, http://www.ipsos-na.com/news- polls/pressrelease.aspx?id=5564. May 4, 2013

R U Signed on?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Jodi Koslow

2006-01-01

College students often expect responses instantaneously and become angered if their friends have turned off their cell phones or did not leave an away message on instant message. A "60 Minutes" television segment in 2004 described how today's generation of college students, called "echo boomers," are "the most sophisticated generation ever when it…

Service Incentive: Towards an SOA-Friendly Acquisition Process

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-11-01

cell) 17000 Commerce Parkway, Suite A Mt. Laurel, NJ 08054 arlene.minkiewicz@pricesystems.com 1. McGovern, J, et. al., Java Based Web Applications...Web Services”, Dec 2004, available at <https://www.sdn.sap.com/irj/ servlet /prt/portal/prtroot/docs/library/ uuid/512de490-0201-0010-ffb4

Recyclable organic solar cells on cellulose nanocrystal substrates

Treesearch

Yinhua Zhou; Canek Fuentes-Hernandez; Talha M. Khan; Jen-Chieh Liu; James Hsu; Jae Won Shim; Amir Dindar; Jeffrey P. Youngblood; Robert J. Moon; Bernard Kippelen

2013-01-01

Solar energy is potentially the largest source of renewable energy at our disposal, but significant advances are required to make photovoltaic technologies economically viable and, from a life-cycle perspective, environmentally friendly, and consequently scalable. Cellulose nanomaterials are emerging high-value nanoparticles extracted from plants that are abundant,...

An exploratory study of students' use of cell phones, texting, and social networking sites.

PubMed

Angster, Alexa; Frank, Michael; Lester, David

2010-10-01

In a sample of 128 undergraduate students, a higher frequency of texting to others was associated with finding the relationships with those others less fulfilling. Similarly, having more social network "friends" was associated with finding the relationships with those individuals less fulfilling.

Multiwell capillarity-based microfluidic device for the study of 3D tumour tissue-2D endothelium interactions and drug screening in co-culture models.

PubMed

Virumbrales-Muñoz, María; Ayuso, José María; Olave, Marta; Monge, Rosa; de Miguel, Diego; Martínez-Lostao, Luis; Le Gac, Séverine; Doblare, Manuel; Ochoa, Ignacio; Fernandez, Luis J

2017-09-20

The tumour microenvironment is very complex, and essential in tumour development and drug resistance. The endothelium is critical in the tumour microenvironment: it provides nutrients and oxygen to the tumour and is essential for systemic drug delivery. Therefore, we report a simple, user-friendly microfluidic device for co-culture of a 3D breast tumour model and a 2D endothelium model for cross-talk and drug delivery studies. First, we demonstrated the endothelium was functional, whereas the tumour model exhibited in vivo features, e.g., oxygen gradients and preferential proliferation of cells with better access to nutrients and oxygen. Next, we observed the endothelium structure lost its integrity in the co-culture. Following this, we evaluated two drug formulations of TRAIL (TNF-related apoptosis inducing ligand): soluble and anchored to a LUV (large unilamellar vesicle). Both diffused through the endothelium, LUV-TRAIL being more efficient in killing tumour cells, showing no effect on the integrity of endothelium. Overall, we have developed a simple capillary force-based microfluidic device for 2D and 3D cell co-cultures. Our device allows high-throughput approaches, patterning different cell types and generating gradients without specialised equipment. We anticipate this microfluidic device will facilitate drug screening in a relevant microenvironment thanks to its simple, effective and user-friendly operation.

Computer modeling of batteries from nonlinear circuit elements

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Waaben, S.; Dyer, C.K.; Federico, J.

1985-06-01

Circuit analogs for a single battery cell have previously been composed of resistors, capacitors, and inductors. This work introduces a nonlinear circuit model for cell behavior. The circuit is configured around the PIN junction diode, whose charge-storage behavior has features similar to those of electrochemical cells. A user-friendly integrated circuit simulation computer program has reproduced a variety of complex cell responses including electrica isolation effects causing capacity loss, as well as potentiodynamic peaks and discharge phenomena hitherto thought to be thermodynamic in origin. However, in this work, they are shown to be simply due to spatial distribution of stored chargemore » within a practical electrode.« less

NaviCell: a web-based environment for navigation, curation and maintenance of large molecular interaction maps

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Molecular biology knowledge can be formalized and systematically represented in a computer-readable form as a comprehensive map of molecular interactions. There exist an increasing number of maps of molecular interactions containing detailed and step-wise description of various cell mechanisms. It is difficult to explore these large maps, to organize discussion of their content and to maintain them. Several efforts were recently made to combine these capabilities together in one environment, and NaviCell is one of them. Results NaviCell is a web-based environment for exploiting large maps of molecular interactions, created in CellDesigner, allowing their easy exploration, curation and maintenance. It is characterized by a combination of three essential features: (1) efficient map browsing based on Google Maps; (2) semantic zooming for viewing different levels of details or of abstraction of the map and (3) integrated web-based blog for collecting community feedback. NaviCell can be easily used by experts in the field of molecular biology for studying molecular entities of interest in the context of signaling pathways and crosstalk between pathways within a global signaling network. NaviCell allows both exploration of detailed molecular mechanisms represented on the map and a more abstract view of the map up to a top-level modular representation. NaviCell greatly facilitates curation, maintenance and updating the comprehensive maps of molecular interactions in an interactive and user-friendly fashion due to an imbedded blogging system. Conclusions NaviCell provides user-friendly exploration of large-scale maps of molecular interactions, thanks to Google Maps and WordPress interfaces, with which many users are already familiar. Semantic zooming which is used for navigating geographical maps is adopted for molecular maps in NaviCell, making any level of visualization readable. In addition, NaviCell provides a framework for community-based curation of maps. PMID:24099179

NaviCell: a web-based environment for navigation, curation and maintenance of large molecular interaction maps.

PubMed

Kuperstein, Inna; Cohen, David P A; Pook, Stuart; Viara, Eric; Calzone, Laurence; Barillot, Emmanuel; Zinovyev, Andrei

2013-10-07

Molecular biology knowledge can be formalized and systematically represented in a computer-readable form as a comprehensive map of molecular interactions. There exist an increasing number of maps of molecular interactions containing detailed and step-wise description of various cell mechanisms. It is difficult to explore these large maps, to organize discussion of their content and to maintain them. Several efforts were recently made to combine these capabilities together in one environment, and NaviCell is one of them. NaviCell is a web-based environment for exploiting large maps of molecular interactions, created in CellDesigner, allowing their easy exploration, curation and maintenance. It is characterized by a combination of three essential features: (1) efficient map browsing based on Google Maps; (2) semantic zooming for viewing different levels of details or of abstraction of the map and (3) integrated web-based blog for collecting community feedback. NaviCell can be easily used by experts in the field of molecular biology for studying molecular entities of interest in the context of signaling pathways and crosstalk between pathways within a global signaling network. NaviCell allows both exploration of detailed molecular mechanisms represented on the map and a more abstract view of the map up to a top-level modular representation. NaviCell greatly facilitates curation, maintenance and updating the comprehensive maps of molecular interactions in an interactive and user-friendly fashion due to an imbedded blogging system. NaviCell provides user-friendly exploration of large-scale maps of molecular interactions, thanks to Google Maps and WordPress interfaces, with which many users are already familiar. Semantic zooming which is used for navigating geographical maps is adopted for molecular maps in NaviCell, making any level of visualization readable. In addition, NaviCell provides a framework for community-based curation of maps.

Microfluidic transwell inserts for generation of tissue culture-friendly gradients in well plates

PubMed Central

Sip, Christopher G.; Bhattacharjee, Nirveek; Folch, Albert

2015-01-01

Gradients of biochemical molecules play a key role in many physiological processes such as axon growth, tissue morphogenesis, and trans-epithelium nutrient transport, as well as in pathophysiological phenomena such as wound healing, immune response, bacterial invasion, and cancer metastasis. In this paper, we report a microfluidic transwell insert for generating quantifiable concentration gradients in a user-friendly and modular format that is compatible with conventional cell cultures and with tissue explant cultures. The device is simply inserted into a standard 6-well plate, where it hangs self-supported at a distance of ~250 μm above the cell culture surface. The gradient is created by small microflows from the device, through an integrated track-etched porous membrane, into the cell culture well. The microfluidic transwell can deliver stable, quantifiable gradients over a large area with extremely low fluid shear stress to dissociated cells or tissue explants cultured independently on the surface of a 6-well plate. We used finite-element modeling to describe the porous membrane flow and molecular transport and to predict gradients generated by the device. Using the device, we applied a gradient of the chemotactic peptide N-Formyl-Met-Leu-Phe (fMLP) to a large population of HL-60 cells (a neutrophil cell line) and directly observed the migration with time-lapse microscopy. On quantification of the chemotactic response with an automated tracking algorithm, we found 74% of the cells moving towards the gradient. Additionally, the modular design and low fluid shear stress made it possible to apply gradients of growth factors and second messengers to mouse retinal explant cultures. With a simplified interface and well-defined gradients, the microfluidic transwell device has potential for broad applications to gradient-sensing biology. PMID:24225908

Nuclear proteins that bind the human gamma-globin gene promoter: alterations in binding produced by point mutations associated with hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin.

PubMed Central

Gumucio, D L; Rood, K L; Gray, T A; Riordan, M F; Sartor, C I; Collins, F S

1988-01-01

The molecular mechanisms responsible for the human fetal-to-adult hemoglobin switch have not yet been elucidated. Point mutations identified in the promoter regions of gamma-globin genes from individuals with nondeletion hereditary persistence of fetal hemoglobin (HPFH) may mark cis-acting sequences important for this switch, and the trans-acting factors which interact with these sequences may be integral parts in the puzzle of gamma-globin gene regulation. We have used gel retardation and footprinting strategies to define nuclear proteins which bind to the normal gamma-globin promoter and to determine the effect of HPFH mutations on the binding of a subset of these proteins. We have identified five proteins in human erythroleukemia cells (K562 and HEL) which bind to the proximal promoter region of the normal gamma-globin gene. One factor, gamma CAAT, binds the duplicated CCAAT box sequences; the -117 HPFH mutation increases the affinity of interaction between gamma CAAT and its cognate site. Two proteins, gamma CAC1 and gamma CAC2, bind the CACCC sequence. These proteins require divalent cations for binding. The -175 HPFH mutation interferes with the binding of a fourth protein, gamma OBP, which binds an octamer sequence (ATGCAAAT) in the normal gamma-globin promoter. The HPFH phenotype of the -175 mutation indicates that the octamer-binding protein may play a negative regulatory role in this setting. A fifth protein, EF gamma a, binds to sequences which overlap the octamer-binding site. The erythroid-specific distribution of EF gamma a and its close approximation to an apparent repressor-binding site suggest that it may be important in gamma-globin regulation. Images PMID:2468996

Comparison of childhood myelodysplastic syndrome, AML FAB M6 or M7, CCG 2891: report from the Children's Oncology Group.

PubMed

Barnard, Dorothy R; Alonzo, Todd A; Gerbing, Robert B; Lange, Beverly; Woods, William G

2007-07-01

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), acute erythroleukemia (FAB M6), and acute megakaryocytic leukemia (FAB M7) have overlapping features. Children without Down syndrome or acute promyelocytic leukemia who were newly diagnosed with primary myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myeloid leukemia (AML) M6 or M7 were compared to children with de novo AML M0-M5. All children were entered on the Children's Cancer Group therapeutic research study CCG 2891. The presentation and outcomes of the 132 children diagnosed with MDS (60 children), AML FAB M6 (19 children), or AML FAB M7 (53 children) were similar. Children with AML FAB M7 were diagnosed at a significantly younger age (P = 0.001). Children with MDS, M6, or M7 had significantly lower white blood cell (WBC) counts (P = 0.001), lower peripheral blast counts (P < 0.001), and an increased frequency of -7/7q- (P = 0.003) at presentation. All three groups had significantly inferior overall survival (OS) (P < 0.001) and event free survival (P < 0.001) compared with the 748 children diagnosed with AML FAB M0-M5 when assessed from entry on study. This poor survival was largely attributable to induction death and failure. However, when assessed from successful completion of induction therapy, the 5-year OS (P = 0.090)(49.1 vs. 56.9%) and disease-free survival (DFS) (P = 0.113)(38.0 vs. 46.3%) therapy were not significantly different from other children with AML. Childhood AML FAB M6 and AML M7 resemble MDS in presentation, poor induction success rates, and outcomes.

Rhizome of Anemarrhena asphodeloides as mediators of the eco-friendly synthesis of silver and gold spherical, face-centred cubic nanocrystals and its anti-migratory and cytotoxic potential in normal and cancer cell lines.

PubMed

Lee, Hyun A; Castro-Aceituno, Veronica; Abbai, Ragavendran; Moon, Seong Soo; Kim, Yeon-Ju; Simu, Shakina Yesmin; Yang, Deok Chun

2018-03-29

The water extract of Anemarrhena asphodeloides, the traditional oriental medicinal plant, mediated the eco-friendly synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Aa-AgNPs) and gold nanoparticles (Aa-AuNPs). First, its therapeutic rhizome was powdered prior to water extraction and then silver, gold nanoparticles were synthesized. Aa-AgNPs and Aa-AuNPs were found to be spherical, face-centred cubic nanocrystals with a Z-average hydrodynamic diameter of 190 and 258 nm, respectively. In addition, proteins and aromatic biomolecules were the plausible players associated with the production and stabilization of Aa-AgNPs; instead, phenolic compounds were responsible for the synthesis and stability of Aa-AuNPs. In vitro cytotoxic analysis revealed that up to 50 μg.mL -1 concentration Aa-AuNPs did not exhibit any toxicity on 3T3-L1, HT29 and MCF7 cell lines, while being specifically cytotoxic to A549 cell line. On the contrary, Aa-AgNPs displayed a significantly higher toxicity in comparison to Aa-AuNPs in all cell lines specially MCF7 cell line. Since cancer cells were more sensitive to Aa-Au/AgNPs treatments, further evaluation was done in order to determine their anticancer potential. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was not affected by Aa-AuNPs, on the other hand, Aa-AgNPs treatment exhibited a higher potential to induce oxidative stress in A549 cells than HT29 and MCF7 cells. In addition, Aa-Ag/AuNPs reduced cell migration in A549 cells at 10 and 50 μg.mL -1 , respectively. So far, this is the only report uncovering the ability of A. asphodeloides to synthesize silver and gold nanoparticles with anticancer potential and also indirectly enabling its large-scale utilization with value addition.

Identification of Novel Genes and Candidate Targets in CML Stem Cells

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-01-01

v-myb myeloblastosis viral oncogene homolog (avian) 6q22–q23 12 GATCCTGTGTTTGCAAC 1 FLI1 NM_002017 Friend leukemia virus integration 1 11q24.1–q24.3 3...AVAILABILITY STATEMENT Approved for Public Release; Distribution Unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT Chronic myeloid leukemia ... leukemia (CML) is a blood malignancy that is believed to originate in a hematopoietic stem cell as a result of the formation of an abnormal fusion gene

Prawn Shell Derived Chitin Nanofiber Membranes as Advanced Sustainable Separators for Li/Na-Ion Batteries.

PubMed

Zhang, Tian-Wen; Shen, Bao; Yao, Hong-Bin; Ma, Tao; Lu, Lei-Lei; Zhou, Fei; Yu, Shu-Hong

2017-08-09

Separators, necessary components to isolate cathodes and anodes in Li/Na-ion batteries, are consumed in large amounts per year; thus, their sustainability is a concerning issue for renewable energy storage systems. However, the eco-efficient and environmentally friendly fabrication of separators with a high mechanical strength, excellent thermal stability, and good electrolyte wettability is still challenging. Herein, we reported the fabrication of a new type of separators for Li/Na-ion batteries through the self-assembly of eco-friendly chitin nanofibers derived from prawn shells. We demonstrated that the pore size in the chitin nanofiber membrane (CNM) separator can be tuned by adjusting the amount of pore generation agent (sodium dihydrogen citrate) in the self-assembly process of chitin nanofibers. By optimizing the pore size in CNM separators, the electrochemical performance of the LiFePO 4 /Li half-cell with a CNM separator is comparable to that with a commercialized polypropylene (PP) separator. More attractively, the CNM separator showed a much better performance in the LiFePO 4 /Li cell at 120 °C and Na 3 V 2 (PO 4 ) 3 /Na cell than the PP separator. The proposed fabrication of separators by using natural raw materials will play a significant contribution to the sustainable development of renewable energy storage systems.

A Cell Phone in the Classroom: A Friend or a Foe?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Irina, Averianova

2012-01-01

Communication is getting increasingly mobile, with more than a third of the world's population using cellular phones. Recent statistics indicate that this proportion is much bigger among young people. Research has also registered significant predominance of short message exchange over other modes of interaction in youth culture, where e-mail is…

New Media: Engaging and Educating the YouTube Generation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vedantham, Anu; Hassen, Marjorie

2011-01-01

Today's undergraduates are clearly comfortable as consumers of technology and new media--purchasing ring tones for their cell phones and tunes for their iPods, text-messaging from handheld devices, scanning and tinkering with photos, keeping up with their Facebook friends and watching viral YouTube videos, sometimes all simultaneously. We share…

STAT1 in cancer: friend or foe?

PubMed

Zhang, Ying; Liu, Zhaoyong

2017-08-01

The first STAT family member, STAT1, is an essential component of interferon (IFN)-signaling, which mediates several cellular functions in response to stimulation by cytokines, growth factors, and hormones, such as the IFNs and IL-6. The role and significance of STAT1 in cancer biology have been studied for a decade. The majority of evidence shows that activating STAT1 plays a tumor suppressor role in cancer cells. Nevertheless, results from some experiments and clinical studies suggest that STAT1 also exerts tumor promoter effects under specific conditions. In some malignant phenotypes, STAT1 can function either as an oncoprotein or tumor suppressor in the same cell type, depending on the specific genetic background. Thus, the function of STAT1 in cancer biology remains a mystery. In this review, we discuss both the "friend" and "foe" features of STAT1 by summarizing its tumor suppressor or oncogenic functions and mechanisms. To explain how STAT1 may mediate its tumor suppressor effects, we discuss several possible mechanisms, one of which is linked to the role of STAT1β, an isoform of STAT1.

Cross-Laboratory Analysis of Brain Cell Type Transcriptomes with Applications to Interpretation of Bulk Tissue Data

PubMed Central

Toker, Lilah; Rocco, Brad; Sibille, Etienne

2017-01-01

Establishing the molecular diversity of cell types is crucial for the study of the nervous system. We compiled a cross-laboratory database of mouse brain cell type-specific transcriptomes from 36 major cell types from across the mammalian brain using rigorously curated published data from pooled cell type microarray and single-cell RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) studies. We used these data to identify cell type-specific marker genes, discovering a substantial number of novel markers, many of which we validated using computational and experimental approaches. We further demonstrate that summarized expression of marker gene sets (MGSs) in bulk tissue data can be used to estimate the relative cell type abundance across samples. To facilitate use of this expanding resource, we provide a user-friendly web interface at www.neuroexpresso.org. PMID:29204516

New materials for old problems: What can nanomaterials do for biology and neuroscience?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Srivatsan, Malathi; Badanavalu, Mahadevappa P.; Yancey, Justin; Xie, Jining; Chen, Linfeng; Hankins, Philip T.; Yoon, Hargsoon; Varadan, Vijay K.

2009-03-01

The emerging field of nanotechnology offers the development of new materials and methods for crucial neuroscience applications namely (a) promoting survival and growth of the neurons, and (b) monitoring physiological signals generated in the nervous system such as excitation, synaptic transmission, release of neurotransmitter molecules and cell-to-cell communication. Such bio-devices will have several novel applications in basic science, laboratory analysis and therapeutic treatments. Our goals in this field of research include (a) development of new biocompatible substrates to guide and promote neuronal growth along specific pathways; (b) designing a neuron-friendly, bio-molecule delivery system for neuroprotection; (c) monitoring of electrical activity from neuron and also from neuronal networks; (d) determining the diffusion and intracellular localization of nanomaterial interacting with neurons at high resolution; and (e) detection of release of neurotransmitter molecules by means of newly designed nanosensors. Here we describe the fabrication and use of magnetic nanotubes and nanowire electrode arrays in studies using a cell culture model of neuronally differentiating rat pheochromocytoma (PC 12) cells. The magnetic nanotubes were fabricated by a template method yielding hematite (α-Fe2O3) nanotubes. These nanotubes were coupled with nerve growth factor (NGF). Vertically aligned nanowires were fabricated on glass substrates using the lithography-assisted template bonding (LATB) method. Rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells were cultured on these nanotubes and polylysine coated nanowire electrodes. Our results showed that magnetic nanotube bound NGF was available to PC12 cells as they showed significant differentiation into neurons. PC12 cells growing on nanowires in the presence of NGF differentiated into neurons capable of synthesis and release of dopamine upon stimulation. The neurons grew healthy neurites appearing to form synapses with other neurons in the dish. These results show that the magnetic nanotubes were capable of delivering neurotrophic molecules and the nanowire electrodes are neuron-friendly, promote cell to cell communication and can be used as bio-sensors in the nervous system.

Reaction kinetics and targeting to cellular glutathione S-transferase of the glutathione peroxidase mimetic PhSeZnCl and its D,L-polylactide microparticle formulation.

PubMed

Bartolini, D; Piroddi, M; Tidei, C; Giovagnoli, S; Pietrella, D; Manevich, Y; Tew, K D; Giustarini, D; Rossi, R; Townsend, D M; Santi, C; Galli, F

2015-01-01

Catalytic properties and cellular effects of the glutathione peroxidase (GPx)-mimetic compound PhSeZnCl or its d,l-lactide polymer microencapsulation form (M-PhSeZnCl) were investigated and compared with the prototypical Se-organic compounds ebselen and diselenide (PhSe)2. PhSeZnCl was confirmed to catalyze the ping-pong reaction of GPx with higher Vmax than ebselen and (PhSe)2, but the catalytic efficiency calculated for the cosubstrates glutathione (GSH) and H2O2, and particularly the high reactivity against thiols (lowest KM for GSH in the series of test molecules), suggested poor biological applicability of PhSeZnCl as a GPx mimetic. Cytotoxicity of PhSeZnCl was demonstrated in various cancer cell lines via increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, depletion of intracellular thiols, and induction of apoptosis. Experiments carried out in GSH S-transferase P (GSTP)-overexpressing K562 human erythroleukemia cells and in GSTP1-1-knockout murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) demonstrated that this cytosolic enzyme represents a preferential target of the redox disturbances produced by this Se-compound with a key role in controlling H2O2 generation and the perturbation of stress/survival kinase signaling. Microencapsulation was adopted as a strategy to control the thiol reactivity and oxidative stress effects of PhSeZnCl, then assessing applications alternative to anticancer. The uptake of this "depowered" GPx-mimetic formulation, which occurred through an endocytosis-like mechanism, resulted in a marked reduction of cytotoxicity. In MCF-7 cells transfected with different allelic variants of GSTP, M-PhSeZnCl lowered the burst of cellular ROS induced by the exposure to extracellular H2O2, and the extent of this effect changed between the GSTP variants. Microencapsulation is a straightforward strategy to mitigate the toxicity of thiol-reactive Se-organic drugs that enhanced the antioxidant and cellular protective effects of PhSeZnCl. A mechanistic linkage of these effects with the expression pattern and signaling properties of GSTP . This has overcome the GPx-mimetic paradigm proposed for Se-organic drugs with a more pragmatic concept of GSTP signaling modulators. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Reaction kinetics and targeting to cellular glutathione S-transferase of the glutathione peroxidase mimetic PhSeZnCl and its d,l-polylactide microparticle formulation

PubMed Central

Bartolini, D.; Piroddi, M.; Tidei, C.; Giovagnoli, S.; Pietrella, D.; Manevich, Y.; Tew, K.D.; Giustarini, D.; Rossi, R.; Townsend, D.M.; Santi, C.; Galli, F.

2015-01-01

Catalytic properties and cellular effects of the glutathione peroxidase (GPx)-mimetic compound PhSeZnCl or its d,l-lactide polymer microencapsulation form (M-PhSeZnCl) were investigated and compared with the prototypical Se-organic compounds ebselen and diselenide (PhSe)2. PhSeZnCl was confirmed to catalyze the ping-pong reaction of GPx with higher Vmax than ebselen and (PhSe)2, but the catalytic efficiency calculated for the cosubstrates glutathione (GSH) and H2O2, and particularly the high reactivity against thiols (lowest KM for GSH in the series of test molecules), suggested poor biological applicability of PhSeZnCl as a GPx mimetic. Cytotoxicity of PhSeZnCl was demonstrated in various cancer cell lines via increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, depletion of intracellular thiols, and induction of apoptosis. Experiments carried out in GSH S-transferase P (GSTP)-overexpressing K562 human erythroleukemia cells and in GSTP1-1-knockout murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) demonstrated that this cytosolic enzyme represents a preferential target of the redox disturbances produced by this Se-compound with a key role in controlling H2O2 generation and the perturbation of stress/survival kinase signaling. Microencapsulation was adopted as a strategy to control the thiol reactivity and oxidative stress effects of PhSeZnCl, then assessing applications alternative to anticancer. The uptake of this “depowered” GPx-mimetic formulation, which occurred through an endocytosis-like mechanism, resulted in a marked reduction of cytotoxicity. In MCF-7 cells transfected with different allelic variants of GSTP, M-PhSeZnCl lowered the burst of cellular ROS induced by the exposure to extracellular H2O2, and the extent of this effect changed between the GSTP variants. Microencapsulation is a straightforward strategy to mitigate the toxicity of thiol-reactive Se-organic drugs that enhanced the antioxidant and cellular protective effects of PhSeZnCl. A mechanistic linkage of these effects with the expression pattern and signaling properties of GSTP. This has overcome the GPx-mimetic paradigm proposed for Se-organic drugs with a more pragmatic concept of GSTP signaling modulators. PMID:25452145

Isolating specific cell and tissue compartments from 3D images for quantitative regional distribution analysis using novel computer algorithms.

PubMed

Fenrich, Keith K; Zhao, Ethan Y; Wei, Yuan; Garg, Anirudh; Rose, P Ken

2014-04-15

Isolating specific cellular and tissue compartments from 3D image stacks for quantitative distribution analysis is crucial for understanding cellular and tissue physiology under normal and pathological conditions. Current approaches are limited because they are designed to map the distributions of synapses onto the dendrites of stained neurons and/or require specific proprietary software packages for their implementation. To overcome these obstacles, we developed algorithms to Grow and Shrink Volumes of Interest (GSVI) to isolate specific cellular and tissue compartments from 3D image stacks for quantitative analysis and incorporated these algorithms into a user-friendly computer program that is open source and downloadable at no cost. The GSVI algorithm was used to isolate perivascular regions in the cortex of live animals and cell membrane regions of stained spinal motoneurons in histological sections. We tracked the real-time, intravital biodistribution of injected fluorophores with sub-cellular resolution from the vascular lumen to the perivascular and parenchymal space following a vascular microlesion, and mapped the precise distributions of membrane-associated KCC2 and gephyrin immunolabeling in dendritic and somatic regions of spinal motoneurons. Compared to existing approaches, the GSVI approach is specifically designed for isolating perivascular regions and membrane-associated regions for quantitative analysis, is user-friendly, and free. The GSVI algorithm is useful to quantify regional differences of stained biomarkers (e.g., cell membrane-associated channels) in relation to cell functions, and the effects of therapeutic strategies on the redistributions of biomolecules, drugs, and cells in diseased or injured tissues. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Iron and thiols as two major players in carcinogenesis: friends or foes?

PubMed

Toyokuni, Shinya

2014-01-01

Iron is the most abundant metal in the human body and mainly works as a cofactor for proteins such as hemoglobin and various enzymes. No independent life forms on earth can survive without iron. However, excess iron is intimately associated with carcinogenesis by increasing oxidative stress via its catalytic activity to generate hydroxyl radicals. Biomolecules with redox-active sulfhydryl function(s) (thiol compounds) are necessary for the maintenance of mildly reductive cellular environments to counteract oxidative stress, and for the execution of redox reactions for metabolism and detoxification. Involvement of glutathione S-transferase and thioredoxin has long attracted the attention of cancer researchers. Here, I update recent findings on the involvement of iron and thiol compounds during carcinogenesis and in cancer cells. It is now recognized that the cystine/glutamate transporter (antiporter) is intimately associated with ferroptosis, an iron-dependent, non-apoptotic form of cell death, observed in cancer cells, and also with cancer stem cells; the former with transporter blockage but the latter with its stabilization. Excess iron in the presence of oxygen appears the most common known mutagen. Ironically, the persistent activation of antioxidant systems via genetic alterations in Nrf2 and Keap1 also contributes to carcinogenesis. Therefore, it is difficult to conclude the role of iron and thiol compounds as friends or foes, which depends on the quantity/distribution and induction/flexibility, respectively. Avoiding further mutation would be the most helpful strategy for cancer prevention, and myriad of efforts are being made to sort out the weaknesses of cancer cells.

Gravity-oriented microfluidic device for uniform and massive cell spheroid formation

PubMed Central

Lee, Kangsun; Kim, Choong; Young Yang, Jae; Lee, Hun; Ahn, Byungwook; Xu, Linfeng; Yoon Kang, Ji; Oh, Kwang W.

2012-01-01

We propose a simple method for forming massive and uniform three-dimensional (3-D) cell spheroids in a multi-level structured microfluidic device by gravitational force. The concept of orienting the device vertically has allowed spheroid formation, long-term perfusion, and retrieval of the cultured spheroids by user-friendly standard pipetting. We have successfully formed, perfused, and retrieved uniform, size-controllable, well-conditioned spheroids of human embryonic kidney 293 cells (HEK 293) in the gravity-oriented microfluidic device. We expect the proposed method will be a useful tool to study in-vitro 3-D cell models for the proliferation, differentiation, and metabolism of embryoid bodies or tumours. PMID:22662098

Construction of Escherichia Coli Cell Factories for Production of Organic Acids and Alcohols.

PubMed

Liu, Pingping; Zhu, Xinna; Tan, Zaigao; Zhang, Xueli; Ma, Yanhe

2016-01-01

Production of bulk chemicals from renewable biomass has been proved to be sustainable and environmentally friendly. Escherichia coli is the most commonly used host strain for constructing cell factories for production of bulk chemicals since it has clear physiological and genetic characteristics, grows fast in minimal salts medium, uses a wide range of substrates, and can be genetically modified easily. With the development of metabolic engineering, systems biology, and synthetic biology, a technology platform has been established to construct E. coli cell factories for bulk chemicals production. In this chapter, we will introduce this technology platform, as well as E. coli cell factories successfully constructed for production of organic acids and alcohols.

A Novel Biomolecule-Mediated Reduction of Graphene Oxide: A Multifunctional Anti-Cancer Agent.

PubMed

Choi, Yun-Jung; Kim, Eunsu; Han, JaeWoong; Kim, Jin-Hoi; Gurunathan, Sangiliyandi

2016-03-18

Graphene oxide (GO) is a monolayer of carbon atoms that form a dense honeycomb structure, consisting of hydroxyl and epoxide functional groups on the two accessible sides and carboxylic groups at the edges. In contrast, graphene is a two-dimensional sheet of sp2-hybridized carbon atoms packed into a honeycomb lattice. Graphene has great potential for use in biomedical applications due to its excellent physical and chemical properties. In this study, we report a facile and environmentally friendly approach for the synthesis of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) using uric acid (UA). The synthesized uric acid-reduced graphene oxide (UA-rGO) was fully characterized by ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorption spectra, X-ray diffraction (XRD), dynamic light scattering (DLS), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Raman spectroscopy. GO and UA-rGO induced a dose-dependent decrease in cell viability and induced cytotoxicity in human ovarian cancer cells. The results from this study suggest that UA-rGO could cause apoptosis in mammalian cells. The toxicity of UA-rGO is significantly higher than GO. Based on our findings, UA-rGO shows cytotoxic effects against human ovarian cancer cells, and its synthesis is environmentally friendly. UA-rGO significantly inhibits cell viability by increasing lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, activation of caspase-3, and DNA fragmentation. This is the first report to describe the comprehensive effects of UA-rGO in ovarian cancer cells. We believe that the functional aspects of newly synthesized UA-rGO will provide advances towards various biomedical applications in the near future.

Trusted information sources used during and after Superstorm Sandy: TV and radio were used more often than social media

PubMed Central

Burger, Joanna; Gochfeld, Michael; Jeitner, Christian; Pittfield, Taryn; Donio, Mark

2015-01-01

Health and safety professionals, and the public, are interested in the best methods of providing timely information about disasters. The objective of this study was to examine information sources used for Superstorm Sandy with respect to the storm, evacuation routes, shelters, safety, and health issues. Respondents in Central New Jersey and Jersey Shore communities were differentially impacted by the storm. Jersey shore respondents had higher evacuation rates (47 % vs 13 %), higher flood waters in homes, longer power outages (average 23 vs 6 days), and longer periods without internet (29 vs 6 days). Electricity outages disrupted both sources and receivers of communication. Both groups obtained most of their information regarding safety from television, radio, friends and web/email. Information sources on health varied by location, with central Jersey respondents using mainly TV and the web, and Jersey shore respondents obtaining health information from the radio, and TV (before the storm). For information on evacuation routes, Jersey shore respondents obtained information from many sources, while central Jersey respondents obtained it from TV. Information on mold was largely obtained from friends and the web, since mold issues were dealt with several weeks after Sandy. The reliance on traditional sources of information (TV, radio, friends) found in this study suggests that the extreme power outages rendered web, cell phones, and social media on cell phones less usable, and suggests the need for an integrated communication strategy with redundancies that takes into account prolonged power outages over large geographical areas. PMID:24279815

Trusted information sources used during and after Superstorm Sandy: TV and radio were used more often than social media.

PubMed

Burger, Joanna; Gochfeld, Michael; Jeitner, Christian; Pittfield, Taryn; Donio, Mark

2013-01-01

Health and safety professionals and the public are interested in the best methods of providing timely information about disasters. The objective of this study was to examine information sources used for Superstorm Sandy with respect to the storm, evacuation routes, shelters, safety, and health issues. Respondents in central New Jersey and Jersey shore communities were differentially impacted by the storm. Jersey shore respondents had higher evacuation rates (47% vs. 13%), higher flood waters in homes, longer power outages (average 23 vs. 6 d), and longer periods without Internet (29 vs. 6 d). Electricity outages disrupted both sources and receivers of communication. Both groups obtained most of their information regarding safety from television, radio, friends, and Web/e-mail. Information sources on health varied by location, with central Jersey respondents using mainly TV and the Web, and Jersey shore respondents obtaining health information from the radio and TV (before the storm). For information on evacuation routes, Jersey shore respondents obtained information from many sources, while central Jersey respondents obtained it from TV. Information on mold was largely obtained from friends and the Web, since mold issues were dealt with several weeks after Sandy. The reliance on traditional sources of information (TV, radio, friends) found in this study suggests that the extreme power outages rendered Web, cell phones, and social media on cell phones less usable, and suggests the need for an integrated communication strategy with redundancies that takes into account prolonged power outages over large geographical areas.

Iso-acoustic focusing of cells for size-insensitive acousto-mechanical phenotyping

PubMed Central

Augustsson, Per; Karlsen, Jonas T.; Su, Hao-Wei; Bruus, Henrik; Voldman, Joel

2016-01-01

Mechanical phenotyping of single cells is an emerging tool for cell classification, enabling assessment of effective parameters relating to cells' interior molecular content and structure. Here, we present iso-acoustic focusing, an equilibrium method to analyze the effective acoustic impedance of single cells in continuous flow. While flowing through a microchannel, cells migrate sideways, influenced by an acoustic field, into streams of increasing acoustic impedance, until reaching their cell-type specific point of zero acoustic contrast. We establish an experimental procedure and provide theoretical justifications and models for iso-acoustic focusing. We describe a method for providing a suitable acoustic contrast gradient in a cell-friendly medium, and use acoustic forces to maintain that gradient in the presence of destabilizing forces. Applying this method we demonstrate iso-acoustic focusing of cell lines and leukocytes, showing that acoustic properties provide phenotypic information independent of size. PMID:27180912

Iso-acoustic focusing of cells for size-insensitive acousto-mechanical phenotyping.

PubMed

Augustsson, Per; Karlsen, Jonas T; Su, Hao-Wei; Bruus, Henrik; Voldman, Joel

2016-05-16

Mechanical phenotyping of single cells is an emerging tool for cell classification, enabling assessment of effective parameters relating to cells' interior molecular content and structure. Here, we present iso-acoustic focusing, an equilibrium method to analyze the effective acoustic impedance of single cells in continuous flow. While flowing through a microchannel, cells migrate sideways, influenced by an acoustic field, into streams of increasing acoustic impedance, until reaching their cell-type specific point of zero acoustic contrast. We establish an experimental procedure and provide theoretical justifications and models for iso-acoustic focusing. We describe a method for providing a suitable acoustic contrast gradient in a cell-friendly medium, and use acoustic forces to maintain that gradient in the presence of destabilizing forces. Applying this method we demonstrate iso-acoustic focusing of cell lines and leukocytes, showing that acoustic properties provide phenotypic information independent of size.

Levels of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate in Friend leukaemic cells.

PubMed

Yeoh, G C

1980-05-08

Most cells are thought to contain trace amounts of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (DPG), as it acts as a cofactor in the interconversion of 2-phosphoglycerate and 3-phosphoglycerate by the glycolytic enzyme phosphoglyceromutase. DPG is synthesized from 1,3-diphosphoglycerate by the action of diphosphoglycerate mutase. Lowry et al. reported levels of 29 mumol DPG per kg wet weight brain tissue which is approximately 3 pmol per 10(8) cells, assuming that 1 g of brain tissue contains 10(9) cells. In contrast, erythroid cells contain 50-100 nmol DPG per 10(8) cells, depending on the species and the stage of development. This is of the order of a 1,000-fold more DPG compared with non-erythroid cells. In red cells DPG concentration modulates the binding of oxygen to haemoglobin. I show here that erythroid precurser cells also contain markedly raised levels of DPG.

Intermediate peer contexts and educational outcomes: Do the friends of students' friends matter?

PubMed

Carbonaro, William; Workman, Joseph

2016-07-01

Sociologists of education have long been interested in the effects of peer relations on educational outcomes. Recent theory and research on adolescence suggest that peers on the boundaries of students' friendship networks may play an important role in shaping behaviors and educational outcomes. In this study, we examine the importance of a key "intermediate peer context" for students' outcomes: the friends of a student's friends. Our findings indicate both friends' and friends' friends' characteristics independently predict students' college expectations and their risk of dropping out of high school (although only friends' characteristics predict GPA). Our models suggest the magnitude of students' friends-of-friends' characteristics are at least as large their friends' characteristics. Together, the association between the peer context and students outcomes is considerably larger when accounting for both the characteristics of students' friends and the friends of their friends. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

H-2D (Rfv-1) gene influence on recovery from Friend virus leukemia is mediated by nonleukemic cells of the spleen and bone marrow

PubMed Central

1980-01-01

H-2D (Rfv-1)-associated control of recovery from FV leukemia was studied in congenic mice. In irradiation chimeras, the high recovery phenotype was transferred by cells of the spleen, bone marrow, and fetal liver. Furthermore, in cell transfers using unirradiated recipients, spleen and bone marrow cells of the high-recovery genotype were able to mediate recovery from leukemia in mice of the low-recovery genotype. Thus, the H-2D (Rfv-1) influence on recovery appeared to operate via nonleukemic cells of the spleen and bone marrow rather than via leukemic cells. The specific nonleukemic cell type(s) involved in recovery remains unknown. However, the mechanism appears to be complex and probably involves both anti-FV antibody and FV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes. PMID:6935387

A user-friendly means to scale from the biochemistry of photosynthesis to whole crop canopies and production in time and space - development of Java WIMOVAC.

PubMed

Song, Qingfeng; Chen, Dairui; Long, Stephen P; Zhu, Xin-Guang

2017-01-01

Windows Intuitive Model of Vegetation response to Atmosphere and Climate Change (WIMOVAC) has been used widely as a generic modular mechanistically rich model of plant production. It can predict the responses of leaf and canopy carbon balance, as well as production in different environmental conditions, in particular those relevant to global change. Here, we introduce an open source Java user-friendly version of WIMOVAC. This software is platform independent and can be easily downloaded to a laptop and used without any prior programming skills. In this article, we describe the structure, equations and user guide and illustrate some potential applications of WIMOVAC. © 2016 The Authors Plant, Cell & Environment Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effect of tungsten concentration on growth of acetobacter xylinum as a promising agent for eco-friendly recycling system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nandiyanto, A. B. D.; Halimatul, H. S.; Rosyid, N. H.; Effendi, D. B.

2016-04-01

Effect of tungsten (W) concentration on Acetobacter xylinum growth was studied. In the experimental procedure, concentration of W in the bacterial growth medium containing pineapple peels waste was varied from 0.5 to 50 ppm. To confirm the influence of W, the bacterial incubation process was carried out for 72 hours. Spectrophotometer analysis showed that the growth rate of Acetobacter xylinum decreased with increasing concentration of W. The result from fourier transform infra red analysis showed a slightly change on the absorption peak intensities and informing the interaction of W ion and bacteria cell. The result confirmed that Acetobacter xylinum was able to uptake W concentration up to 15 ppm, indicating that Acetobacter xylinum might act as a promising agent for eco-friendly recycling system.

Arginase induction by sodium phenylbutyrate in mouse tissues and human cell lines.

PubMed

Kern, R M; Yang, Z; Kim, P S; Grody, W W; Iyer, R K; Cederbaum, S D

2007-01-01

Hyperargininemia is a urea cycle disorder caused by mutations in the gene for arginase I (AI) resulting in elevated blood arginine and ammonia levels. Sodium phenylacetate and a precursor, sodium phenylbutyrate (NaPB) have been used to lower ammonia, conjugating glutamine to produce phenylacetylglutamine which is excreted in urine. The elevated arginine levels induce the second arginase (AII) in patient kidney and kidney tissue culture. It has been shown that NaPB increases expression of some target genes and we tested its effect on arginase induction. Eight 9-week old male mice fed on chow containing 7.5 g NaPB/kg rodent chow and drank water with 10 g NaPB/L, and four control mice had a normal diet. After one week all mice were sacrificed. The arginase specific activities for control and NaPB mice, respectively, were 38.2 and 59.4 U/mg in liver, 0.33 and 0.42 U/mg in kidney, and 0.29 and 1.19 U/mg in brain. Immunoprecipitation of arginase in each tissue with AI and AII antibodies showed the activity induced by NaPB is mostly AI. AII may also be induced in kidney. AI accounts for the fourfold increased activity in brain. In some cell lines, NaPB increased arginase activity up to fivefold depending on dose (1-5 mM) and exposure time (2-5 days); control and NaPB activities, respectively, are: erythroleukemia, HEL, 0.06 and 0.31 U/mg, and K562, 0.46 and 1.74 U/mg; embryonic kidney, HEK293, 1.98 and 3.58 U/mg; breast adenocarcinoma, MDA-MB-468, 1.11 and 4.06 U/mg; and prostate adenocarcinoma, PC-3, 0.55 and 3.20 U/mg. In MDA-MB-468 and HEK most, but not all, of the induced activity is AI. These studies suggest that NaPB may induce AI when used to treat urea cycle disorders. It is relatively less useful in AI deficiency, although it could have some effect in those patients with missense mutations.

Surface-engineered substrates for improved human pluripotent stem cell culture under fully defined conditions.

PubMed

Saha, Krishanu; Mei, Ying; Reisterer, Colin M; Pyzocha, Neena Kenton; Yang, Jing; Muffat, Julien; Davies, Martyn C; Alexander, Morgan R; Langer, Robert; Anderson, Daniel G; Jaenisch, Rudolf

2011-11-15

The current gold standard for the culture of human pluripotent stem cells requires the use of a feeder layer of cells. Here, we develop a spatially defined culture system based on UV/ozone radiation modification of typical cell culture plastics to define a favorable surface environment for human pluripotent stem cell culture. Chemical and geometrical optimization of the surfaces enables control of early cell aggregation from fully dissociated cells, as predicted from a numerical model of cell migration, and results in significant increases in cell growth of undifferentiated cells. These chemically defined xeno-free substrates generate more than three times the number of cells than feeder-containing substrates per surface area. Further, reprogramming and typical gene-targeting protocols can be readily performed on these engineered surfaces. These substrates provide an attractive cell culture platform for the production of clinically relevant factor-free reprogrammed cells from patient tissue samples and facilitate the definition of standardized scale-up friendly methods for disease modeling and cell therapeutic applications.

Friends Like Me: Associations in Overweight/Obese Status among Adolescent Friends by Race/Ethnicity, Sex, and Friendship Type.

PubMed

Bruening, Meg; MacLehose, Richard; Eisenberg, Marla E; Kim, Sunkyung; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2015-12-01

Little is known about how interpersonal friend relationships are associated with obesity in young people, particularly with regard to how race/ethnicity, type of friendship, and sex affect the association between friends' and adolescents' weight status. This study examined associations in weight status among adolescents and their friends, exploring magnitudes of associations across friendship type, sex, and race/ethnicity. As part of EAT-2010 (Eating and Activity in Teens), friend nominations and anthropometrics were obtained from adolescents (n = 2099: 54% female; 80% nonwhite; mean age: 14.2 ± 1.9 years). Generalized estimating equation logistic regression models were used to test associations between adolescents' overweight/obese status and friends' (i.e., friend group, female friends, male friends, female best friends, and male best friends) overweight/obese status. Interactions by adolescent race/ethnicity were examined. The majority of significant associations were observed among white female adolescents' who had a 22-40% higher prevalence of overweight/obesity if their friends were overweight compared to white females whose friends were not overweight. In contrast, there were few significant differences for other adolescent female and male racial/ethnic groups for girls and boys. Results for friend groups and best friends were generally similar to one another. The association between friend and adolescent overweight/obese status depended on adolescents' sex, race/ethnicity, and friendship type. Given the similarities among friends, obesity interventions targeting youth, especially white females, should consider involving friends.

President Bush: A Friend of Higher Education after All?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basken, Paul

2008-01-01

President Bush's proposals on such topics as toughening accreditation standards and limiting the use of human embryonic stem cells in research may not have made him popular in academe over his two terms. This article reports that the president's willingness to spend federal money on many of colleges' top priorities might improve the perception of…

Correction to: Gamma-delta (γδ) T cells: friend or foe in cancer development?

PubMed

Zhao, Yijing; Niu, Chao; Cui, Jiuwei

2018-05-08

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that they omitted to state that parts of Fig. 2 were adapted from Van Acker et al. [2] published by Taylor & Francis Ltd ( www.tandfonline.com ). The authors apologise for this omission. Figure 2 and its corrected caption are given below.

Using Digital Video Production to Meet the Common Core Standards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nichols, Maura

2012-01-01

The implementation of the Common Core Standards has just begun and these standards will impact a generation that communicates with technology more than anything else. Texting, cell phones, Facebook, YouTube, Skype, etc. are the ways they speak with their friends and the world. The Common Core Standards recognize this. According to the Common Core…

A Vision for the Net Generation Media Center. Media Matters

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Doug

2005-01-01

Many children today have never lived in a home without a computer. They are the "Net Generation," constantly "connected" by iPod, cell phone, keyboard, digital video camera, or game controller to various technologies. Recent studies have found that Net Genners see technology as "embedded in society," a primary means of connection with friends, and…

Foe or friend? Janus-faces of the neurovascular unit in the formation of brain metastases.

PubMed

Wilhelm, Imola; Fazakas, Csilla; Molnár, Kinga; Végh, Attila G; Haskó, János; Krizbai, István A

2018-04-01

Despite the potential obstacle represented by the blood-brain barrier for extravasating malignant cells, metastases are more frequent than primary tumors in the central nervous system. Not only tightly interconnected endothelial cells can hinder metastasis formation, other cells of the brain microenvironment (like astrocytes and microglia) can also be very hostile, destroying the large majority of metastatic cells. However, malignant cells that are able to overcome these harmful mechanisms may benefit from the shielding and even support provided by cerebral endothelial cells, astrocytes and microglia, rendering the brain a sanctuary site against anti-tumor strategies. Thus, cells of the neurovascular unit have a Janus-faced attitude towards brain metastatic cells, being both destructive and protective. In this review, we present the main mechanisms of brain metastasis formation, including those involved in extravasation through the brain vasculature and survival in the cerebral environment.

A Dual-Responsive Self-Assembled Monolayer for Specific Capture and On-Demand Release of Live Cells.

PubMed

Gao, Xia; Li, Qiang; Wang, Fengchao; Liu, Xuehui; Liu, Dingbin

2018-06-22

We report a dual-responsive self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on a well-defined rough gold substrate for dynamic capture and release of live cells. By incorporating 5'-triphosphate (ATP) aptamer into a SAM, we can accurately isolate specific cell types and subsequently release captured cells at either population or desired-group (or even single-cell) levels. On one hand, the whole SAMs can be disassembled through addition of ATP solution, leading to the entire release of the captured cells from the supported substrate. On the other hand, desired cells can be selectively released by using near-infrared light (NIR) irradiation, with relatively high spatial and temporal precision. The proposed dual-responsive cell capture-and-release system is biologically friendly and is reusable with another round of modification, showing great usefulness in cancer diagnosis and molecular analysis.

CellTracker (not only) for dummies.

PubMed

Piccinini, Filippo; Kiss, Alexa; Horvath, Peter

2016-03-15

Time-lapse experiments play a key role in studying the dynamic behavior of cells. Single-cell tracking is one of the fundamental tools for such analyses. The vast majority of the recently introduced cell tracking methods are limited to fluorescently labeled cells. An equally important limitation is that most software cannot be effectively used by biologists without reasonable expertise in image processing. Here we present CellTracker, a user-friendly open-source software tool for tracking cells imaged with various imaging modalities, including fluorescent, phase contrast and differential interference contrast (DIC) techniques. CellTracker is written in MATLAB (The MathWorks, Inc., USA). It works with Windows, Macintosh and UNIX-based systems. Source code and graphical user interface (GUI) are freely available at: http://celltracker.website/ horvath.peter@brc.mta.hu Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

3D printed lattices as an activation and expansion platform for T cell therapy.

PubMed

Delalat, Bahman; Harding, Frances; Gundsambuu, Batjargal; De-Juan-Pardo, Elena M; Wunner, Felix M; Wille, Marie-Luise; Jasieniak, Marek; Malatesta, Kristen A L; Griesser, Hans J; Simula, Antonio; Hutmacher, Dietmar W; Voelcker, Nicolas H; Barry, Simon C

2017-09-01

One of the most significant hurdles to the affordable, accessible delivery of cell therapy is the cost and difficulty of expanding cells to clinically relevant numbers. Immunotherapy to prevent autoimmune disease, tolerate organ transplants or target cancer critically relies on the expansion of specialized T cell populations. We have designed 3D-printed cell culture lattices with highly organized micron-scale architectures, functionalized via plasma polymerization to bind monoclonal antibodies that trigger cell proliferation. This 3D technology platform facilitate the expansion of therapeutic human T cell subsets, including regulatory, effector, and cytotoxic T cells while maintaining the correct phenotype. Lentiviral gene delivery to T cells is enhanced in the presence of the lattices. Incorporation of the lattice format into existing cell culture vessels such as the G-Rex system is feasible. This cell expansion platform is user-friendly and expedites cell recovery and scale-up, making it ideal for translating T cell therapies from bench to bedside. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

How many or how much? Testing the relative influence of the number of social network risks versus the amount of time exposed to social network risks on post-treatment substance use.

PubMed

Eddie, David; Kelly, John F

2017-06-01

Having high-risk, substance-using friends is associated with young adult substance use disorder (SUD) relapse. It is unclear, however, whether it is the total number of high-risk friends, or the amount of time spent with high-risk friends that leads to relapse. Unclear also, is to what extent low-risk friends buffer risk. This study examined the influence of number of high-risk and low-risk friends, and the amount time spent with these friends on post-treatment percent days abstinent (PDA). Young adult inpatients (N=302) were assessed at intake, and 3, 6, and 12 months on social network measures and PDA. Mixed models tested for effects of number of high- and low-risk friends, and time spent with these friends on PDA, and for net-risk friend effects to test whether low-risk friends offset risk. Within and across assessments, number of, and time spent with high-risk friends was negatively associated with PDA, while the inverse was true for low-risk friends. Early post-treatment, time spent with friends more strongly predicted PDA than number of friends. Participants were more deleteriously affected by time with high-risk friends the longer they were out of treatment, while contemporaneously protection conferred by low-risk friends increased. This interaction effect, however, was not observed with number of high- or low-risk friends, or number of friends net-risk. Young adult SUD patients struggling to break ties with high-risk friends should be encouraged to minimize time with them. Clinicians should also encourage patients to grow their social network of low-risk friends. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Friends Like Me: Associations in Overweight/Obese Status among Adolescent Friends by Race/Ethnicity, Sex, and Friendship Type

PubMed Central

MacLehose, Richard; Eisenberg, Marla E.; Kim, Sunkyung; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2015-01-01

Abstract Background: Little is known about how interpersonal friend relationships are associated with obesity in young people, particularly with regard to how race/ethnicity, type of friendship, and sex affect the association between friends' and adolescents' weight status. This study examined associations in weight status among adolescents and their friends, exploring magnitudes of associations across friendship type, sex, and race/ethnicity. Methods: As part of EAT-2010 (Eating and Activity in Teens), friend nominations and anthropometrics were obtained from adolescents (n = 2099: 54% female; 80% nonwhite; mean age: 14.2 ± 1.9 years). Generalized estimating equation logistic regression models were used to test associations between adolescents' overweight/obese status and friends' (i.e., friend group, female friends, male friends, female best friends, and male best friends) overweight/obese status. Interactions by adolescent race/ethnicity were examined. Results: The majority of significant associations were observed among white female adolescents' who had a 22–40% higher prevalence of overweight/obesity if their friends were overweight compared to white females whose friends were not overweight. In contrast, there were few significant differences for other adolescent female and male racial/ethnic groups for girls and boys. Results for friend groups and best friends were generally similar to one another. Conclusions: The association between friend and adolescent overweight/obese status depended on adolescents' sex, race/ethnicity, and friendship type. Given the similarities among friends, obesity interventions targeting youth, especially white females, should consider involving friends. PMID:26655453

APM_GUI: analyzing particle movement on the cell membrane and determining confinement.

PubMed

Menchón, Silvia A; Martín, Mauricio G; Dotti, Carlos G

2012-02-20

Single-particle tracking is a powerful tool for tracking individual particles with high precision. It provides useful information that allows the study of diffusion properties as well as the dynamics of movement. Changes in particle movement behavior, such as transitions between Brownian motion and temporary confinement, can reveal interesting biophysical interactions. Although useful applications exist to determine the paths of individual particles, only a few software implementations are available to analyze these data, and these implementations are generally not user-friendly and do not have a graphical interface,. Here, we present APM_GUI (Analyzing Particle Movement), which is a MatLab-implemented application with a Graphical User Interface. This user-friendly application detects confined movement considering non-random confinement when a particle remains in a region longer than a Brownian diffusant would remain. In addition, APM_GUI exports the results, which allows users to analyze this information using software that they are familiar with. APM_GUI provides an open-source tool that quantifies diffusion coefficients and determines whether trajectories have non-random confinements. It also offers a simple and user-friendly tool that can be used by individuals without programming skills.

Recent developments in biodesulfurization of fossil fuels.

PubMed

Xu, Ping; Feng, Jinhui; Yu, Bo; Li, Fuli; Ma, Cuiqing

2009-01-01

The emission of sulfur oxides can have adverse effects on the environment. Biodesulfurization of fossil fuels is attracting more and more attention because such a bioprocess is environmentally friendly. Some techniques of desulfurization have been used or studied to meet the stricter limitation on sulfur content in China. Recent advances have demonstrated the mechanism and developments for biodesulfurization of gasoline, diesel and crude oils by free cells or immobilized cells. Genetic technology was also used to improve sulfur removal efficiencies. In this review, we summarize recent progress mainly in China on petroleum biodesulfurization.

Engineering Novel and Improved Biocatalysts by Cell Surface Display

PubMed Central

Smith, Mason R.; Khera, Eshita; Wen, Fei

2017-01-01

Biocatalysts, especially enzymes, have the ability to catalyze reactions with high product selectivity, utilize a broad range of substrates, and maintain activity at low temperature and pressure. Therefore, they represent a renewable, environmentally friendly alternative to conventional catalysts. Most current industrial-scale chemical production processes using biocatalysts employ soluble enzymes or whole cells expressing intracellular enzymes. Cell surface display systems differ by presenting heterologous enzymes extracellularly, overcoming some of the limitations associated with enzyme purification and substrate transport. Additionally, coupled with directed evolution, cell surface display is a powerful platform for engineering enzymes with enhanced properties. In this review, we will introduce the molecular and cellular principles of cell surface display and discuss how it has been applied to engineer enzymes with improved properties as well as to develop surface-engineered microbes as whole-cell biocatalysts. PMID:29056821

Visible light controls cell adhesion on a photoswitchable biointerface.

PubMed

Ming, Zunzhen; Hua, Xin; Xue, Yuan; Lin, Qiuning; Bao, Chunyan; Zhu, Linyong

2018-05-04

Bioactive surfaces with specific interactions with cells have been greatly interested due to their potential applications in biosensors and tissue engineering. Herein, we fabricated a dopamine contained photoswitch molecule (compound 1) which could form self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on substrates. The SAM showed a good photoswitch ability and manifested excellent fatigue resistance, which displayed its potential application as a biologically friendly surface coating. Contact angle analysis and cell experiments exhibited that the SAM surface was hydrophobic before irradiation which favored cell adhesion, while, it turned hydrophilic and induced cell unfouling or detachment after light irradiation. The uses of visible light stimulation (λ ex  = 530 nm) and the reversible regulation on cell adhesion and detachment should open up new avenues for bioacitve surfaces in biomedical applications. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Morgan, William F.; Sowa, Marianne B.

Radiation induced bystander effects refer to those responses occurring in cells that were not subject to energy deposition events following ionizing radiation. These bystander cells may have been neighbors of irradiated cells, or physically separated, but subject to soluble secreted signals from irradiated cells. Bystander effects have been observed in vitro and in vivo and for various radiation qualities. In tribute to an old friend and colleague, Anthony V. Carrano who would have said "well what are the critical questions that should be addressed, and so what?": in this manuscript we review the evidence for non-targeted radiation induced bystander effectsmore » with emphasis on prevailing questions in this rapidly developing research field, and the potential significance of bystander effects in evaluating the detrimental health effects of radiation exposure.« less

TLM-Tracker: software for cell segmentation, tracking and lineage analysis in time-lapse microscopy movies.

PubMed

Klein, Johannes; Leupold, Stefan; Biegler, Ilona; Biedendieck, Rebekka; Münch, Richard; Jahn, Dieter

2012-09-01

Time-lapse imaging in combination with fluorescence microscopy techniques enable the investigation of gene regulatory circuits and uncovered phenomena like culture heterogeneity. In this context, computational image processing for the analysis of single cell behaviour plays an increasing role in systems biology and mathematical modelling approaches. Consequently, we developed a software package with graphical user interface for the analysis of single bacterial cell behaviour. A new software called TLM-Tracker allows for the flexible and user-friendly interpretation for the segmentation, tracking and lineage analysis of microbial cells in time-lapse movies. The software package, including manual, tutorial video and examples, is available as Matlab code or executable binaries at http://www.tlmtracker.tu-bs.de.

GoIFISH: a system for the quantification of single cell heterogeneity from IFISH images.

PubMed

Trinh, Anne; Rye, Inga H; Almendro, Vanessa; Helland, Aslaug; Russnes, Hege G; Markowetz, Florian

2014-08-26

Molecular analysis has revealed extensive intra-tumor heterogeneity in human cancer samples, but cannot identify cell-to-cell variations within the tissue microenvironment. In contrast, in situ analysis can identify genetic aberrations in phenotypically defined cell subpopulations while preserving tissue-context specificity. GoIFISHGoIFISH is a widely applicable, user-friendly system tailored for the objective and semi-automated visualization, detection and quantification of genomic alterations and protein expression obtained from fluorescence in situ analysis. In a sample set of HER2-positive breast cancers GoIFISHGoIFISH is highly robust in visual analysis and its accuracy compares favorably to other leading image analysis methods. GoIFISHGoIFISH is freely available at www.sourceforge.net/projects/goifish/.

Green chemistry approach for the synthesis and stabilization of biocompatible gold nanoparticles and their potential applications in cancer therapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukherjee, Sudip; Sushma, V.; Patra, Sujata; Barui, Ayan Kumar; Pal Bhadra, Manika; Sreedhar, Bojja; Ranjan Patra, Chitta

2012-11-01

The biological approach to synthesis of AuNPs is eco-friendly and an ideal method to develop environmentally sustainable nanoparticles alternative to existing methods. We have developed a simple, fast, clean, efficient, low-cost and eco-friendly single-step green chemistry approach for the synthesis of biocompatible gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) from chloroauric acid (HAuCl4) using a water extract of Eclipta Alba leaves at room temperature. The AuNPs using Eclipta extract have been formed in very short time, even in less than 10 min. The as-synthesized AuNPs were thoroughly characterized by several physico-chemical techniques. The in vitro stability of as-synthesized AuNPs was studied in different buffer solutions. A plausible mechanism for the synthesis of AuNPs by Eclipta extract has been discussed. The biocompatibility of AuNPs was observed by in vitro cell culture assays. Finally, we have designed and developed a AuNPs-based drug delivery system (DDS) (Au-DOX) containing doxorubicin (DOX), a FDA approved anticancer drug. Administration of this DDS to breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231) shows significant inhibition of breast cancer cell proliferation compared to pristine doxorubicin. Therefore we strongly believe that the use of Eclipta Alba offers large-scale production of biocompatible AuNPs that can be used as a delivery vehicle for the treatment of cancer diseases.

Facile and eco-friendly synthesis of green fluorescent carbon nanodots for applications in bioimaging, patterning and staining.

PubMed

Shi, Lihong; Li, Yanyan; Li, Xiaofeng; Wen, Xiangping; Zhang, Guomei; Yang, Jun; Dong, Chuan; Shuang, Shaomin

2015-04-28

We report a facile and eco-friendly strategy for the fabrication of green fluorescent carbon nanodots (CDs), and demonstrate their applications for bio-imaging, patterning, and staining. A one-pot hydrothermal method using various plant petals yields bright green-emitting CDs, providing an easy way for the production of green fluorescent CDs without the need for a tedious synthetic methodology or the use of toxic/expensive solvents and starting materials. The as-prepared CDs show small size distribution and excellent dispersibility. Their strong green fluorescence is observed when the excitation wavelength is between 430 nm and 490 nm. Moreover, they exhibit high tolerance to various external conditions, such as pH values, external cations, and continuous excitation. Due to minimum toxicity as well as good photoluminescence properties, these CDs can be applied to in vitro and in vivo imaging, patterning, and staining. According to confocal fluorescence imaging of human uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma cells, CDs penetrate into the cell and enter the cytoplasm and the nucleus. More strikingly, carp is directly fed with CDs for in vivo imaging and shows bright green fluorescence at an excitation wavelength of 470 nm. In addition, the obtained CDs are used as fluorescent inks for drawing luminescence patterns. Finally, we also apply the CDs as a fluorescent dye. Interestingly, the absorbent filter paper with staining emits dramatic fluorescence under 470 nm excitation.

PGC1α: Friend or Foe in Cancer?

PubMed

Mastropasqua, Francesca; Girolimetti, Giulia; Shoshan, Maria

2018-01-22

The PGC1 family (Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) coactivators) of transcriptional coactivators are considered master regulators of mitochondrial biogenesis and function. The PGC1α isoform is expressed especially in metabolically active tissues, such as the liver, kidneys and brain, and responds to energy-demanding situations. Given the altered and highly adaptable metabolism of tumor cells, it is of interest to investigate PGC1α in cancer. Both high and low levels of PGC1α expression have been reported to be associated with cancer and worse prognosis, and PGC1α has been attributed with oncogenic as well as tumor suppressive features. Early in carcinogenesis PGC1α may be downregulated due to a protective anticancer role, and low levels likely reflect a glycolytic phenotype. We suggest mechanisms of PGC1α downregulation and how these might be connected to the increased cancer risk that obesity is now known to entail. Later in tumor progression PGC1α is often upregulated and is reported to contribute to increased lipid and fatty acid metabolism and/or a tumor cell phenotype with an overall metabolic plasticity that likely supports drug resistance as well as metastasis. We conclude that in cancer PGC1α is neither friend nor foe, but rather the obedient servant reacting to metabolic and environmental cues to benefit the tumor cell.

PGC1α: Friend or Foe in Cancer?

PubMed Central

Mastropasqua, Francesca; Girolimetti, Giulia; Shoshan, Maria

2018-01-01

The PGC1 family (Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) coactivators) of transcriptional coactivators are considered master regulators of mitochondrial biogenesis and function. The PGC1α isoform is expressed especially in metabolically active tissues, such as the liver, kidneys and brain, and responds to energy-demanding situations. Given the altered and highly adaptable metabolism of tumor cells, it is of interest to investigate PGC1α in cancer. Both high and low levels of PGC1α expression have been reported to be associated with cancer and worse prognosis, and PGC1α has been attributed with oncogenic as well as tumor suppressive features. Early in carcinogenesis PGC1α may be downregulated due to a protective anticancer role, and low levels likely reflect a glycolytic phenotype. We suggest mechanisms of PGC1α downregulation and how these might be connected to the increased cancer risk that obesity is now known to entail. Later in tumor progression PGC1α is often upregulated and is reported to contribute to increased lipid and fatty acid metabolism and/or a tumor cell phenotype with an overall metabolic plasticity that likely supports drug resistance as well as metastasis. We conclude that in cancer PGC1α is neither friend nor foe, but rather the obedient servant reacting to metabolic and environmental cues to benefit the tumor cell. PMID:29361779

Enzymatic Formulation Capable of Degrading Scrapie Prion under Mild Digestion Conditions

PubMed Central

Okoroma, Emeka A.; Purchase, Diane; Garelick, Hemda; Morris, Roger; Neale, Michael H.; Windl, Otto; Abiola, Oduola O.

2013-01-01

The prion agent is notoriously resistant to common proteases and conventional sterilisation procedures. The current methods known to destroy prion infectivity such as incineration, alkaline and thermal hydrolysis are harsh, destructive, environmentally polluting and potentially hazardous, thus limit their applications for decontamination of delicate medical and laboratory devices, remediation of prion contaminated environment and for processing animal by-products including specified risk materials and carcases. Therefore, an environmentally friendly, non-destructive enzymatic degradation approach is highly desirable. A feather-degrading Bacillus licheniformis N22 keratinase has been isolated which degraded scrapie prion to undetectable level of PrPSc signals as determined by Western Blot analysis. Prion infectivity was verified by ex vivo cell-based assay. An enzymatic formulation combining N22 keratinase and biosurfactant derived from Pseudomonas aeruginosa degraded PrPSc at 65°C in 10 min to undetectable level -. A time-course degradation analysis carried out at 50°C over 2 h revealed the progressive attenuation of PrPSc intensity. Test of residual infectivity by standard cell culture assay confirmed that the enzymatic formulation reduced PrPSc infectivity to undetectable levels as compared to cells challenged with untreated standard scrapie sheep prion (SSBP/1) (p-value = 0.008 at 95% confidence interval). This novel enzymatic formulation has significant potential application for prion decontamination in various environmentally friendly systems under mild treatment conditions. PMID:23874511

G3-C12 Peptide Reverses Galectin-3 from Foe to Friend for Active Targeting Cancer Treatment.

PubMed

Sun, Wei; Li, Lian; Yang, Qingqing; Shan, Wei; Zhang, Zhirong; Huang, Yuan

2015-11-02

Galectin-3 is overexpressed by numerous carcinomas and is a potential target for active tumor treatments. On the other hand, galectin-3 also plays a key role in cancer progression and prevents cells from undergoing apoptosis, thereby offsetting the benefits of active targeting drugs. However, the relative contribution of the protective antiapoptotic effects of galectin-3 and the proapoptotic effects of galectin-3-targeted therapies has remained yet unrevealed. Here, we show that a galectin-3-binding peptide G3-C12 could reverse galectin-3 from foe to friend for active targeting delivery system. Results showed G3-C12 modified N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide copolymer doxorubicin conjugates (G3-C12-HPMA-Dox) could internalize into galectin-3 overexpressed PC-3 cells via a highly specific ligand-receptor pathway (2.2 times higher cellular internalization than HPMA-Dox). The internalized Dox stimulated the translocation of galectin-3 to the mitochondria to prevent from apoptosis. In turn, this caused G3-C12-HPMA-Dox to concentrate into the mitochondria after binding to galectin-3 intracellularly. Initially, mitochondrial galectin-3 weakened Dox-induced mitochondrial damage; however, as time progressed, G3-C12 active-mediation allowed increasing amounts of Dox to be delivered to the mitochondria, which eventually induced higher level of apoptosis than nontargeted copolymers. In addition, G3-C12 downregulates galectin-3 expression, 0.43 times lower than control cells, which could possibly be responsible for the suppressed cell migration. Thus, G3-C12 peptide exerts sequential targeting to both cell membrane and mitochondria via regulating galectin-3, and eventually reverses and overcomes the protective effects of galectin-3; therefore, it could be a promising agent for the treatment of galectin-3-overexpressing cancers.

Helper-Dependent Properties of Friend Spleen Focus-Forming Virus: Effect of the Fv-1 Gene on the Late Stages in Virus Synthesis

PubMed Central

Eckner, Robert J.

1973-01-01

Co-infection of neonatal BALB/c mice with Friend virus (FV) complex (containing defective spleen focus-forming virus [SFFV] and endogenous N-tropic leukemia-inducing helper virus [LLV-F]) and B-tropic Tennant leukemia virus (TenLV) resulted in the inhibition of LLV-F by the Fv-1b gene and recovery of a TenLV pseudotype of SFFV, abbreviated SFFV(TenLV). The host range of this pseudotype was B-tropic, since SFFV(TenLV) was 10 to 100 times more infectious for B-type (Fv-1bb) than for N-type (Fv-1nn) mice. The similar patterns of neutralization of N-tropic and B-tropic SFFV by type-specific murine antisera suggested that the difference in infectivity between these two SFFV preparations did not reside in envelope determinants. Rather, helper control of SFFV's host range was only apparent and dependent upon the ability of associated virus to provide a helper function for late stages in SFFV synthesis. Early stages in SFFV's infectious cycle were shown to be helper independent. The Fv-1 gene did not act at the level of the cell membrane to effectively restrict SFFV infection, since SFFV-induced transformed cells could be detected in the absence of spleen focus formation and SFFV synthesis. Further, the generation of these transformed cells by SFFV followed a one-hit, dose-response pattern, suggesting that SFFV-induced cell transformation is helper independent. Finally, restriction of helper function by Fv-1 may be an intracellular event, because both SFFV and its associated LLV-F helper share common envelope determinants and presumably adsorb onto and penetrate target cells with equal efficiency. PMID:4127030

Doxorubicin and ifosfamide combination chemotherapy in previously treated acute leukemia in adults: a Southwest Oncology Group pilot study.

PubMed

Ryan, D H; Bickers, J N; Vial, R H; Hussein, K; Bottomley, R; Hewlett, J S; Wilson, H E; Stuckey, W J

1980-01-01

The Southwest Oncology Group did a limited institutional pilot study of the combination of doxorubicin and ifosfamide in the treatment of previously treated adult patients with acute leukemia. Thirty-four patients received one or two courses of the combination. All patients had received prior chemotherapy and 32 had received prior anthracycline chemotherapy. Three patients died before their responses could be fully evaluated. Fourteen patients achieved complete remission (41%) and one patient achieved partial remission. The complete remission rate was 27% for patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia (myelomonoblastic leukemia, monoblastic leukemia, and erythroleukemia) and 89% for patients with acute lymphocytic and undifferentiated leukemia (ALL). Toxic effects included severe hematologic reactions in 33 of 34 patients, hematuria in six patients, altered sensorium in one patient, and congestive heart failure in one patient. The safety of the combination was established and toxic side effects of this therapy were tolerable. The 89% complete remission rate for previously treated patients with ALL suggests that the combination of doxorubicin and ifosfamide may be particularly effective in ALL.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mori, T.; Kato, Y.; Shimamine, T.

The causes of death of 144 Japanese autopsy cases during 1945-1975, who had been intravascularly injected with Thorotrast in life, were compared with those of non-Thorotrast-administered autopsy cases in the same age bracket, recorded in the Annals of Japanese Pathological Autopsy Cases during 1958-1973. This comparison revealed that the incidence of malignant hepatic tumors was more than 10 times higher in the Thorotrast-administered cases. The increase was attributable to an increased incidence of hemangioendothelioma and cholangiocarcinoma of the liver. The only significant increase of liver cirrhosis found to exist in the Thorotrast group occurred in the female cases. Some ofmore » the Thorotrast-administered cases were found to have developed myeloid leukemia and erythroleukemia. There was also a significant increase in the number of cases of aplastic anemia in the Thorotrast group, but clinically and pathologically these were atypical. Lymphatic leukemia was not observed. No significant difference was found in the incidence of either malignant lymphomas or osteosarcomas in the Thorotrast group and the controls. Lung cancer, on the other hand, showed a significantly higher incidence among the controls than among the Thorotrast-administered cases.« less

Tanespimycin and Cytarabine in Treating Patients With Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia, Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia, or Myelodysplastic Syndromes

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-09-27

Accelerated Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Adult Acute Basophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Eosinophilic Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts in Transformation; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes

MS-275 and GM-CSF in Treating Patients With Myelodysplastic Syndrome and/or Relapsed or Refractory Acute Myeloid Leukemia or Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia

ClinicalTrials.gov

2017-06-16

Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Remission; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Chronic Myelomonocytic Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Myelodysplastic/Myeloproliferative Neoplasm, Unclassifiable; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Refractory Anemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Refractory Anemia With Ringed Sideroblasts; Refractory Cytopenia With Multilineage Dysplasia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

SB-715992 in Treating Patients With Acute Leukemia, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia, or Advanced Myelodysplastic Syndromes

ClinicalTrials.gov

2013-01-10

Acute Undifferentiated Leukemia; Adult Acute Megakaryoblastic Leukemia (M7); Adult Acute Minimally Differentiated Myeloid Leukemia (M0); Adult Acute Monoblastic Leukemia (M5a); Adult Acute Monocytic Leukemia (M5b); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia With Maturation (M2); Adult Acute Myeloblastic Leukemia Without Maturation (M1); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With 11q23 (MLL) Abnormalities; Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With Inv(16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(15;17)(q22;q12); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(16;16)(p13;q22); Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia With t(8;21)(q22;q22); Adult Acute Myelomonocytic Leukemia (M4); Adult Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (M3); Adult Erythroleukemia (M6a); Adult Pure Erythroid Leukemia (M6b); Blastic Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; de Novo Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Previously Treated Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Recurrent Adult Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia; Recurrent Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts; Refractory Anemia With Excess Blasts in Transformation; Relapsing Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia; Secondary Acute Myeloid Leukemia; Secondary Myelodysplastic Syndromes; Untreated Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia

Defining Fun and Seeking Flow in English Language Arts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Romano, Tom

2009-01-01

Students have fun with Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, and video games. They have fun text messaging, talking on cell phones, listening to iPods. They have fun at theme parks and hanging out with friends. As their teacher the author wants to introduce students to another kind of fun. This fun can be time consuming, rigorous, and fulfilling. It's the…

Cultured Meat in Islamic Perspective.

PubMed

Hamdan, Mohammad Naqib; Post, Mark J; Ramli, Mohd Anuar; Mustafa, Amin Rukaini

2017-04-29

Cultured meat is a promising product that is derived through biotechnology that partially circumvents animal physiology, thereby being potentially more sustainable, environmentally friendly and animal friendly than traditional livestock meat. Such a novel technology that can impact many consumers evokes ethical, philosophical and religious discussions. For the Islamic community, the crucial question is whether cultured meat is halal, meaning compliant with Islamic laws. Since the culturing of meat is a new discovery, invention and innovation by scientists that has never been discussed by classical jurists (fuqaha'), an ijtihad by contemporary jurists must look for and provide answers for every technology introduced, whether it comply the requirements of Islamic law or not. So, this article will discuss an Islamic perspective on cultured meat based on the original scripture in the Qur'an and interpretations by authoritative Islamic jurists. The halal status of cultured meat can be resolve through identifying the source cell and culture medium used in culturing the meat. The halal cultured meat can be obtained if the stem cell is extracted from a (Halal) slaughtered animal, and no blood or serum is used in the process. The impact of this innovation will give positive results in the environmental and sustain the livestock industry.

Eco-friendly synthesis of core-shell structured (TiO2/Li2CO3) nanomaterials for low cost dye-sensitized solar cells.

PubMed

Karuppuchamy, S; Brundha, C

2016-12-01

Core-shell structured TiO 2 /Li 2 CO 3 electrode was successfully synthesized by eco-friendly solution growth technique. TiO 2 /Li 2 CO 3 electrodes were characterized using X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photocurrent-voltage measurements. The synthesized core-shell electrode material was sensitized with tetrabutylammonium cis-di(thiocyanato)-N,N'-bis(4-carboxylato-4'-carboxylic acid-2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenate(II) (N-719). The performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) based on N719 dye modified TiO 2 /Li 2 CO 3 electrodes was investigated. The effect of various shell thickness on the photovoltaic performance of the core-shell structured electrode is also investigated. We found that Li 2 CO 3 shells of all thicknesses perform as inert barriers which improve open-circuit voltage (V oc ) of the DSCs. The energy conversion efficiency was greatly dependent on the thickness of Li 2 CO 3 on TiO 2 film, and the highest efficiency of 3.7% was achieved at the optimum Li 2 CO 3 shell layer. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Simple eco-friendly synthesis of the surfactant free SnS nanocrystal toward the photoelectrochemical cell application.

PubMed

Huang, Xiaoguang; Woo, Heechul; Wu, Peinian; Hong, Hyo Jin; Jung, Wan Gil; Kim, Bong-Joong; Vanel, Jean-Charles; Choi, Jin Woo

2017-11-28

A simple, low cost, non-toxic and eco-friendly pathway for synthesizing efficient sunlight-driven tin sulfide photocatalyst was studied. SnS nanocrystals were prepared by using mechanical method. The bulk SnS was obtained by evaporation of SnS nanocrystal solution. The synthesized samples were characterized by using XRD, SEM, TEM, UV-vis, and Raman analyses. Well crystallized SnS nanocrystals were verified and the electrochemical characterization was also performed under visible light irradiation. The SnS nanocrystals have shown remarkable photocurrent density of 7.6 mA cm -2 under 100 mW cm -2 which is about 10 times larger than that of the bulk SnS under notably stable operation conditions. Furthermore, the SnS nanocrystals presented higher stability than the bulk form. The IPCE(Incident photon to current conversion efficiency) of 9.3% at 420 nm was obtained for SnS nanocrystal photoanode which is strikingly higher than that of bulk SnS, 0.78%. This work suggests that the enhancement of reacting area by using SnS nanocrystal absorbers could give rise to the improvement of photoelectrochemical cell efficiency.

Advanced model-based control strategies for the intensification of upstream and downstream processing in mAb production.

PubMed

Papathanasiou, Maria M; Quiroga-Campano, Ana L; Steinebach, Fabian; Elviro, Montaña; Mantalaris, Athanasios; Pistikopoulos, Efstratios N

2017-07-01

Current industrial trends encourage the development of sustainable, environmentally friendly processes with minimal energy and material consumption. In particular, the increasing market demand in biopharmaceutical industry and the tight regulations in product quality necessitate efficient operating procedures that guarantee products of high purity. In this direction, process intensification via continuous operation paves the way for the development of novel, eco-friendly processes, characterized by higher productivity and lower production costs. This work focuses on the development of advanced control strategies for (i) a cell culture system in a bioreactor and (ii) a semicontinuous purification process. More specifically, we consider a fed-batch culture of GS-NS0 cells and the semicontinuous Multicolumn Countercurrent Solvent Gradient Purification (MCSGP) for the purification process. The controllers are designed following the PAROC framework/software platform and their capabilities are assessed in silico, against the process models. It is demonstrated that the proposed controllers efficiently manage to increase the system productivity, returning strategies that can lead to continuous, stable process operation. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 33:966-988, 2017. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

A life cycle assessment of distributed energy production from organic waste: Two case studies in Europe.

PubMed

Evangelisti, Sara; Clift, Roland; Tagliaferri, Carla; Lettieri, Paola

2017-06-01

By means of the life cycle assessment methodology, the purpose of this study is to assess the environmental impact when biomethane from organic waste produced at residential level is used to supply energy to a group of dwellings in the distributed generation paradigm. Three different Combined Heat and Power systems, such as fuel cells, Stirling engine and micro gas turbine, installed at household level are assessed in two different settings: one in Northern Europe (UK) and one in Southern Europe (Italy). Different operating strategies are investigated for each technology. Moreover, marginal electricity production technologies are analysed to assess their influence on the results. This study has demonstrated that the type of bio-methane fed micro-CHP technology employed has a significantly different environmental impact: fuel cells are the most environmentally friendly solution in every category analysed; Stirling engines, although can supply heat to the largest number of dwellings are the least environmentally friendly technology. However, key factors investigated in the model presented in this paper influence the decision making on the type of technology adopted and the operating strategy to be implemented. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Friend leukemia virus integration 1 activates the Rho GTPase pathway and is associated with metastasis in breast cancer.

PubMed

Song, Wei; Li, Wei; Li, Lingyu; Zhang, Shilin; Yan, Xu; Wen, Xue; Zhang, Xiaoying; Tian, Huimin; Li, Ailing; Hu, Ji-Fan; Cui, Jiuwei

2015-09-15

Breast cancer is the most prevalent malignant disease in women worldwide. In patients with breast cancer, metastasis to distant sites directly determines the survival outcome. However, the molecular mechanism underlying metastasis in breast cancer remains to be defined. In this report, we found that Friend leukemia virus integration 1 (FLI1) proto-oncogene was differentially expressed between the aggressive MDA-MB231 and the non-aggressive MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Congruently, immunohistochemical staining of clinical samples revealed that FLI1 was overexpressed in breast cancers as compared with the adjacent tissues. The abundance of FLI1 protein was strongly correlated with the advanced stage, poor differentiation, and lymph node metastasis in breast cancer patients. Knockdown of FLI1 with small interfering RNAs significantly attenuated the potential of migration and invasion in highly metastatic human breast cancer cells. FLI1 oncoprotein activated the Rho GTPase pathway that is known to play a role in tumor metastasis. This study for the first time identifies FLI1 as a clinically and functionally important target gene of metastasis, providing a rationale for developing FLI1 inhibitors in the treatment of breast cancer.

Genome dynamics of the human embryonic kidney 293 lineage in response to cell biology manipulations.

PubMed

Lin, Yao-Cheng; Boone, Morgane; Meuris, Leander; Lemmens, Irma; Van Roy, Nadine; Soete, Arne; Reumers, Joke; Moisse, Matthieu; Plaisance, Stéphane; Drmanac, Radoje; Chen, Jason; Speleman, Frank; Lambrechts, Diether; Van de Peer, Yves; Tavernier, Jan; Callewaert, Nico

2014-09-03

The HEK293 human cell lineage is widely used in cell biology and biotechnology. Here we use whole-genome resequencing of six 293 cell lines to study the dynamics of this aneuploid genome in response to the manipulations used to generate common 293 cell derivatives, such as transformation and stable clone generation (293T); suspension growth adaptation (293S); and cytotoxic lectin selection (293SG). Remarkably, we observe that copy number alteration detection could identify the genomic region that enabled cell survival under selective conditions (i.c. ricin selection). Furthermore, we present methods to detect human/vector genome breakpoints and a user-friendly visualization tool for the 293 genome data. We also establish that the genome structure composition is in steady state for most of these cell lines when standard cell culturing conditions are used. This resource enables novel and more informed studies with 293 cells, and we will distribute the sequenced cell lines to this effect.

The growth threshold conjecture: a theoretical framework for understanding T-cell tolerance.

PubMed

Arias, Clemente F; Herrero, Miguel A; Cuesta, José A; Acosta, Francisco J; Fernández-Arias, Cristina

2015-07-01

Adaptive immune responses depend on the capacity of T cells to target specific antigens. As similar antigens can be expressed by pathogens and host cells, the question naturally arises of how can T cells discriminate friends from foes. In this work, we suggest that T cells tolerate cells whose proliferation rates remain below a permitted threshold. Our proposal relies on well-established facts about T-cell dynamics during acute infections: T-cell populations are elastic (they expand and contract) and they display inertia (contraction is delayed relative to antigen removal). By modelling inertia and elasticity, we show that tolerance to slow-growing populations can emerge as a population-scale feature of T cells. This result suggests a theoretical framework to understand immune tolerance that goes beyond the self versus non-self dichotomy. It also accounts for currently unexplained observations, such as the paradoxical tolerance to slow-growing pathogens or the presence of self-reactive T cells in the organism.

Single-cell regulome data analysis by SCRAT.

PubMed

Ji, Zhicheng; Zhou, Weiqiang; Ji, Hongkai

2017-09-15

Emerging single-cell technologies (e.g. single-cell ATAC-seq, DNase-seq or ChIP-seq) have made it possible to assay regulome of individual cells. Single-cell regulome data are highly sparse and discrete. Analyzing such data is challenging. User-friendly software tools are still lacking. We present SCRAT, a Single-Cell Regulome Analysis Toolbox with a graphical user interface, for studying cell heterogeneity using single-cell regulome data. SCRAT can be used to conveniently summarize regulatory activities according to different features (e.g. gene sets, transcription factor binding motif sites, etc.). Using these features, users can identify cell subpopulations in a heterogeneous biological sample, infer cell identities of each subpopulation, and discover distinguishing features such as gene sets and transcription factors that show different activities among subpopulations. SCRAT is freely available at https://zhiji.shinyapps.io/scrat as an online web service and at https://github.com/zji90/SCRAT as an R package. hji@jhu.edu. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

All-inorganic large-area low-cost and durable flexible perovskite solar cells using copper foil as a substrate.

PubMed

Abdollahi Nejand, B; Nazari, P; Gharibzadeh, S; Ahmadi, V; Moshaii, A

2017-01-05

Here, a low-cost perovskite solar cell using CuI and ZnO as the respective inorganic hole and electron transport layers is introduced. Copper foil is chosen as a cheap and low-weight conductive substrate which has a similar work function to ITO. Besides, copper foil is an interesting copper atom source for the growth of the upper cuprous iodide layer on copper foil. A spray coating of a transparent silver nanowire electrode is used as a top contact. The prepared device shows a maximum power conversion efficiency of 12.80% and long-term durability providing an environmentally and market friendly perovskite solar cell.

Effects of baby-friendly hospital initiative on breast-feeding practices in sindh.

PubMed

Khan, Mahjabeen; Akram, Durre Samin

2013-06-01

To determine changes in the breastfeeding practices of mothers after receiving counseling on 'Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding' as defined by the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative comparing baby friendly hospitals (BFHs) and non-baby-friendly hospitals in Sindh, Pakistan. The observational study was conducted from June 2007 to June 2009 in randomly selected baby-friendly and non-baby-friendly hospitals of Sindh, Pakistan. Non-probability purposive sampling was employed.The maternity staff was trained on 'Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding.'The changes in breastfeeding practices were analysed by SPSS version 15. A total of 236 women were included in the study. Of them, 196 (83.05%) were from baby-friendly hospitals and 40 (16.94%) from non-baby-friendly hospitals. Besides, 174 (88.7%) mothers in baby-friendly hospitals and 5 (12.5%) in non-baby-friendly hospitals during antenatal care received counseling by healthcare providers.There was an increase in breastfeeding practice up to 194 (98.97%) in the first category compared to 12 (30%) in the other category. Counseling under the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative improved breastfeeding practices up to 98.97% in baby-friendly compared to non-baby-friendly hospitals.

Effects of psychosocial variables in the similarity and interdependence of physical activity levels among adolescent best friend dyads.

PubMed

Lopes, Vítor P; Gabbard, Carl; Rodrigues, Luis P

2016-01-01

Given that physical activity (PA) tends to decrease with age during adolescence, addressing factors that affect change is important. This study examined the similarity and interdependence of PA as influenced by psychosocial factors among adolescent best friend dyads. A total of 660 adolescents, representing 330 best friend dyads, completed questionnaires with regard to PA, sitting time, perceived exercise benefits and barriers, physical self-perception and social support for PA. Dyads were also identified as reciprocal and non-reciprocal best friends; reciprocal means that both considered each other best friends and non-reciprocal were those in which only one considered the other a best friend. Data were analysed using a hierarchical linear model framework. Results indicated significant similarities between reciprocal best friend dyads for PA and sitting time, and for sitting time in non-reciprocal best friends (P values <.01). Psychosocial variables were associated with PA in reciprocal best friend dyads and with sitting time in reciprocal and non-reciprocal best friend dyads. Best friend gender, regular sports practice of the person, perceived exercise barriers of the best friend and best friend social support were the best predictors for PA.

Cell disruption and lipid extraction for microalgal biorefineries: A review.

PubMed

Lee, Soo Youn; Cho, Jun Muk; Chang, Yong Keun; Oh, You-Kwan

2017-11-01

The microalgae-based biorefinement process has attracted much attention from academic and industrial researchers attracted to its biofuel, food and nutraceutical applications. In this paper, recent developments in cell-disruption and lipid-extraction methods, focusing on four biotechnologically important microalgal species (namely, Chlamydomonas, Haematococcus, Chlorella, and Nannochloropsis spp.), are reviewed. The structural diversity and rigidity of microalgal cell walls complicate the development of efficient downstream processing methods for cell-disruption and subsequent recovery of intracellular lipid and pigment components. Various mechanical, chemical and biological cell-disruption methods are discussed in detail and compared based on microalgal species and status (wet/dried), scale, energy consumption, efficiency, solvent extraction, and synergistic combinations. The challenges and prospects of the downstream processes for the future development of eco-friendly and economical microalgal biorefineries also are outlined herein. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electrical characterization of dye sensitized nano solar cell using natural pomegranate juice as photosensitizer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adithi, U.; Thomas, Sara; Uma, V.; Pradeep, N.

2013-02-01

This paper shows Electrical characterization of Dye Sensitized Solar Cell using natural dye, extracted from the pomegranate as a photo sensitizer and ZnO nanoparticles as semiconductor. The constituents of fabricated dye sensitized solar cell were working electrode, dye, electrolyte and counter electrode. ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized and used as semiconductor in working electrode. Carbon soot was used as counter electrode. The resistance of ZnO film on ITO film was found out. There was an increase in the resistance of the film and film changes from conducting to semiconducting. Photovoltaic parameters of the fabricated cell like Short circuit current, open circuit voltage, Fill factor and Efficiency were found out. This paper shows that usage of natural dyes like pomegranate juice as sensitizer enables faster and simpler production of cheaper and environmental friendly solar cell.

The Influence of Chitosan Substrate and Its Nanometric Form Toward the Green Power Generation in Sediment Microbial Fuel Cell.

PubMed

Karthikeyan, C; Sathishkumar, Y; Lee, Yang Soo; Kim, Ae Rhan; Yoo, Dong Jin; Kumar, G Gnana

2017-01-01

A simple, environmental friendly and biologically important sediment interfaced fuel cell was developed for the green energy generation. The soil sediment used for the study is enriched of rich anthropogenic free organic carbon, sufficient manganese and high level potassium contents as evidenced from the geochemical characterizations. The saccharides produced by the catalytic reaction of substrate chitosan were utilized for the growth of microorganisms and electron shuttling processes. Chitosan substrate influenced sediment microbial fuel cells exhibited the nearly two fold power increment over the substrate free fuel cells. The fuel cell efficiencies were further increased by bringing the substrate chitosan at nanometric level, which is nearly three and two fold higher than that of substrate free and chitosan influenced sediment microbial fuel cells, respectively, and the influential parameters involved in the power and longevity issues were addressed with different perspectives.

AutoCellSeg: robust automatic colony forming unit (CFU)/cell analysis using adaptive image segmentation and easy-to-use post-editing techniques.

PubMed

Khan, Arif Ul Maula; Torelli, Angelo; Wolf, Ivo; Gretz, Norbert

2018-05-08

In biological assays, automated cell/colony segmentation and counting is imperative owing to huge image sets. Problems occurring due to drifting image acquisition conditions, background noise and high variation in colony features in experiments demand a user-friendly, adaptive and robust image processing/analysis method. We present AutoCellSeg (based on MATLAB) that implements a supervised automatic and robust image segmentation method. AutoCellSeg utilizes multi-thresholding aided by a feedback-based watershed algorithm taking segmentation plausibility criteria into account. It is usable in different operation modes and intuitively enables the user to select object features interactively for supervised image segmentation method. It allows the user to correct results with a graphical interface. This publicly available tool outperforms tools like OpenCFU and CellProfiler in terms of accuracy and provides many additional useful features for end-users.

Is Osteopontin a Friend or Foe of Cell Apoptosis in Inflammatory Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases?

PubMed

Iida, Tomoya; Wagatsuma, Kohei; Hirayama, Daisuke; Nakase, Hiroshi

2017-12-21

Osteopontin (OPN) is involved in a variety of biological processes, including bone remodeling, innate immunity, acute and chronic inflammation, and cancer. The expression of OPN occurs in various tissues and cells, including intestinal epithelial cells and immune cells such as macrophages, dendritic cells, and T lymphocytes. OPN plays an important role in the efficient development of T helper 1 immune responses and cell survival by inhibiting apoptosis. The association of OPN with apoptosis has been investigated. In this review, we described the role of OPN in inflammatory gastrointestinal and liver diseases, focusing on the association of OPN with apoptosis. OPN changes its association with apoptosis depending on the type of disease and the phase of disease activity, acting as a promoter or a suppressor of inflammation and inflammatory carcinogenesis. It is essential that the roles of OPN in those diseases are elucidated, and treatments based on its mechanism are developed.

Capture and release of cancer cells using electrospun etchable MnO2 nanofibers integrated in microchannels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Hui-qin; Yu, Xiao-lei; Cai, Bo; You, Su-jian; He, Zhao-bo; Huang, Qin-qin; Rao, Lang; Li, Sha-sha; Liu, Chang; Sun, Wei-wei; Liu, Wei; Guo, Shi-shang; Zhao, Xing-zhong

2015-03-01

This paper introduces a cancer cell capture/release microchip based on the self-sacrificed MnO2 nanofibers. Through electrospinning, lift-off and soft-lithography procedures, MnO2 nanofibers are tactfully fabricated in microchannels to implement enrichment and release of cancer cells in liquid samples. The MnO2 nanofiber net which mimics the extra cellular matrix can lead to high capture ability with the help of a cancer cell-specific antibody bio-conjugation. Subsequently, an effective and friendly release method is carried out by using low concentration of oxalic acid to dissolve the MnO2 nanofiber substrate while keeping high viability of those released cancer cells at the same time. It is conceivable that our microchip may have potentials in realizing biomedical analysis of circulating tumor cells for biological and clinical researches in oncology.

Cell phone-induced ostracism threatens fundamental needs.

PubMed

Hales, Andrew H; Dvir, Maayan; Wesselmann, Eric D; Kruger, Daniel J; Finkenauer, Catrin

2018-01-01

Cell phones are useful tools with both practical and social benefits. However, using them in the context of face-to-face conversations may be problematic. We consider this behavior a form of ostracism and test its effects on the satisfaction of basic psychological needs for belonging, self-esteem, control, and meaningful existence. In Study 1 participants who recalled a time in which a friend was checking a cell phone during a serious conversation reported feeling more ostracized (ignored and excluded), greater pain, and threat to basic needs than participants recalling a conversation without a cell phone interruption or a control event. Study 2 replicated and extended this effect: Cell phone-induced ostracism's effects were partially mediated by decreased feelings of relational evaluation, and threatened basic needs both in serious and casual conversation contexts. Findings from both studies also indicated that cell phone-induced ostracism hurts women more so than men.

TNF Receptor 2 Makes Tumor Necrosis Factor a Friend of Tumors

PubMed Central

Sheng, Yuqiao; Li, Feng; Qin, Zhihai

2018-01-01

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is widely accepted as a tumor-suppressive cytokine via its ubiquitous receptor TNF receptor 1 (TNFR1). The other receptor, TNFR2, is not only expressed on some tumor cells but also on suppressive immune cells, including regulatory T cells and myeloid-derived suppressor cells. In contrast to TNFR1, TNFR2 diverts the tumor-inhibiting TNF into a tumor-advocating factor. TNFR2 directly promotes the proliferation of some kinds of tumor cells. Also activating immunosuppressive cells, it supports immune escape and tumor development. Hence, TNFR2 may represent a potential target of cancer therapy. Here, we focus on expression and role of TNFR2 in the tumor microenvironment. We summarize the recent progress in understanding how TNFR2-dependent mechanisms promote carcinogenesis and tumor growth and discuss the potential value of TNFR2 in cancer treatment. PMID:29892300

PathwayAccess: CellDesigner plugins for pathway databases.

PubMed

Van Hemert, John L; Dickerson, Julie A

2010-09-15

CellDesigner provides a user-friendly interface for graphical biochemical pathway description. Many pathway databases are not directly exportable to CellDesigner models. PathwayAccess is an extensible suite of CellDesigner plugins, which connect CellDesigner directly to pathway databases using respective Java application programming interfaces. The process is streamlined for creating new PathwayAccess plugins for specific pathway databases. Three PathwayAccess plugins, MetNetAccess, BioCycAccess and ReactomeAccess, directly connect CellDesigner to the pathway databases MetNetDB, BioCyc and Reactome. PathwayAccess plugins enable CellDesigner users to expose pathway data to analytical CellDesigner functions, curate their pathway databases and visually integrate pathway data from different databases using standard Systems Biology Markup Language and Systems Biology Graphical Notation. Implemented in Java, PathwayAccess plugins run with CellDesigner version 4.0.1 and were tested on Ubuntu Linux, Windows XP and 7, and MacOSX. Source code, binaries, documentation and video walkthroughs are freely available at http://vrac.iastate.edu/~jlv.

Adolescent Boys' Intentions of Seeking Help from Male Friends and Female Friends

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sears, Heather A.; Graham, Joanna; Campbell, Anna

2009-01-01

This study examined adolescent boys' intentions of seeking help from male friends and female friends. We evaluated mean differences in boys' help-seeking intentions; assessed whether boys' individual characteristics predicted their intentions; and examined perceived support from male friends and female friends as mediators of these relationships.…

Romantic Partners, Friends, Friends with Benefits, and Casual Acquaintances As Sexual Partners

PubMed Central

Furman, Wyndol; Shaffer, Laura

2011-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to provide a detailed examination of sexual behavior with different types of partners. A sample of 163 young adults reported on their light nongenital, heavy nongenital, and genital sexual activity with romantic partners, friends, and casual acquaintances. They described their sexual activity with “friends with benefits” as well as with friends in general. Young adults were most likely to engage in sexual behavior with romantic partners, but sexual behavior also often occurred with some type of nonromantic partner. More young adults engaged in some form of sexual behavior with casual acquaintances than with friends with benefits. The frequencies of sexual behavior, however, were greater with friends with benefits than with friends or casual acquaintances. Interview and questionnaire data revealed that friends with benefits were typically friends, but not necessarily. Nonsexual activities were also less common with friends with benefits than other friends. Taken together, the findings illustrate the value of differentiating among different types of nonromantic partners and different levels of sexual behavior. PMID:21128155

Understanding Adult Age Differences in the Frequency of Problems With Friends.

PubMed

Schlosnagle, Leo; Strough, JoNell

2017-01-01

We investigated characteristics of younger and older adults' friendships. Younger (N = 39) and older (N = 39) adults completed measures pertaining to a specific friend they had (i.e., contact frequency, positive friendship quality, and negative friendship quality) and their frequency of problems with friends in general. Older adults reported fewer problems with friends in general, and fewer negative friendship qualities, less frequent contact, and more positive friendship qualities with a specific friend than younger adults. Contact frequency, positive friendship quality, and negative friendship quality with a specific friend were related to frequency of problems with friends in general, but only contact frequency was a significant mediator of the relation between age and frequency of problems with friends in general. Results show that characteristics of a specific friendship relate to problems with friends in general, and that contact frequency with a specific friend mediates the relation between age and problems with friends in general. Implications are discussed. © The Author(s) 2016.

Distinguishing Family from Friends : Implicit Cognitive Differences Regarding General Dispositions, Attitude Similarity, and Group Membership.

PubMed

O'Gorman, Rick; Roberts, Ruth

2017-09-01

Kinship and friendship are key human relationships. Increasingly, data suggest that people are not less altruistic toward friends than close kin. Some accounts suggest that psychologically we do not distinguish between them; countering this is evidence that kinship provides a unique explanatory factor. Using the Implicit Association Test, we examined how people implicitly think about close friends versus close kin in three contexts. In Experiment 1, we examined generic attitudinal dispositions toward friends and family. In Experiment 2, attitude similarity as a marker of family and friends was examined, and in Experiments 3 and 4, strength of in-group membership for family and friends was examined. Findings show that differences exist in implicit cognitive associations toward family and friends. There is some evidence that people hold more positive general dispositions toward friends, associate attitude similarity more with friends, consider family as more representative of the in-group than friends, but see friends as more in-group than distant kin.

Review on Metallic and Plastic Flexible Dye Sensitized Solar Cell

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yugis, A. R.; Mansa, R. F.; Sipaut, C. S.

2015-04-01

Dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are a promising alternative for the development of a new generation of photovoltaic devices. DSSCs have promoted intense research due to their low cost and eco-friendly advantage over conventional silicon-based crystalline solar cells. In recent years, lightweight flexible types of DSSCs have attracted much intention because of drastic reduction in production cost and more extensive application. The substrate that used as electrode of the DSSCs has a dominant impact on the methods and materials that can be applied to the cell and consequently on the resulting performance of DSSCs. Furthermore, the substrates influence significantly the stability of the device. Although the power conversion efficiency still low compared to traditional glass based DSSCs, flexible DSSCs still have potential to be the most efficient and easily implemented technology.

The Dawn of Lead-Free Perovskite Solar Cell: Highly Stable Double Perovskite Cs2AgBiBr6 Film.

PubMed

Wu, Cuncun; Zhang, Qiaohui; Liu, Yang; Luo, Wei; Guo, Xuan; Huang, Ziru; Ting, Hungkit; Sun, Weihai; Zhong, Xinrui; Wei, Shiyuan; Wang, Shufeng; Chen, Zhijian; Xiao, Lixin

2018-03-01

Recently, lead-free double perovskites have emerged as a promising environmentally friendly photovoltaic material for their intrinsic thermodynamic stability, appropriate bandgaps, small carrier effective masses, and low exciton binding energies. However, currently no solar cell based on these double perovskites has been reported, due to the challenge in film processing. Herein, a first lead-free double perovskite planar heterojunction solar cell with a high quality Cs 2 AgBiBr 6 film, fabricated by low-pressure assisted solution processing under ambient conditions, is reported. The device presents a best power conversion efficiency of 1.44%. The preliminary efficiency and the high stability under ambient condition without encapsulation, together with the high film quality with simple processing, demonstrate promise for lead-free perovskite solar cells.

The goal of making friends for youth with disabilities: creating a goal menu.

PubMed

Gerhardt, S; McCallum, A; McDougall, C; Keenan, S; Rigby, P

2015-11-01

Clinicians working with youth with disabilities have acknowledged making friends as a commonly identified client goal. Clinicians find this goal difficult to address, as there are no measures that provide a breakdown of making friends into functional steps. In addition, research on friendship has traditionally focused on characteristics and quality of friendships rather than the friend-making process as a whole. A goal menu, comprised of a variety of steps that address the goal of making friends, would provide guidance to clinicians challenged with this goal in practice. To develop an understanding of the friend-making process as a first step towards the development of a goal menu for the goal of making friends. A literature review, youth focus group and expert clinician semi-structured interviews and consultation were used to generate a comprehensive data set. Established qualitative methods were used to sort and group the data into categories. A thematic analysis of the categories was performed. Analysis revealed four themes integral to the friend-making process: person factors influencing friend-making, making friend-making a priority, opportunity for friend-making and motivation to make friends. An additional theme identified as occasionally involved in the process was a little bit of luck in making friends. The themes generated by this research indicate that actionable target areas exist for the somewhat abstract notion of friend-making and the authors recommend that clinicians explore beyond person factors when addressing the goal of making friends. As a next step, the identified themes will provide the foundation for a goal menu, ultimately enabling clinicians to address the goal of making friends in a more efficient and effective manner. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The relationship between adolescents’ and their friends’ eating behaviors - breakfast, fruit, vegetable, whole grain, and dairy intake

PubMed Central

Eisenberg, Marla; MacLehose, Richard; Nanney, Marilyn S.; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine associations between adolescents’ and friends’ healthy eating behaviors, specifically breakfast, fruit, vegetable, whole grain and dairy food intake as reported by both adolescents and their friends. Data for this study were drawn from EAT-2010 (Eating and Activity among Teens), a population-based study examining multi-level factors of eating, physical activity, and weight-related outcomes among adolescents (80% racial/ethnic minority) in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota during the 2009–2010 academic year. In-class surveys were completed by 2043 adolescents in 20 schools. Adolescents identified friends from a class roster; friends’ survey data were then linked to each participant. Generalized estimating equation linear regression models were used to examine associations between adolescents’ healthy eating behaviors and these behaviors from their friends (friend group and best friends), adjusting for socio-demographic characteristics. Significant positive associations were found for breakfast eating between adolescents and their friend groups and best friends (friend groups β=0.26, p<0.001; best friends β=0.19, p=0.004), as well was for whole grain (friend groups β=0.14, p<0.001; best friends β=0.13, p=0.003) and dairy food intake (friend groups β=0.08, p=0.014; best friends β=0.09, p=0.002). Adolescents’ and their best friends’ vegetable intake were also significantly related (β=0.09, p=0.038). No associations were seen among friends for fruit intake. Findings from this study suggest that adolescent friends exhibit similarities in healthy eating patterns. Dietitians and health professional may consider developing strategies to engage friends to promote adolescents’ healthy dietary behaviors. PMID:23017570

Why Acting Environmentally-Friendly Feels Good: Exploring the Role of Self-Image

PubMed Central

Venhoeven, Leonie A.; Bolderdijk, Jan Willem; Steg, Linda

2016-01-01

Recent research suggests that engagement in environmentally-friendly behavior can feel good. Current explanations for such a link do not focus on the nature of environmentally-friendly behavior itself, but rather propose well-being is more or less a side-benefit; behaviors that benefit environmental quality (e.g., spending one's money on people rather than products) also tend to make us feel good. We propose that the moral nature of environmentally-friendly behavior itself may elicit positive emotions as well, because engaging in this behavior can signal one is an environmentally-friendly and thus a good person. Our results show that engagement in environmentally-friendly behavior can indeed affect how people see themselves: participants saw themselves as being more environmentally-friendly when they engaged in more environmentally-friendly behavior (Study 1). Furthermore, environmentally-friendly behavior resulted in a more positive self-image, more strongly when it was voluntarily engaged in, compared to when it was driven by situational constraints (Study 2). In turn, the more environmentally-friendly (Study 1) and positive (Study 2) people saw themselves, the better they felt about acting environmentally-friendly. Together, these results suggest that the specific self-signal that ensues from engaging in environmentally-friendly behavior can explain why environmentally-friendly actions may elicit a good feeling. PMID:27933017

A Novel Subgenomic Murine Leukemia Virus RNA Transcript Results from Alternative Splicing

PubMed Central

Déjardin, Jérôme; Bompard-Maréchal, Guillaume; Audit, Muriel; Hope, Thomas J.; Sitbon, Marc; Mougel, Marylène

2000-01-01

Here we show the existence of a novel subgenomic 4.4-kb RNA in cells infected with the prototypic replication-competent Friend or Moloney murine leukemia viruses (MuLV). This RNA derives by splicing from an alternative donor site (SD′) within the capsid-coding region to the canonical envelope splice acceptor site. The position and the sequence of SD′ was highly conserved among mammalian type C and D oncoviruses. Point mutations used to inactivate SD′ without changing the capsid-coding ability affected viral RNA splicing and reduced viral replication in infected cells. PMID:10729146

Development of a dual joystick-controlled laser trapping and cutting system for optical micromanipulation of chromosomes inside living cells.

PubMed

Harsono, Marcellinus S; Zhu, Qingyuan; Shi, Linda Z; Duquette, Michelle; Berns, Michael W

2013-02-01

A multi-joystick robotic laser microscope system used to control two optical traps (tweezers) and one laser scissors has been developed for subcellular organelle manipulation. The use of joysticks has provided a "user-friendly" method for both trapping and cutting of organelles such as chromosomes in live cells. This innovative design has enabled the clean severing of chromosome arms using the laser scissors as well as the ability to easily hold and pull the severed arm using the laser tweezers. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

How to Make Financial Aid "Freshman-Friendly"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pugh, Susan L.; Johnson, David B.

2011-01-01

Ultimately, making financial aid "freshman friendly" also makes financial aid "sophomore friendly," "junior friendly," and "senior friendly." Indiana University has in place an Office of Enrollment Management (OEM) model that includes focused financial aid packaging strategies complemented by unique contact…

Competence, Problem Behavior, and the Effects of Having No Friends, Aggressive Friends, or Nonaggressive Friends: A Four-Year Longitudinal Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmen, Hanneke; Vermande, Marjolijn M.; Dekovic, Maja; van Aken, Marcel A. G.

2011-01-01

This study examined the longitudinal relations between competence (academic achievement and social preference) and problem behavior (loneliness and aggression) in 741 elementary school boys and girls in the Netherlands (Grades 1-5). Also, we examined the moderation effects of having no friends, aggressive friends, or nonaggressive friends on the…

Green synthesis of graphene and its cytotoxic effects in human breast cancer cells

PubMed Central

Gurunathan, Sangiliyandi; Han, Jae Woong; Eppakayala, Vasuki; Kim, Jin-Hoi

2013-01-01

Background: This paper describes an environmentally friendly (“green”) approach for the synthesis of soluble graphene using Bacillus marisflavi biomass as a reducing and stabilizing agent under mild conditions in aqueous solution. In addition, the study reported here investigated the cytotoxicity effects of graphene oxide (GO) and bacterially reduced graphene oxide (B-rGO) on the inhibition of cell viability, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and membrane integrity in human breast cancer cells. Methods: The reduction of GO was characterized by ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy. Size distribution was analyzed by dynamic light scattering. Further, X-ray diffraction and high-resolution scanning electron microscopy were used to investigate the crystallinity of graphene and the morphologies of prepared graphene, respectively. The formation of defects further supports the bio-functionalization of graphene, as indicated in the Raman spectrum of B-rGO. Surface morphology and the thickness of the GO and B-rGO were analyzed using atomic force microscopy, while the biocompatibility of GO and B-rGO were investigated using WST-8 assays on MCF-7 cells. Finally, cellular toxicity was evaluated by ROS generation and membrane integrity assays. Results: In this study, we demonstrated an environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and simple method for the preparation of water-soluble graphene using bacterial biomass. This reduction method avoids the use of toxic reagents such as hydrazine and hydrazine hydrate. The synthesized soluble graphene was confirmed using various analytical techniques. Our results suggest that both GO and B-rGO exhibit toxicity to MCF-7 cells in a dose-dependent manner, with a dose > 60 μg/mL exhibiting obvious cytotoxicity effects, such as decreasing cell viability, increasing ROS generation, and releasing of lactate dehydrogenase. Conclusion: We developed a green and a simple approach to produce graphene using bacterial biomass as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The proposed approach confers B-rGO with great potential for various biological and biomedical applications. PMID:23687445

Paper-based membraneless hydrogen peroxide fuel cell prepared by micro-fabrication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mousavi Ehteshami, Seyyed Mohsen; Asadnia, Mohsen; Tan, Swee Ngin; Chan, Siew Hwa

2016-01-01

A paper-based membraneless single-compartment hydrogen peroxide power source prepared by micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) technology is reported. The cell utilizes hydrogen peroxide as both fuel and oxidant in a low volume cell fabricated on paper. The fabrication method used is a simple method where precise, small-sized patterns are produced which include the hydrophilic paper bounded by hydrophobic resin. Open circuit potentials of 0.61 V and 0.32 V are achieved for the cells fabricated with Prussian Blue as the cathode and aluminium/nickel as the anode materials, respectively. The power produced by the cells is 0.81 mW cm-2 at 0.26 V and 0.38 mW cm-2 at 0.14 V, respectively, even after the cell is bent or distorted. Such a fuel cell provides an easily fabricated, environmentally friendly, flexible and cost saving power source. The cell may be integrated within a self-sustained diagnostic system to provide the on-demand power for future bio-sensing applications.

Egg extract of apple snail for eco-friendly synthesis of silver nanoparticles and their antibacterial activity.

PubMed

Janthima, Ratima; Khamhaengpol, Arunrat; Siri, Sineenat

2018-03-01

Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) provides the alternative method with cost effectiveness and the eco-friendly process by using natural biomolecules as reducing and stabilizing agents. Alternative to the most studies of plant extracts, this work demonstrated a use of egg extract of apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata) for an eco-friendly production of AgNPs. The extract contained at least six proteins with the molecular weight in a range of 24-65 kDa that exhibited the reducing activity. The dispersive AgNPs were produced in the reaction containing only the extract and silver nitrate, as determined by the characteristic surface plasmon resonance peak of silver at 412 nm. The synthesized AgNPs were spherical with the average diameter of 9.0 ± 5.9 nm. The X-ray diffraction pattern and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) analyses confirmed the face-cubic centre (fcc) unit cell structure of AgNPs. The synthesized AgNPs exhibited the antibacterial activity against both Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative Escherichia coli. Results of this work clearly showed the potential use of the egg extract of apple snail for a green synthesis of small size AgNPs exhibiting the antibacterial activity.

Complement System Part II: Role in Immunity

PubMed Central

Merle, Nicolas S.; Noe, Remi; Halbwachs-Mecarelli, Lise; Fremeaux-Bacchi, Veronique; Roumenina, Lubka T.

2015-01-01

The complement system has been considered for a long time as a simple lytic cascade, aimed to kill bacteria infecting the host organism. Nowadays, this vision has changed and it is well accepted that complement is a complex innate immune surveillance system, playing a key role in host homeostasis, inflammation, and in the defense against pathogens. This review discusses recent advances in the understanding of the role of complement in physiology and pathology. It starts with a description of complement contribution to the normal physiology (homeostasis) of a healthy organism, including the silent clearance of apoptotic cells and maintenance of cell survival. In pathology, complement can be a friend or a foe. It acts as a friend in the defense against pathogens, by inducing opsonization and a direct killing by C5b–9 membrane attack complex and by triggering inflammatory responses with the anaphylatoxins C3a and C5a. Opsonization plays also a major role in the mounting of an adaptive immune response, involving antigen presenting cells, T-, and B-lymphocytes. Nevertheless, it can be also an enemy, when pathogens hijack complement regulators to protect themselves from the immune system. Inadequate complement activation becomes a disease cause, as in atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome, C3 glomerulopathies, and systemic lupus erythematosus. Age-related macular degeneration and cancer will be described as examples showing that complement contributes to a large variety of conditions, far exceeding the classical examples of diseases associated with complement deficiencies. Finally, we discuss complement as a therapeutic target. PMID:26074922

A model infant feeding policy for Baby-Friendly designation in the USA.

PubMed

Feldman-Winter, Lori; Procaccini, Diane; Merewood, Anne

2012-08-01

In June 2010, the Communities Putting Prevention to Work program (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) funded a New Jersey (NJ) Office on Nutrition and Fitness, Department of Health and Senior Services project to reduce obesity and increase exclusive breastfeeding by increased implementation of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative in the state of NJ. At baseline, NJ had no Baby-Friendly hospitals and no hospital was using an infant feeding policy that conformed to standards required by Baby-Friendly USA for designation. To create a model infant feeding policy that would be adaptable for use at multiple NJ hospitals preparing for Baby-Friendly designation. Project consultants created a policy based on existent policies from the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine, certified Baby-Friendly hospitals, and guidance from Baby-Friendly USA. This policy was submitted to Baby-Friendly USA, the US body responsible for Baby-Friendly designation. Baby-Friendly USA requested changes; after adaptations, the policy was made available to targeted NJ hospitals via a statewide portal. The hospitals made relevant adaptations for their setting, and those that were ready submitted the policy during the Baby-Friendly designation process. The policy was acceptable to Baby-Friendly USA. A collaborative initiative can use a single breastfeeding policy template as an aid toward Baby-Friendly designation. Such work streamlines the process and saves time and resources.

Associations between friends' disordered eating and muscle-enhancing behaviors

PubMed Central

Eisenberg, Marla E.; Wall, Melanie; Shim, Jin Joo; Bruening, Meg; Loth, Katie; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2012-01-01

Dieting, unhealthy weight control and muscle-enhancing behaviors are common among adolescents: friends are a probable source of influence on these behaviors. The present study uses data provided by nominated friends to examine associations between friends' disordered eating and muscle-enhancing behaviors and participants' own behaviors in a diverse sample of American youth. Male and female adolescents (mean age = 14.4) completed surveys and identified their friends from a class roster; friends' survey data were then linked to each participant. Participants (N = 2126) who had at least one nominated friend were included in the analytic sample. Independent variables were created using the same weight control and muscle-enhancing behaviors reported by nominated friends, and were used in logistic regression models to test associations between participants' and their friends' behaviors, stratified by gender. Results indicated that dieting, disordered eating and muscle-enhancing behaviors were common in this sample, and selected friends' behaviors were associated with the same behaviors in participants. For example, girls whose friends reported extreme weight control behaviors had significantly greater odds of using these behaviors than girls whose friends did not report these same behaviors (OR = 2.39). This research suggests that friends' weight- and shape-related behaviors are a feature of social relationships, and is the first report demonstrating these associations for muscle-enhancing behaviors. Capitalizing on the social element may be important to the development of increasingly effective intervention and prevention programs. PMID:23010337

Effect of microwave exposure on the photo anode of DSSC sensitized with natural dye

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Swathi, K. E.; Jinchu, I.; Sreelatha, K. S.; Sreekala, C. O.; Menon, Sreedevi K.

2018-02-01

Dye Sensitized solar cells (DSSC) are also referred to as dye sensitised cells (DSC) or Graetzel cell are the device that converts solar energy in to electricity by the photovoltaic effect. This is the class of advanced cell that mimics the artificial photosynthesis. DSSC fabrication is simple and can be done using readily available low cost materials that are nontoxic, environment friendly and works even under low flux of sunlight. DSSC exhibits good efficiency of ~ 10-14 %. This paper emphasis on the study of enhancing the efficiency of DSSC by exposing the photo anode to microwave frequency. Effect of duration of microwave exposure at 2.6 GHz on energy efficiency of solar cell is studied in detail. The SEM analysis and dye desorption studies of the photo anode confirms an increased solar energy conversion efficiency of the DSSC.

A green approach toward quinoxalines and bis-quinoxalines and their biological evaluation against A431, human skin cancer cell lines.

PubMed

Bandyopadhyay, Debasish; Cruz, Jessica; Morales, Liza D; Arman, Hadi D; Cuate, Erica; Lee, Young S; Banik, Bimal K; Kim, Dae J

2013-08-01

The objective of this study was to develop a practical green procedure to synthesize quinoxalines and bis-quinoxalines and evaluate their inhibitory effects on the viability of A431 human epidermoid carcinoma cells. A series of quinoxaline and bis-quinoxaline derivatives have been designed and synthesized following a microwave-assisted and bismuth nitrate-catalyzed eco-friendly route. A detailed comparison has been made between microwave-induced protocol with the reactions occurred at room temperature. The structure of the compounds have been elucidated by various spectroscopic methods and finally confirmed by x-ray crystallographic analyses. Two quinoxaline derivatives, compounds 6 and 12 have demonstrated inhibitory effects on the viability of A431 human epidermoid carcinoma cells when compared with HaCaT nontumorigenic human keratinocyte cells. Notably, compound 6 inhibits Stat3 phosphorylation/activation in A431 skin cancer cells.

A review on the performance and modelling of proton exchange membrane fuel cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Boucetta, A., E-mail: abirboucetta@yahoo.fr; Ghodbane, H., E-mail: h.ghodbane@mselab.org; Bahri, M., E-mail: m.bahri@mselab.org

2016-07-25

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC), are energy efficient and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional energy conversion for various applications in stationary power plants, portable power device and transportation. PEM fuel cells provide low operating temperature and high-energy efficiency with near zero emission. A PEM fuel cell is a multiple distinct parts device and a series of mass, energy, transport through gas channels, electric current transport through membrane electrode assembly and electrochemical reactions at the triple-phase boundaries. These processes play a decisive role in determining the performance of the Fuel cell, so that studies on the phenomena of gas flowsmore » and the performance modelling are made deeply. This paper gives a comprehensive overview of the state of the art on the Study of the phenomena of gas flow and performance modelling of PEMFC.« less

Intestinal M cells

PubMed Central

Ohno, Hiroshi

2016-01-01

We have an enormous number of commensal bacteria in our intestine, moreover, the foods that we ingest and the water we drink is sometimes contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms. The intestinal epithelium is always exposed to such microbes, friend or foe, so to contain them our gut is equipped with specialized gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), literally the largest peripheral lymphoid tissue in the body. GALT is the intestinal immune inductive site composed of lymphoid follicles such as Peyer’s patches. M cells are a subset of intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) residing in the region of the epithelium covering GALT lymphoid follicles. Although the vast majority of IEC function to absorb nutrients from the intestine, M cells are highly specialized to take up intestinal microbial antigens and deliver them to GALT for efficient mucosal as well as systemic immune responses. I will discuss recent advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of M-cell differentiation and functions. PMID:26634447

Design and simulation of front end power converter for a microgrid with fuel cells and solar power sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeevargi, Chetankumar; Lodhi, Anuj; Sateeshkumar, Allu; Elangovan, D.; Arunkumar, G.

2017-11-01

The need for Renewable Energy Sources (RES) is increasing due to increased demand for the supply of power and it is also environment friendly.In the recent few years, the cost of generation of the power from the RES has been decreased. This paper aims to design the front end power converter which is required for integrating the fuel cells and solar power sources to the micro grid. The simulation of the designed front end converter is carried out in the PSIM 9.1.1 software. The results show that the designed front end power converter is sufficient for integrating the micro grid with fuel cells and solar power sources.

Fast targeted gene transfection and optogenetic modification of single neurons using femtosecond laser irradiation

PubMed Central

Antkowiak, Maciej; Torres-Mapa, Maria Leilani; Witts, Emily C.; Miles, Gareth B.; Dholakia, Kishan; Gunn-Moore, Frank J.

2013-01-01

A prevailing problem in neuroscience is the fast and targeted delivery of DNA into selected neurons. The development of an appropriate methodology would enable the transfection of multiple genes into the same cell or different genes into different neighboring cells as well as rapid cell selective functionalization of neurons. Here, we show that optimized femtosecond optical transfection fulfills these requirements. We also demonstrate successful optical transfection of channelrhodopsin-2 in single selected neurons. We extend the functionality of this technique for wider uptake by neuroscientists by using fast three-dimensional laser beam steering enabling an image-guided “point-and-transfect” user-friendly transfection of selected cells. A sub-second transfection timescale per cell makes this method more rapid by at least two orders of magnitude when compared to alternative single-cell transfection techniques. This novel technology provides the ability to carry out large-scale cell selective genetic studies on neuronal ensembles and perform rapid genetic programming of neural circuits. PMID:24257461

Fast targeted gene transfection and optogenetic modification of single neurons using femtosecond laser irradiation.

PubMed

Antkowiak, Maciej; Torres-Mapa, Maria Leilani; Witts, Emily C; Miles, Gareth B; Dholakia, Kishan; Gunn-Moore, Frank J

2013-11-21

A prevailing problem in neuroscience is the fast and targeted delivery of DNA into selected neurons. The development of an appropriate methodology would enable the transfection of multiple genes into the same cell or different genes into different neighboring cells as well as rapid cell selective functionalization of neurons. Here, we show that optimized femtosecond optical transfection fulfills these requirements. We also demonstrate successful optical transfection of channelrhodopsin-2 in single selected neurons. We extend the functionality of this technique for wider uptake by neuroscientists by using fast three-dimensional laser beam steering enabling an image-guided "point-and-transfect" user-friendly transfection of selected cells. A sub-second transfection timescale per cell makes this method more rapid by at least two orders of magnitude when compared to alternative single-cell transfection techniques. This novel technology provides the ability to carry out large-scale cell selective genetic studies on neuronal ensembles and perform rapid genetic programming of neural circuits.

Better with a buddy: influence of best friends on children's physical activity.

PubMed

Jago, Russell; Macdonald-Wallis, Kyle; Thompson, Janice L; Page, Angie S; Brockman, Rowan; Fox, Kenneth R

2011-02-01

the purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which the physical activity modeling and physical activity actions of best friends are associated with the physical activity of 10- to 11-yr-old children. data were collected from 986 children of whom 472 provided complete physical activity and best friend data. Participants identified their "best friend" within the school and answered how often they took part in physical activity with the friend and if the friend had encouraged them to be active. Physical activity was assessed via accelerometer for all children and friends. Mean minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per day (MVPA) and mean accelerometer counts per minute (CPM) were obtained for all children and best friends. Regression models were run separately for boys and girls and used to examine associations between child and best friend physical activity. for girls, mean MVPA was associated with frequency of activity of the best friend (P ≤ 0.02 for all categories) and engaging in physical activity at home or in the neighborhood (t = 2.27, P = 0.030), with similar patterns for mean CPM. Boys' mean MVPA was associated with their best friend's mean MVPA (t = 3.68, P = 0.001) and being active at home or in the local neighborhood (t = 2.52, P = 0.017). boys who have active friends spend more minutes in MVPA. Girls who frequently take part in physical activity with their best friend obtain higher levels of physical activity. Boys and girls who take part in physical activity with their best friend at home or in the neighborhood where they live engage in higher levels of physical activity.

Identification of Novel Genes and Candidate Targets in CML Stem Cells

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-07-01

myeloblastosis viral oncogene homolog (avian) 6q22–q23 12 GATCCTGTGTTTGCAAC 1 FLI1 NM_002017 Friend leukemia virus integration 1 11q24.1–q24.3 3...AVAILABILITY STATEMENT Approved for public release; distribution unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is...Conclusion 6 References 6 Supporting Data 8 Appendices 16 4 INTRODUCTION: Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a blood

Vav1: Friend and Foe of Cancer.

PubMed

Guo, Fukun; Zheng, Yi

2017-12-01

A recent study shows that the protumorigenic guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Vav1 functions as a tumor suppressor in T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL) through its ability to complex with the Cbl-b ubiquitin ligase and the intracellular domain of Notch1 (ICN1) and to promote ICN1 degradation. Vav1can act as a double-edged sword in tumorigenesis. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Should We Turn the Robots Loose?

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-05-02

interference. Potential sources of electromagnetic interference include everyday signals such as cell phones and Wifi , intentional friendly jamming of IED...might even attempt to hack or hijack our robotic warriors. Our current enemies have proven to be very adaptable and have developed simple counters to our...demonstrates the ease with which robot command and control might be hacked . It is reasonable to suspect that a future threat with a more robust

Vaccination with an adenoviral vector that encodes and displays a retroviral antigen induces improved neutralizing antibody and CD4+ T-cell responses and confers enhanced protection.

PubMed

Bayer, Wibke; Tenbusch, Matthias; Lietz, Ruth; Johrden, Lena; Schimmer, Simone; Uberla, Klaus; Dittmer, Ulf; Wildner, Oliver

2010-02-01

We present a new type of adenoviral vector that both encodes and displays a vaccine antigen on the capsid, thus combining in itself gene-based and protein vaccination; this vector resulted in an improved vaccination outcome in the Friend virus (FV) model. For presentation of the envelope protein gp70 of Friend murine leukemia virus on the adenoviral capsid, gp70 was fused to the adenovirus capsid protein IX. When compared to vaccination with conventional FV Env- and Gag-encoding adenoviral vectors, vaccination with the adenoviral vector that encodes and displays pIX-gp70 combined with an FV Gag-encoding vector resulted in significantly improved protection against systemic FV challenge infection, with highly controlled viral loads in plasma and spleen. This improved protection correlated with improved neutralizing antibody titers and stronger CD4(+) T-cell responses. Using a vector that displays gp70 without encoding it, we found that while the antigen display on the capsid alone was sufficient to induce high levels of binding antibodies, in vivo expression was necessary for the induction of neutralizing antibodies. This new type of adenovirus-based vaccine could be a valuable tool for vaccination.

Why I Love Vendors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wiley, H. S.

In December, I attended the annual meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology, as I have done regularly for the last several decades. It is always a good way to catch up with old friends and look for the latest trends in cell biology. I rarely attend the talks, having found that they more reflect the fashion of the moment (or the past) than the direction of the field. Poster sessions are more to my liking, since they provide a chance to talk to enthusiastic young scientists in the trenches. But my favorite stop has always been the vendormore » booths. When I tell my friends that I love visiting vendor booths, most of them seem to think I am kidding. At meetings, many scientists seem to feel that vendors are necessary evils. They provide free candy and cheap pens in exchange for bombarding us with ads and scanning our badges. Like popup ads in web browsers, we have learned to both ignore and accept them as part of the landscape. It is unfortunate that we have become so inured to their presence. Talks and posters capture exciting research from the last few years or months, but vendor booths capture the future, offering one of the clearest visions of where a field is going.« less

Exceedingly biocompatible and thin-layered reduced graphene oxide nanosheets using an eco-friendly mushroom extract strategy.

PubMed

Muthoosamy, Kasturi; Bai, Renu Geetha; Abubakar, Ibrahim Babangida; Sudheer, Surya Mudavasseril; Lim, Hong Ngee; Loh, Hwei-San; Huang, Nay Ming; Chia, Chin Hua; Manickam, Sivakumar

2015-01-01

A simple, one-pot strategy was used to synthesize reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanosheets by utilizing an easily available over-the-counter medicinal and edible mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum. The mushroom was boiled in hot water to liberate the polysaccharides, the extract of which was then used directly for the reduction of graphene oxide. The abundance of polysaccharides present in the mushroom serves as a good reducing agent. The proposed strategy evades the use of harmful and expensive chemicals and avoids the typical tedious reaction methods. More importantly, the mushroom extract can be easily separated from the product without generating any residual byproducts and can be reused at least three times with good conversion efficiency (75%). It was readily dispersible in water without the need of ultrasonication or any surfactants; whereas 5 minutes of ultrasonication with various solvents produced RGO which was stable for the tested period of 1 year. Based on electrochemical measurements, the followed method did not jeopardize RGO's electrical conductivity. Moreover, the obtained RGO was highly biocompatible to not only colon (HT-29) and brain (U87MG) cancer cells, but was also viable towards normal cells (MRC-5). Besides being eco-friendly, this mushroom based approach is easily scalable and demonstrates remarkable RGO stability and biocompatibility, even without any form of functionalization.

Fuel cells are a commercially viable alternative for the production of "clean" energy.

PubMed

Niakolas, Dimitris K; Daletou, Maria; Neophytides, Stylianos G; Vayenas, Constantinos G

2016-01-01

Fuel cells present a highly efficient and environmentally friendly alternative technology for decentralized energy production. The scope of the present study is to provide an overview of the technological and commercialization readiness level of fuel cells. Specifically, there is a brief description of their general advantages and weaknesses in correlation with various technological actions and political strategies, which are adopted towards their proper positioning in the global market. Some of the most important key performance indicators are also discussed, alongside with a few examples of broad commercialization. It is concluded that the increasing number of companies which utilize and invest on this technology, in combination with the supply chain improvements and the concomitant technological maturity and recognition, reinforce the fuel cell industry so as to become well-aligned for global success.

Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)2 solar cell research in Solar Frontier: Progress and current status

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kato, Takuya

2017-04-01

As the largest manufacturer of Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)2 (CIGS) thin-film photovoltaic modules with more than 1 GW/year production volume, Solar Frontier K.K. has continuously improved module performance and small-area cell efficiencies in the laboratory. Because of our low-cost and environmentally-friendly process, Solar Frontier’s CIGS is a promising technology for the mass production of photovoltaic modules to fill ever-increasing demand. Recently we have achieved certified efficiencies of 22.3 and 22.0% on CdS-buffered and Cd-free buffered small-area cells, respectively, as well as 18.6% on a Cd-free mini-module. In this paper, a review of our CIGS technology and recent progress on the development of the module and the small-area cell is presented.

The Dawn of Lead‐Free Perovskite Solar Cell: Highly Stable Double Perovskite Cs2AgBiBr6 Film

PubMed Central

Wu, Cuncun; Zhang, Qiaohui; Liu, Yang; Luo, Wei; Guo, Xuan; Huang, Ziru; Ting, Hungkit; Sun, Weihai; Zhong, Xinrui; Wei, Shiyuan

2017-01-01

Abstract Recently, lead‐free double perovskites have emerged as a promising environmentally friendly photovoltaic material for their intrinsic thermodynamic stability, appropriate bandgaps, small carrier effective masses, and low exciton binding energies. However, currently no solar cell based on these double perovskites has been reported, due to the challenge in film processing. Herein, a first lead‐free double perovskite planar heterojunction solar cell with a high quality Cs2AgBiBr6 film, fabricated by low‐pressure assisted solution processing under ambient conditions, is reported. The device presents a best power conversion efficiency of 1.44%. The preliminary efficiency and the high stability under ambient condition without encapsulation, together with the high film quality with simple processing, demonstrate promise for lead‐free perovskite solar cells. PMID:29593974

Cell surface engineering of microorganisms towards adsorption of heavy metals.

PubMed

Li, Peng-Song; Tao, Hu-Chun

2015-06-01

Heavy metal contamination has become a worldwide environmental concern due to its toxicity, non-degradability and food-chain bioaccumulation. Conventional physical and chemical treatment methods for heavy metal removal have disadvantages such as cost-intensiveness, incomplete removal, secondary pollution and the lack of metal specificity. Microbial biomass-based biosorption is one of the approaches gaining increasing attention because it is effective, cheap, and environmental friendly and can work well at low concentrations. To enhance the adsorption properties of microbial cells to heavy metal ions, the cell surface display of various metal-binding proteins/peptides have been performed using a cell surface engineering approach. The surface engineering of Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria and yeast towards the adsorption of heavy metals are reviewed in this article. The problems and future perspectives of this technology are discussed.

Correlates of Objective Social Isolation from Family and Friends among Older Adults.

PubMed

Chatters, Linda M; Taylor, Harry Owen; Nicklett, Emily J; Taylor, Robert Joseph

2018-03-03

This study examined the correlates of objective social isolation from extended family members and friends among older adults. The analysis is based on the older adult sub-sample of the National Survey of American Life ( n = 1321). Multinomial logistic regression analyses examined race/ethnicity, demographics, functional health and family and friend network factors as correlates of objective isolation from family and friends. Only 4.47% of respondents were objectively isolated from both their extended family and friends, 10.82% were isolated from their friends, and 7.43% were isolated from their family members. Men were more likely to be objectively isolated from both family and friends and older adults who live with others were significantly more likely to be objectively isolated from their friends. When controlling for subjective social isolation, the two measures of functional health were significantly associated with objective social isolation. In particular, higher levels of self-care impairment decreased the risk of being objectively isolated from friends only, whereas higher mobility impairment was associated with an increased likelihood of being objectively isolated from friends only. Subjective evaluations of social isolation from family and friends were consistently associated with being objectively isolated from family and friends. There were no significant differences between African-Americans, Black Caribbeans and non-Hispanic Whites in objective isolation. These and other findings are discussed in detail.

Correlates of Objective Social Isolation from Family and Friends among Older Adults

PubMed Central

Chatters, Linda M.; Taylor, Harry Owen; Taylor, Robert Joseph

2018-01-01

This study examined the correlates of objective social isolation from extended family members and friends among older adults. The analysis is based on the older adult sub-sample of the National Survey of American Life (n = 1321). Multinomial logistic regression analyses examined race/ethnicity, demographics, functional health and family and friend network factors as correlates of objective isolation from family and friends. Only 4.47% of respondents were objectively isolated from both their extended family and friends, 10.82% were isolated from their friends, and 7.43% were isolated from their family members. Men were more likely to be objectively isolated from both family and friends and older adults who live with others were significantly more likely to be objectively isolated from their friends. When controlling for subjective social isolation, the two measures of functional health were significantly associated with objective social isolation. In particular, higher levels of self-care impairment decreased the risk of being objectively isolated from friends only, whereas higher mobility impairment was associated with an increased likelihood of being objectively isolated from friends only. Subjective evaluations of social isolation from family and friends were consistently associated with being objectively isolated from family and friends. There were no significant differences between African-Americans, Black Caribbeans and non-Hispanic Whites in objective isolation. These and other findings are discussed in detail. PMID:29510504

75 FR 61463 - Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XLIX; FFP Missouri 15, LLC; Notice of Competing Preliminary Permit...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-05

...+ Hydro Friends Fund XLIX; FFP Missouri 15, LLC; Notice of Competing Preliminary Permit Applications..., 2010. On July 12, 2010, Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XLVIII (Hydro Friends) and FFP Missouri 15, LLC (FFP... without the owners' express permission. Hydro Friends' proposed Lock and Dam 14 Hydropower Project...

76 FR 24471 - Qualified Hydro 26, LLC; Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund VII; Western Minnesota Municipal Power Agency...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-05-02

...; 14113-000] Qualified Hydro 26, LLC; Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund VII; Western Minnesota Municipal Power... Hydro), Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund VII (Hydro Friends) and Western Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (WMMPA... 02114; (978) 283-2822. Hydro Friends' proposed Lock and Dam 11 Hydropower Project No. 14112 would...

Different preferences or different opportunities? Explaining race differentials in the academic achievement of friends

PubMed Central

Flashman, Jennifer

2015-01-01

A popular explanation for race and ethnic disparities in academic achievement is that minorities are exposed to different peers and have different opportunities to make friends with high-achievers. Although we know that adolescents from different race and ethnic groups attend different schools and that they choose different friends, we do not know how these different opportunities affect the friends they make. This paper fills this gap by studying how the opportunities within adolescents’ schools affect race and ethnic differences in the academic characteristics of friends. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health and the conditional logit and opportunities framework, I account for adolescents’ different opportunities to make friends both within and across schools. Ignoring their different opportunities, Black and Latino adolescents’ nominated friends have significantly lower levels of achievement than white adolescents. After accounting for their different opportunities to make friends within and between schools, race and ethnic differences in the achievement characteristics of friends disappear. If Black and Latino adolescents’ opportunity structures were identical to white adolescents’, their probabilities of nominating high-achieving friends would not differ. PMID:23017858

Influence of friends on children's physical activity: a review.

PubMed

Maturo, Claire C; Cunningham, Solveig A

2013-07-01

We examined evidence for friendship influences on children's physical activity (PA) through systematic searches of online databases in May 2012. We identified 106 studies (25 qualitative) published in English since 2000 that analyzed indicators of friendship influences (e.g., communication about PA, friends' PA, and PA with friends) among persons younger than 19 years. Children's PA was positively associated with encouragement from friends (43 of 55 studies indicating a positive relationship), friends' own PA (30/35), and engagement with friends in PA (9/10). These findings are consistent with friends influencing PA, but most studies did not isolate influence from other factors that could explain similarity. Understanding friendship influences in childhood can facilitate the promotion of lifelong healthy habits. PA with friends should be considered in health promotion programs.

Friendship Satisfaction in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Nominated Friends.

PubMed

Petrina, Neysa; Carter, Mark; Stephenson, Jennifer; Sweller, Naomi

2017-02-01

The current study examined the level of friendship satisfaction of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their nominated friends (with and without diagnosis of ASD). A total of 77 target children with ASD and friends from 49 nominated friendships participated in the study. Relatively high levels of friendship satisfaction were reported by both target children and their nominated friends with no overall difference between dyads involving typically developing friends and friends with ASD. Analysis at the individual dyad level showed a high level of agreement on the reported level of satisfaction across the target participants and their friends. Limitations and directions for future research are presented.

Comparing sexual-minority and heterosexual young women's friends and parents as sources of support for sexual issues.

PubMed

Friedman, Carly K; Morgan, Elizabeth M

2009-08-01

The present study provides a comparative analysis of sexual-minority and heterosexual emerging adult women's experiences seeking support for sexual issues from parents and friends. Participants included 229 college women (88 sexual-minority women; 141 heterosexual women), ranging from 18 to 25 years of age, who provided written responses to an inquiry about a time they went to friends and parents for support for a issue related to their sexuality. Responses indicated that the majority of participants had sought support from either a parent or a friend and that mothers and female friends were more likely involved than fathers or male friends, respectively. Sexual issues that participants reported discussing with parents and friends were inductively grouped into five categories: dating and romantic relationships, sexual behavior, sexual health, identity negotiation, and discrimination and violence. Issues that were discussed differed based on sexual orientation identity and the source of support (parent or friend); they did not differ by age. Participants generally perceived parents and friends' responses as helpful, though sexual-minority participants perceived both parents and friends' responses as less helpful than did heterosexual participants. Overall, results suggest both similarities and differences between sexual-minority and heterosexual young women's experiences seeking support for sexual issues from parents and friends.

16 CFR 260.11 - Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims. 260.11... THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMS § 260.11 Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims. It is... friendly to, the ozone layer or the atmosphere. Example 1: A product is labeled “ozone-friendly.” The claim...

16 CFR 260.11 - Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... 16 Commercial Practices 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims. 260.11... THE USE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETING CLAIMS § 260.11 Ozone-safe and ozone-friendly claims. It is... friendly to, the ozone layer or the atmosphere. Example 1: A product is labeled “ozone-friendly.” The claim...

75 FR 49925 - Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XLIX; FFP Missouri 14, LLC; Notice of Competing Preliminary Permit...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-08-16

.... 13813-000] Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XLIX; FFP Missouri 14, LLC; Notice of Competing Preliminary Permit... August 9, 2010. Lock+ Hydro Friends Fund XLIX (Hydro Friends) and FFP Missouri 14, LLC (FFP) filed...-station located south-west of the dam. Hydro Friends is also exploring alternatives that would locate the...

Critical Friends Protocol: Andragogy and Learning in a Graduate Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Storey, Valerie A.; Wang, Victor C. X.

2017-01-01

The Critical Friend is a powerful concept partly due to the inherent tension between a challenging critic and a trusting friend. Originally utilized in the PreK-12 sector in both England and the United States, the application of Critical Friends has expanded across a range of contexts. This article further adds to the Critical Friend literature…

Friends' knowledge of youth internalizing and externalizing adjustment: accuracy, bias, and the influences of gender, grade, positive friendship quality, and self-disclosure.

PubMed

Swenson, Lance P; Rose, Amanda J

2009-08-01

Some evidence suggests that close friends may be knowledgeable of youth's psychological adjustment. However, friends are understudied as reporters of adjustment. The current study examines associations between self- and friend-reports of internalizing and externalizing adjustment in a community sample of fifth-, eighth-, and eleventh-grade youth. The study extends prior work by considering the degree to which friends' reports of youth adjustment are accurate (i.e., predicted by youths' actual adjustment) versus biased (i.e., predicted by the friend reporters' own adjustment). Findings indicated stronger bias effects than accuracy effects, but the accuracy effects were significant for both internalizing and externalizing adjustment. Additionally, friends who perceived their relationships as high in positive quality, friends in relationships high in disclosure, and girls perceived youths' internalizing symptoms most accurately. Knowledge of externalizing adjustment was not influenced by gender, grade, relationship quality, or self-disclosure. Findings suggest that friends could play an important role in prevention efforts.

Examining associations between adolescent binge eating and binge eating in parents and friends.

PubMed

Goldschmidt, Andrea B; Wall, Melanie M; Choo, Tse-Hwei J; Bruening, Meg; Eisenberg, Marla E; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2014-04-01

Binge eating is prevalent among adolescents, but little is known about how parents and friends may influence such behaviors. This study examined associations between adolescent binge eating behaviors, and similar behaviors in their parents and friends. Participants were 2,770 target adolescent boys and girls who had at least one friend and/or parent who also participated. Logistic regression, stratified by gender, examined associations between parents' and friends' self-reported binge eating, and similar behaviors in target adolescents. Girls' binge eating was associated with their male friends' (odds ratio = 2.33; p = 0.03) and fathers' binge eating (odds ratio = 3.38; p = 0.02), but not with their female friends' or mothers' binge eating (p > 0.05). For boys, binge eating was not associated with parents' or friends' behavior. Adolescent girls' binge eating is associated with similar behaviors in their other-sex parents and friends. Results should be replicated, and mechanisms explaining this relation should be further explored. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Biological therapeutics of Pongamia pinnata coated zinc oxide nanoparticles against clinically important pathogenic bacteria, fungi and MCF-7 breast cancer cells.

PubMed

Malaikozhundan, Balasubramanian; Vaseeharan, Baskaralingam; Vijayakumar, Sekar; Pandiselvi, Karuppiah; Kalanjiam, Mohamed Ali Rajamohamed; Murugan, Kadarkarai; Benelli, Giovanni

2017-03-01

The overuse of antimicrobics and drugs has led to the development of resistance in a number of pathogens and parasites, which leads to great concerns for human health and the environment. Furthermore, breast cancer is the second most common cause of cancer death in women. MCF-7 is a widely used epithelial cancer cell line, derived from breast adenocarcinoma for in vitro breast cancer studies, since the cell line has retained several ideal characteristics particular to the mammary epithelium. In this scenario, the development of novel and eco-friendly drugs are of timely importance. Green synthesis of nanoparticles is cost effective, environmental friendly and does not involve the use of toxic chemicals or elevate energy inputs. This research focused on the anticancer activity of Pongamia pinnata seed extract-fabricated zinc oxide nanoparticles (Pp-ZnO NPs) on human MCF-7 breast cancer cells, antibiofilm activity against bacteria and fungi was also investigated. Nanoparticles were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Pp-ZnO NPs effectively inhibited the growth of Gram positive Bacillus licheniformis (zone of inhibition: 17.3 mm) at 25 μg ml -1 followed by Gram negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa (14.2 mm) and Vibrio parahaemolyticus (12.2 mm). Pp-ZnO NPs also effectively inhibited the biofilm formation of C. albicans at 50 μg ml -1 . Cytotoxicity studies revealed that a single treatment with Pp-ZnO NPs significantly reduced the cell viability of breast cancer MCF-7 cells at doses higher than 50 μg ml -1 . Morphological changes in the Pp-ZnO NPs treated MCF-7 breast cancer cells were observed using phase contrast microscopy. This study concludes that the green synthesized Pp-ZnO NPs may be used as an effective antimicrobial and antibreast cancer agents. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biogenic nanomaterials from photosynthetic microorganisms.

PubMed

Jeffryes, Clayton; Agathos, Spiros N; Rorrer, Gregory

2015-06-01

The use of algal cell cultures represents a sustainable and environmentally friendly platform for the biogenic production of nanobiomaterials and biocatalysts. For example, advances in the production of biogeneic nanomaterials from algal cell cultures, such as crystalline β-chitin nanofibrils and gold and silver nanoparticles, could enable the 'green' production of biomaterials such as tissue-engineering scaffolds or drug carriers, supercapacitors and optoelectric materials. The in vivo functionalization, as well as newly demonstrated methods of production and modification, of biogenic diatom biosilica have led to the development of organic-inorganic hybrid catalytic systems as well as new biomaterials for drug delivery, biosensors and heavy-metal adsorbents. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The potency of electrical energy production from urine by microbial fuel cell using boron-doped diamond electrode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahmawati, I.; Ivandini, T. A.; Saepudin, E.

2017-04-01

Microbial fuel cell was developed since it is one of the prospective alternative energy and eco-friendly, using urine as the fuel and Candida fukuyamaensis as a biocatalyst. Boron-doped diamond was used as the electrode. At pH 7, maximum power and current densities of 109.6 mW/m2 and 970 mA/m2 can be obtained, respectively. The results indicated the potency of the system to produce an alternative energy. Furthermore, glucose and creatinine in urine are proposed to be responsible as the carbon sources for the metabolism of C. fukuyamaensis.

Speech Acts During Friends' and Non-friends' Spontaneous Conversations in Preschool Dyads with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder versus Typical Development.

PubMed

Bauminger-Zviely, Nirit; Golan-Itshaky, Adi; Tubul-Lavy, Gila

2017-05-01

In this study, we videotaped two 10-min. free-play interactions and coded speech acts (SAs) in peer talk of 51 preschoolers (21 ASD, 30 typical), interacting with friend versus non-friend partners. Groups were matched for maternal education, IQ (verbal/nonverbal), and CA. We compared SAs by group (ASD/typical), by partner's friendship status (friend/non-friend), and by partner's disability status. Main results yielded a higher amount and diversity of SAs in the typical than the ASD group (mainly in assertive acts, organizational devices, object-dubbing, and pretend-play); yet, those categories, among others, showed better performance with friends versus non-friends. Overall, a more nuanced perception of the pragmatic deficit in ASD should be adopted, highlighting friendship as an important context for children's development of SAs.

[Effects of the disclosure of homosexuality on heterosexual undergraduates' behaviors with a same-sex close friend and their attitudes toward homosexuality].

PubMed

Wada, Minoru

2010-10-01

This study investigated heterosexual undergraduates' behavior with a same-sex close friend and their attitudes toward homosexuality after this friend disclosed his/her sexual orientation. The study also examined whether the heterosexual friend was regarded as a romantic love object or not. Participants were 77 male and 139 female undergraduates. Males decreased their behaviors with their close friend and adopted more positive attitudes toward gay men after they knew their friend's sexual orientation. Females decreased their behavior with their close friend more after learning that they were a romantic love object of their friend, compared to when tehy were not. Also females adopted more positive attitudes toward lesbians only after knowing they were not a romantic love object. These gender differences are discussed.

Friend affiliations and school adjustment among Mexican-American adolescents: the moderating role of peer and parent support.

PubMed

Espinoza, Guadalupe; Gillen-O'Neel, Cari; Gonzales, Nancy A; Fuligni, Andrew J

2014-12-01

Studies examining friendships among Mexican-American adolescents have largely focused on their potentially negative influence. The current study examined the extent to which deviant and achievement-oriented friend affiliations are associated with Mexican-American adolescents' school adjustment and also tested whether support from friends and parents moderates these associations. High school students (N = 412; 49 % male) completed questionnaires and daily diaries; primary caregivers also completed a questionnaire. Although results revealed few direct associations between friend affiliations and school adjustment, several moderations emerged. In general, the influence of friends' affiliation was strongest when support from friends was high and parental support was low. The findings suggest that only examining links between friend affiliations and school outcomes does not fully capture how friends promote or hinder school adjustment.

On global energy scenario, dye-sensitized solar cells and the promise of nanotechnology.

PubMed

Reddy, K Govardhan; Deepak, T G; Anjusree, G S; Thomas, Sara; Vadukumpully, Sajini; Subramanian, K R V; Nair, Shantikumar V; Nair, A Sreekumaran

2014-04-21

One of the major problems that humanity has to face in the next 50 years is the energy crisis. The rising population, rapidly changing life styles of people, heavy industrialization and changing landscape of cities have increased energy demands, enormously. The present annual worldwide electricity consumption is 12 TW and is expected to become 24 TW by 2050, leaving a challenging deficit of 12 TW. The present energy scenario of using fossil fuels to meet the energy demand is unable to meet the increase in demand effectively, as these fossil fuel resources are non-renewable and limited. Also, they cause significant environmental hazards, like global warming and the associated climatic issues. Hence, there is an urgent necessity to adopt renewable sources of energy, which are eco-friendly and not extinguishable. Of the various renewable sources available, such as wind, tidal, geothermal, biomass, solar, etc., solar serves as the most dependable option. Solar energy is freely and abundantly available. Once installed, the maintenance cost is very low. It is eco-friendly, safely fitting into our society without any disturbance. Producing electricity from the Sun requires the installation of solar panels, which incurs a huge initial cost and requires large areas of lands for installation. This is where nanotechnology comes into the picture and serves the purpose of increasing the efficiency to higher levels, thus bringing down the overall cost for energy production. Also, emerging low-cost solar cell technologies, e.g. thin film technologies and dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) help to replace the use of silicon, which is expensive. Again, nanotechnological implications can be applied in these solar cells, to achieve higher efficiencies. This paper vividly deals with the various available solar cells, choosing DSCs as the most appropriate ones. The nanotechnological implications which help to improve their performance are dealt with, in detail. Additionally, the economic and ecological aspects of using nanotechnology are briefly introduced.

Automated platform for designing multiple robot work cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Osman, N. S.; Rahman, M. A. A.; Rahman, A. A. Abdul; Kamsani, S. H.; Bali Mohamad, B. M.; Mohamad, E.; Zaini, Z. A.; Rahman, M. F. Ab; Mohamad Hatta, M. N. H.

2017-06-01

Designing the multiple robot work cells is very knowledge-intensive, intricate, and time-consuming process. This paper elaborates the development process of a computer-aided design program for generating the multiple robot work cells which offer a user-friendly interface. The primary purpose of this work is to provide a fast and easy platform for less cost and human involvement with minimum trial and errors adjustments. The automated platform is constructed based on the variant-shaped configuration concept with its mathematical model. A robot work cell layout, system components, and construction procedure of the automated platform are discussed in this paper where integration of these items will be able to automatically provide the optimum robot work cell design according to the information set by the user. This system is implemented on top of CATIA V5 software and utilises its Part Design, Assembly Design, and Macro tool. The current outcomes of this work provide a basis for future investigation in developing a flexible configuration system for the multiple robot work cells.

From in vitro to in vivo: Integration of the virtual cell based assay with physiologically based kinetic modelling.

PubMed

Paini, Alicia; Sala Benito, Jose Vicente; Bessems, Jos; Worth, Andrew P

2017-12-01

Physiologically based kinetic (PBK) models and the virtual cell based assay can be linked to form so called physiologically based dynamic (PBD) models. This study illustrates the development and application of a PBK model for prediction of estragole-induced DNA adduct formation and hepatotoxicity in humans. To address the hepatotoxicity, HepaRG cells were used as a surrogate for liver cells, with cell viability being used as the in vitro toxicological endpoint. Information on DNA adduct formation was taken from the literature. Since estragole induced cell damage is not directly caused by the parent compound, but by a reactive metabolite, information on the metabolic pathway was incorporated into the model. In addition, a user-friendly tool was developed by implementing the PBK/D model into a KNIME workflow. This workflow can be used to perform in vitro to in vivo extrapolation and forward as backward dosimetry in support of chemical risk assessment. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

The Yin and Yang of Innate Lymphoid Cells in Cancer.

PubMed

Carrega, Paolo; Campana, Stefania; Bonaccorsi, Irene; Ferlazzo, Guido

2016-11-01

The recent appreciation of novel subsets of innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) as important regulators of tissue homeostasis, inflammation and repair, raise questions regarding the presence and role of these cells in cancer tissues. In addition to natural killer and fetal lymphoid tissue inducer (LTi) cells, the ILC family comprises non-cytolytic, cytokine-producing cells that are classified into ILC1, ILC2 and ILC3 based on phenotypic and functional characteristics. Differently from natural killer cells, which are the prototypical members of ILC1 and whose role in tumors is better established, the involvement of other ILC subsets in cancer progression or resistance is still fuzzy and in several instances controversial, since current studies indicate both context-dependent beneficial or pathogenic effects. Here, we review the current knowledge regarding the involvement of these novel ILC subsets in the context of tumor immunology, highlighting how ILC subsets might behave either as friends or foes. Copyright © 2016 European Federation of Immunological Societies. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

EXPLORING PARENT-SIBLING COMMUNICATION IN FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH SICKLE CELL DISEASE

PubMed Central

Graff, J. Carolyn; Hankins, Jane S.; Hardy, Belinda T.; Hall, Heather R.; Roberts, Ruth J.; Neely-Barnes, Susan L.

2011-01-01

Focus group interviews were conducted with parents of children with sickle cell disease to explore parent-sibling communication about sickle cell disease. Communication was influenced by attributes and behaviors of the parent, the child with sickle cell disease, and the sibling; extended family, neighbors, friends, and church members or social networks; and available, accessible resources related to the child’s health, child’s school, and parent employment. Outcomes that influenced and were influenced by factors within and outside the parent-sibling dyad and nuclear family included parent satisfaction, parent roles, family intactness, and status attainment. These findings support previous research with African American families and expand our views of the importance of educating parents, family members, and others about sickle cell disease. The findings suggest a need to explore sibling perception of this communication, parent and sibling perception of the impact of frequent hospitalizations and clinic visits on the sibling and family, and variations within families of children with sickle cell disease. PMID:20384476

Understanding the mechanisms of lipid extraction from microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii after electrical field solicitations and mechanical stress within a microfluidic device.

PubMed

Bensalem, Sakina; Lopes, Filipa; Bodénès, Pierre; Pareau, Dominique; Français, Olivier; Le Pioufle, Bruno

2018-06-01

One way envisioned to overcome part of the issues biodiesel production encounters today is to develop a simple, economically viable and eco-friendly process for the extraction of lipids from microalgae. This study investigates the lipid extraction efficiency from the microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as well as the underlying mechanisms. We propose a new methodology combining a pulsed electric field (PEF) application and mechanical stresses as a pretreatment to improve lipid extraction with solvents. Cells enriched in lipids are therefore submitted to electric field pulses creating pores on the cell membrane and then subjected to a mechanical stress by applying cyclic pressures on the cell wall (using a microfluidic device). Results showed an increase in lipid extraction when cells were pretreated by the combination of both methods. Microscopic observations showed that both pretreatments affect the cell structure. Finally, the dependency of solvent lipid extraction efficiency with the cell wall structure is discussed. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Angel and the Devil on your shoulder: Friends mitigate and exacerbate 21st birthday alcohol-related consequences.

PubMed

Fillo, Jennifer; Rodriguez, Lindsey M; Anthenien, Amber M; Neighbors, Clayton; Lee, Christine M

2017-11-01

Twenty-first birthdays are associated with heavier drinking and more negative consequences than any other high-risk drinking event. Friends are the strongest social influence on young adult drinking; however, previous research on college students' drinking has often only examined individuals' perceptions of "friends" generally. Unfortunately, this may obscure the positive influence of some friends and the negative influence of others. Using data drawn from a larger intervention study aimed at reducing 21st birthday drinking, this research examined how specific friends (N = 166) who were present at 21st birthday celebrations may have exacerbated or mitigated celebrants' (N = 166) experience of alcohol-related consequences, as well as how characteristics of that friendship moderate these effects. Controlling for sex, alcohol consumption, and friend prointoxication intentions for the celebrants' 21st birthday drinking, higher friend prosafety/support intentions predicted the celebrants experiencing fewer alcohol-related consequences. Higher prosafety/support intentions also buffered participants from the negative influence of friend prointoxication intentions. Furthermore, the closeness of the friendship moderated this effect. At high levels of closeness, having a friend with lower prosafety/support intentions was associated with more alcohol-related consequences for the celebrant. Post hoc analyses revealed that this effect may have been driven by discrepancies between celebrants' and friends' reports of friendship closeness; celebrants' perception of closeness that was higher than the friends' perception was associated with the celebrant experiencing more alcohol-related consequences. Results demonstrate the ways that specific friends can both mitigate and exacerbate 21st birthday alcohol-related consequences. The implications of the present findings for incorporating specific friends into drinking-related interventions are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Adolescent Friend Similarity on Alcohol Abuse as a Function of Participation in Romantic Relationships: Sometimes a New Love Comes Between Old Friends

PubMed Central

DeLay, Dawn; Laursen, Brett; Bukowski, William M.; Kerr, Margaret; Stattin, Håkan

2015-01-01

This study tests the hypothesis that adolescents with romantic partners are less similar to their friend on rates of alcohol abuse than adolescents without romantic partners. Participants (662 girls, 574 boys) ranging in age from 12 to 19 years, nominated friends and romantic partners, and completed a measure of alcohol abuse. In hierarchical linear models, friends with romantic partners were less similar on rates of alcohol abuse than friends without romantic partners, especially if they were older and less accepted. Follow-up longitudinal analyses were conducted on a subsample (266 boys, 374 girls) of adolescents who reported friendships that were stable across two consecutive years. Associations between friend reports of alcohol abuse declined after adolescents became involved in a romantic relationship, to the point where they became more similar to their romantic partners than to their friends. PMID:26595356

The role of gender and friends' gender on peer socialization of adolescent drinking: a prospective multilevel social network analysis.

PubMed

Deutsch, Arielle R; Steinley, Douglas; Slutske, Wendy S

2014-09-01

Although socializing effects of friends' drinking on adolescent drinking behavior have been firmly established in previous literature, study results on the importance of gender, as well as the specific role that gender may play in peer socialization, are very mixed. Given the increasing importance of gender in friendships (particularly opposite-sex friendships) during adolescence, it is necessary to better understand the nuanced roles that gender can play in peer socialization effects on alcohol use. In addition, previous studies focusing on the interplay between individual gender and friends' gender have been largely dyadic; less is known about potential gendered effects of broader social networks. The current study sought to further investigate potential effects of gender on friends' influence on adolescent drinking behavior with particular emphasis on the number of same-sex and opposite-sex friends within one's friendship network, as well as closeness to these friends. Using Waves I and II of the saturated sample of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), adolescent friendship networks were used to calculate the mean drinking behaviors of adolescent friends. Multi-level models estimated the effects of individual drinking behaviors, friend drinking behaviors, and school-level drinking behaviors on adolescent drinking 1 year later, as well as moderating effects of gender composition of friendship groups and male and female friend closeness on the relationship between friends' drinking behaviors and adolescent drinking behavior. Results documented that gender composition of friendship groups did not influence the effect of friends' drinking on individual drinking 1 year later. However, closeness to friends did influence this relationship. As closeness to male friends decreased, the influence of their drinking behavior increased, for both boys and girls. A similar effect was found for female friends, but only for boys. Female friend closeness did not affect the relationship between peer alcohol socialization and girls' alcohol use. The findings indicate that the role of gender on alcohol socialization may be more complex than previously thought, particularly when examining the potential role that alcohol use may play as a mechanism for social bonding within opposite-sex friendships and same-sex male friendships.

CellAtlasSearch: a scalable search engine for single cells.

PubMed

Srivastava, Divyanshu; Iyer, Arvind; Kumar, Vibhor; Sengupta, Debarka

2018-05-21

Owing to the advent of high throughput single cell transcriptomics, past few years have seen exponential growth in production of gene expression data. Recently efforts have been made by various research groups to homogenize and store single cell expression from a large number of studies. The true value of this ever increasing data deluge can be unlocked by making it searchable. To this end, we propose CellAtlasSearch, a novel search architecture for high dimensional expression data, which is massively parallel as well as light-weight, thus infinitely scalable. In CellAtlasSearch, we use a Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) friendly version of Locality Sensitive Hashing (LSH) for unmatched speedup in data processing and query. Currently, CellAtlasSearch features over 300 000 reference expression profiles including both bulk and single-cell data. It enables the user query individual single cell transcriptomes and finds matching samples from the database along with necessary meta information. CellAtlasSearch aims to assist researchers and clinicians in characterizing unannotated single cells. It also facilitates noise free, low dimensional representation of single-cell expression profiles by projecting them on a wide variety of reference samples. The web-server is accessible at: http://www.cellatlassearch.com.

Energy cost unit of street and park lighting system with solar technology for a more friendly city

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Warman, E.; Nasution, F. S.; Fahmi, F.

2018-03-01

Street and park lighting system is part of a basic infrastructure need to be available in such a friendly city. Enough light will provide more comfort to citizens, especially at night since its function to illuminate roads and park environments around the covered area. The necessity to add more and more lighting around the city caused the rapid growth of the street and park lighting system while the power from PLN (national electricity company) is insufficient and the cost is getting higher. Therefore, it is necessary to consider other energy sources that are economical, environmentally friendly with good continuity. Indonesia, which located on the equator, have benefited from getting solar radiation throughout the year. This free solar radiation can be utilized as an energy source converted by solar cells to empower street and park lighting system. In this study, we planned the street and park lighting with solar technology as alternatives. It was found that for Kota Medan itself, an average solar radiation intensity of 3,454.17 Wh / m2 / day is available. By using prediction and projection method, it was calculated that the energy cost unit for this system was at Rp 3,455.19 per kWh. This cost was higher than normal energy cost unit but can answer the scarcity of energy availability for street and park lighting system

One-pot synthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acid amides with anti-proliferative properties.

PubMed

Tremblay, Hugo; St-Georges, Catherine; Legault, Marc-André; Morin, Caroline; Fortin, Samuel; Marsault, Eric

2014-12-15

A one-pot environmentally friendly transamidation of ω-3 fatty acid ethyl esters to amides and mono- or diacylglycerols was investigated via the use of a polymer-supported lipase. The method was used to synthesize a library of fatty acid monoglyceryl esters and amides. These new derivatives were found to have potent growth inhibition effects against A549 lung cancer cells. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Carbon nanostructures for solar energy conversion schemes.

PubMed

Guldi, Dirk M; Sgobba, Vito

2011-01-14

Developing environmentally friendly, renewable energy is one of the challenges to society in the 21st century. One of the renewable energy technologies is solar energy conversion--a technology that directly converts daylight into electricity. This highlight surveys recent breakthroughs in the field of implementing carbon nanostructures--fullerenes (0D), carbon nanotubes (1D), carbon nanohorns, and graphene (2D)--into solar energy conversion schemes, that is, bulk heterojunction and dye-sensitized solar cells.

The Coast Guard Proceedings of the Marine Safety and Security Council. Volume 72, Number 2, Summer 2015

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-01

environ- mentally friendly power -producing and -saving technolo- gies on physical ATONs; using photovoltaic cells as supple- mental power sources, such...ATON positioning, solar power , and self-contained LED lanterns. And, as technological advancements have made accessing and transiting the MTS more...Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) charts up to date. However, with the vast increase in com- puting power and system interconnectivity, there is a rec

Friends and social contexts as unshared environments: a discordant sibling analysis of obesity- and health-related behaviors in young adolescents.

PubMed

Salvy, S-J; Feda, D M; Epstein, L H; Roemmich, J N

2017-04-01

This study examines the contribution of best friends' weight and the peer social context (time spent alone versus with friends) as sources of unshared environment associated with variability in weight and health behaviors among weight-discordant siblings. Pairs of same-sex biologic siblings (N=40 pairs; ages 13-17) were originally recruited as part of a study evaluating putative factors contributing to differences in adiposity among weight-discordant siblings. Siblings were asked to bring their best friends to the laboratory and siblings and friends' height and weight were objectively measured. Siblings also completed multi-pass dietary recalls to assess energy intake and sugar sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption. Siblings' physical activity was measured using accelerometry. Experience sampling methodology was used to assess sedentary behaviors/screen time and the number of occasions siblings spent alone and in the presence of friends. Multilevel models were used to estimate the relationships between predictors (best friends' zBMI, time spent alone or with friends) and outcomes (siblings' zBMI and obesity-related health behaviors). Best friends' zBMI was the best predictor of participants' zBMI, even when controlling for child's birth weight. Best friends' weight (zBMI) further predicted participants' SSB intake and time engaged in sedentary behaviors. Being active with friends was positively associated with participants' overall physical activity, whereas spending time alone was negatively associated with accelerometer counts regardless of siblings' adiposity. A friends' weight and the social context are unshared environmental factors associated with variability in adiposity among biologically-related weight-discordant siblings.

Friend suggestion in social network based on user log

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaviya, R.; Vanitha, M.; Sumaiya Thaseen, I.; Mangaiyarkarasi, R.

2017-11-01

Simple friend recommendation algorithms such as similarity, popularity and social aspects is the basic requirement to be explored to methodically form high-performance social friend recommendation. Suggestion of friends is followed. No tags of character were followed. In the proposed system, we use an algorithm for network correlation-based social friend recommendation (NC-based SFR).It includes user activities like where one lives and works. A new friend recommendation method, based on network correlation, by considering the effect of different social roles. To model the correlation between different networks, we develop a method that aligns these networks through important feature selection. We consider by preserving the network structure for a more better recommendations so that it significantly improves the accuracy for better friend-recommendation.

Labeling proteins inside living cells using external fluorophores for microscopy.

PubMed

Teng, Kai Wen; Ishitsuka, Yuji; Ren, Pin; Youn, Yeoan; Deng, Xiang; Ge, Pinghua; Lee, Sang Hak; Belmont, Andrew S; Selvin, Paul R

2016-12-09

Site-specific fluorescent labeling of proteins inside live mammalian cells has been achieved by employing Streptolysin O, a bacterial enzyme which forms temporary pores in the membrane and allows delivery of virtually any fluorescent probes, ranging from labeled IgG's to small ligands, with high efficiency (>85% of cells). The whole process, including recovery, takes 30 min, and the cell is ready to be imaged immediately. A variety of cell viability tests were performed after treatment with SLO to ensure that the cells have intact membranes, are able to divide, respond normally to signaling molecules, and maintains healthy organelle morphology. When combined with Oxyrase, a cell-friendly photostabilizer, a ~20x improvement in fluorescence photostability is achieved. By adding in glutathione, fluorophores are made to blink, enabling super-resolution fluorescence with 20-30 nm resolution over a long time (~30 min) under continuous illumination. Example applications in conventional and super-resolution imaging of native and transfected cells include p65 signal transduction activation, single molecule tracking of kinesin, and specific labeling of a series of nuclear and cytoplasmic protein complexes.

Friends not foes: CTLA-4 blockade and mTOR inhibition cooperate during CD8+ T cell priming to promote memory formation and metabolic readiness.

PubMed

Pedicord, Virginia A; Cross, Justin R; Montalvo-Ortiz, Welby; Miller, Martin L; Allison, James P

2015-03-01

During primary Ag encounter, T cells receive numerous positive and negative signals that control their proliferation, function, and differentiation, but how these signals are integrated to modulate T cell memory has not been fully characterized. In these studies, we demonstrate that combining seemingly opposite signals, CTLA-4 blockade and rapamycin-mediated mammalian target of rapamycin inhibition, during in vivo T cell priming leads to both an increase in the frequency of memory CD8(+) T cells and improved memory responses to tumors and bacterial challenges. This enhanced efficacy corresponds to increased early expansion and memory precursor differentiation of CD8(+) T cells and increased mitochondrial biogenesis and spare respiratory capacity in memory CD8(+) T cells in mice treated with anti-CTLA-4 and rapamycin during immunization. Collectively, these results reveal that mammalian target of rapamycin inhibition cooperates with rather than antagonizes blockade of CTLA-4, promoting unrestrained effector function and proliferation, and an optimal metabolic program for CD8(+) T cell memory. Copyright © 2015 by The American Association of Immunologists, Inc.

Cancer-derived extracellular vesicles: friend and foe of tumour immunosurveillance.

PubMed

Dörsam, Bastian; Reiners, Kathrin S; von Strandmann, Elke Pogge

2018-01-05

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are important players of intercellular signalling mechanisms, including communication with and among immune cells. EVs can affect the surrounding tissue as well as peripheral cells. Recently, EVs have been identified to be involved in the aetiology of several diseases, including cancer. Tumour cell-released EVs or exosomes have been shown to promote a tumour-supporting environment in non-malignant tissue and, thus, benefit metastasis. The underlying mechanisms are numerous: loss of antigen expression, direct suppression of immune effector cells, exchange of nucleic acids, alteration of the recipient cells' transcription and direct suppression of immune cells. Consequently, tumour cells can subvert the host's immune detection as well as suppress the immune system. On the contrary, recent studies reported the existence of EVs able to activate immune cells, thus promoting the tumour-directed immune response. In this article, the immunosuppressive capabilities of EVs, on the one hand, and their potential use in immunoactivation and therapeutic potential, on the other hand, are discussed.This article is part of the discussion meeting issue 'Extracellular vesicles and the tumour microenvironment'. © 2017 The Authors.

Facile and eco-friendly synthesis of green fluorescent carbon nanodots for applications in bioimaging, patterning and staining

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Lihong; Li, Yanyan; Li, Xiaofeng; Wen, Xiangping; Zhang, Guomei; Yang, Jun; Dong, Chuan; Shuang, Shaomin

2015-04-01

We report a facile and eco-friendly strategy for the fabrication of green fluorescent carbon nanodots (CDs), and demonstrate their applications for bio-imaging, patterning, and staining. A one-pot hydrothermal method using various plant petals yields bright green-emitting CDs, providing an easy way for the production of green fluorescent CDs without the need for a tedious synthetic methodology or the use of toxic/expensive solvents and starting materials. The as-prepared CDs show small size distribution and excellent dispersibility. Their strong green fluorescence is observed when the excitation wavelength is between 430 nm and 490 nm. Moreover, they exhibit high tolerance to various external conditions, such as pH values, external cations, and continuous excitation. Due to minimum toxicity as well as good photoluminescence properties, these CDs can be applied to in vitro and in vivo imaging, patterning, and staining. According to confocal fluorescence imaging of human uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma cells, CDs penetrate into the cell and enter the cytoplasm and the nucleus. More strikingly, carp is directly fed with CDs for in vivo imaging and shows bright green fluorescence at an excitation wavelength of 470 nm. In addition, the obtained CDs are used as fluorescent inks for drawing luminescence patterns. Finally, we also apply the CDs as a fluorescent dye. Interestingly, the absorbent filter paper with staining emits dramatic fluorescence under 470 nm excitation.We report a facile and eco-friendly strategy for the fabrication of green fluorescent carbon nanodots (CDs), and demonstrate their applications for bio-imaging, patterning, and staining. A one-pot hydrothermal method using various plant petals yields bright green-emitting CDs, providing an easy way for the production of green fluorescent CDs without the need for a tedious synthetic methodology or the use of toxic/expensive solvents and starting materials. The as-prepared CDs show small size distribution and excellent dispersibility. Their strong green fluorescence is observed when the excitation wavelength is between 430 nm and 490 nm. Moreover, they exhibit high tolerance to various external conditions, such as pH values, external cations, and continuous excitation. Due to minimum toxicity as well as good photoluminescence properties, these CDs can be applied to in vitro and in vivo imaging, patterning, and staining. According to confocal fluorescence imaging of human uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma cells, CDs penetrate into the cell and enter the cytoplasm and the nucleus. More strikingly, carp is directly fed with CDs for in vivo imaging and shows bright green fluorescence at an excitation wavelength of 470 nm. In addition, the obtained CDs are used as fluorescent inks for drawing luminescence patterns. Finally, we also apply the CDs as a fluorescent dye. Interestingly, the absorbent filter paper with staining emits dramatic fluorescence under 470 nm excitation. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr00783f

STAT3 in Cancer—Friend or Foe?

PubMed Central

Zhang, Hai-Feng; Lai, Raymond

2014-01-01

The roles and significance of STAT3 in cancer biology have been extensively studied for more than a decade. Mounting evidence has shown that constitutive activation of STAT3 is a frequent biochemical aberrancy in cancer cells, and this abnormality directly contributes to tumorigenesis and shapes many malignant phenotypes in cancer cells. Nevertheless, results from more recent experimental and clinicopathologic studies have suggested that STAT3 also can exert tumor suppressor effects under specific conditions. Importantly, some of these studies have demonstrated that STAT3 can function either as an oncoprotein or a tumor suppressor in the same cell type, depending on the specific genetic background or presence/absence of specific coexisting biochemical defects. Thus, in the context of cancer biology, STAT3 can be a friend or foe. In the first half of this review, we will highlight the “evil” features of STAT3 by summarizing its oncogenic functions and mechanisms. The differences between the canonical and non-canonical pathway will be highlighted. In the second half, we will summarize the evidence supporting that STAT3 can function as a tumor suppressor. To explain how STAT3 may mediate its tumor suppressor effects, we will discuss several possible mechanisms, one of which is linked to the role of STAT3β, one of the two STAT3 splicing isoforms. Taken together, it is clear that the roles of STAT3 in cancer are multi-faceted and far more complicated than one appreciated previously. The new knowledge has provided us with new approaches and strategies when we evaluate STAT3 as a prognostic biomarker or therapeutic target. PMID:24995504

Optimization for extracellular biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles by Penicillium aculeatum Su1 and their antimicrobial activity and cytotoxic effect compared with silver ions.

PubMed

Ma, Liang; Su, Wei; Liu, Jian-Xin; Zeng, Xiao-Xi; Huang, Zhi; Li, Wen; Liu, Zheng-Chun; Tang, Jian-Xin

2017-08-01

The present study addresses an eco-friendly and energy-saving method for extracellular biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using a cell free filtrate of the fungus strain Penicillium aculeatum Su1 as a reducing agent. Parametric optimization of the biosynthesis process demonstrated different effects on the size, distribution, yield, and synthesis rate of biosynthesized AgNPs. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) measurements demonstrated that AgNPs were spherical or approximately spherical, with a size between 4 and 55nm. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses indicated that AgNPs were nanocrystalline by nature, with the character of a face-centered cubic (fcc). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis confirmed the existence of protein molecules that acted as a reducing agent and a capping agent during the biosynthesis process. Furthermore, the biosynthesized AgNPs exhibited higher antimicrobial activity than silver ions against Gram negative bacteria, Gram positive bacteria and fungi. Compared with silver ions, the biosynthesized AgNPs presented higher biocompatibility toward human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cells and high cytotoxicity in a dose-dependent manner with an IC 50 of 48.73μg/mL toward A549 cells. These results demonstrate that Penicillium aculeatum Su1 is a potential bioresource that can be used to produce low-cost and eco-friendly AgNPs as efficient antimicrobial agent, drug delivery vehicle or anticancer drug for clinic treatment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Numerical Approach to Spatial Deterministic-Stochastic Models Arising in Cell Biology.

PubMed

Schaff, James C; Gao, Fei; Li, Ye; Novak, Igor L; Slepchenko, Boris M

2016-12-01

Hybrid deterministic-stochastic methods provide an efficient alternative to a fully stochastic treatment of models which include components with disparate levels of stochasticity. However, general-purpose hybrid solvers for spatially resolved simulations of reaction-diffusion systems are not widely available. Here we describe fundamentals of a general-purpose spatial hybrid method. The method generates realizations of a spatially inhomogeneous hybrid system by appropriately integrating capabilities of a deterministic partial differential equation solver with a popular particle-based stochastic simulator, Smoldyn. Rigorous validation of the algorithm is detailed, using a simple model of calcium 'sparks' as a testbed. The solver is then applied to a deterministic-stochastic model of spontaneous emergence of cell polarity. The approach is general enough to be implemented within biologist-friendly software frameworks such as Virtual Cell.

Enzyme-assisted extraction of bioactives from plants.

PubMed

Puri, Munish; Sharma, Deepika; Barrow, Colin J

2012-01-01

Demand for new and novel natural compounds has intensified the development of plant-derived compounds known as bioactives that either promote health or are toxic when ingested. Enhanced release of these bioactives from plant cells by cell disruption and extraction through the cell wall can be optimized using enzyme preparations either alone or in mixtures. However, the biotechnological application of enzymes is not currently exploited to its maximum potential within the food industry. Here, we discuss the use of environmentally friendly enzyme-assisted extraction of bioactive compounds from plant sources, particularly for food and nutraceutical purposes. In particular, we discuss an enzyme-assisted extraction of stevioside from Stevia rebaudiana, as an example of a process of potential value to the food industry. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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

PubMed

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.

The Contagious Spread of Violence Among US Adolescents Through Social Networks.

PubMed

Bond, Robert M; Bushman, Brad J

2017-02-01

To test the hypothesis that violence among US adolescents spreads like a contagious disease through social networks. Participants were a nationally representative sample of 90 118 US students aged 12 to 18 years who were involved in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Violence was assessed by having participants report the number of times in the preceding 12 months they had been involved in a serious physical fight, had hurt someone badly, and had pulled a weapon on someone. Participants were 48% more likely to have been involved in a serious fight, 183% more likely to have hurt someone badly, and 140% more likely to have pulled a weapon on someone if a friend had engaged in the same behavior. The influence spread up to 4 degrees of separation (i.e., friend of friend of friend of friend) for serious fights, 2 degrees for hurting someone badly, and 3 degrees for pulling a weapon on someone. Adolescents were more likely to engage in violent behavior if their friends did the same, and contagion of violence extended beyond immediate friends to friends of friends.

Independent control of matrix adhesiveness and stiffness within a 3D self-assembling peptide hydrogel.

PubMed

Hogrebe, Nathaniel J; Reinhardt, James W; Tram, Nguyen K; Debski, Anna C; Agarwal, Gunjan; Reilly, Matthew A; Gooch, Keith J

2018-04-01

A cell's insoluble microenvironment has increasingly been shown to exert influence on its function. In particular, matrix stiffness and adhesiveness strongly impact behaviors such as cell spreading and differentiation, but materials that allow for independent control of these parameters within a fibrous, stromal-like microenvironment are very limited. In the current work, we devise a self-assembling peptide (SAP) system that facilitates user-friendly control of matrix stiffness and RGD (Arg-Gly-Asp) concentration within a hydrogel possessing a microarchitecture similar to stromal extracellular matrix. In this system, the RGD-modified SAP sequence KFE-RGD and the scrambled sequence KFE-RDG can be directly swapped for one another to change RGD concentration at a given matrix stiffness and total peptide concentration. Stiffness is controlled by altering total peptide concentration, and the unmodified base peptide KFE-8 can be included to further increase this stiffness range due to its higher modulus. With this tunable system, we demonstrate that human mesenchymal stem cell morphology and differentiation are influenced by both gel stiffness and the presence of functional cell binding sites in 3D culture. Specifically, cells 24 hours after encapsulation were only able to spread out in stiffer matrices containing KFE-RGD. Upon addition of soluble adipogenic factors, soft gels facilitated the greatest adipogenesis as determined by the presence of lipid vacuoles and PPARγ-2 expression, while increasing KFE-RGD concentration at a given stiffness had a negative effect on adipogenesis. This three-component hydrogel system thus allows for systematic investigation of matrix stiffness and RGD concentration on cell behavior within a fibrous, three-dimensional matrix. Physical cues from a cell's surrounding environment-such as the density of cell binding sites and the stiffness of the surrounding material-are increasingly being recognized as key regulators of cell function. Currently, most synthetic biomaterials used to independently tune these parameters lack the fibrous structure characteristic of stromal extracellular matrix, which can be important to cells naturally residing within stromal tissues. In this manuscript, we describe a 3D hydrogel encapsulation system that provides user-friendly control over matrix stiffness and binding site concentration within the context of a stromal-like microarchitecture. Binding site concentration and gel stiffness both influenced cell spreading and differentiation, highlighting the utility of this system to study the independent effects of these material properties on cell function. Copyright © 2018 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

75 FR 63851 - Draft Friends Organizations Policy

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-10-18

...] Draft Friends Organizations Policy AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior. ACTION... Service's mission through partnerships with Friends organizations (volunteer/advocate). Today, Friends organizations play a vital role in helping to fulfill the Service's mission of ``working with others, to...

Dendritic cell subsets in type 1 diabetes: friend or foe?

PubMed

Morel, Penelope A

2013-12-06

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a T cell mediated autoimmune disease characterized by immune mediated destruction of the insulin-producing β cells in the islets of Langerhans. Dendritic cells (DC) have been implicated in the pathogenesis of T1D and are also used as immunotherapeutic agents. Plasmacytoid (p)DC have been shown to have both protective and pathogenic effects and a newly described merocytic DC population has been shown to break tolerance in the mouse model of T1D, the non-obese diabetic (NOD) mouse. We have used DC populations to prevent the onset of T1D in NOD mice and clinical trials of DC therapy in T1D diabetes have been initiated. In this review we will critically examine the recent published literature on the role of DC subsets in the induction and regulation of the autoimmune response in T1D.

The impact of Fli1 deficiency on the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis

PubMed Central

Asano, Yoshihide; Bujor, Andreea M.; Trojanowska, Maria

2013-01-01

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune inflammatory disease with unknown etiology characterized by microvascular injury and fibrosis of the skin and internal organs. A growing body of evidence suggests that deficiency of the transcription factor Fli1 (Friend leukemia integration-1) has a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of SSc. Fli1 is expressed in fibroblasts, endothelial cells, and immune cells, and has important roles in the activation, differentiation, development, and survival of these cells. Previous studies demonstrated that Fli1 is downregulated in SSc fibroblasts by an epigenetic mechanism and a series of experiments with Fli1-deficient animal models revealed that Fli1 deficiency in fibroblasts and endothelial cells reproduces the histopathologic features of fibrosis and vasculopathy in SSc, respectively. In this article, we review the impact of Fli1 deficiency on the pathogenesis of SSc and discuss a new therapeutic strategy for SSc by targeting the transcription factor Fli1. PMID:20663647

Intelligent automotive battery systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Witehira, P.

A single power-supply battery is incompatible with modern vehicles. A one-cmbination 12 cell/12 V battery, developed by Power Beat International Limited (PBIL), is described. The battery is designed to be a 'drop in' replacement for existing batteries. The cell structures, however, are designed according to load function, i.e., high-current shallow-discharge cycles and low-current deep-discharge cycles. The preferred energy discharge management logic and integration into the power distribution network of the vehicle to provide safe user-friendly usage is described. The system is designed to operate transparent to the vehicle user. The integrity of the volatile high-current cells is maintained by temperature-sensitive voltage control and discharge management. The deep-cycle cells can be fully utilized without affecting startability under extreme conditions. Electric energy management synchronization with engine starting will provide at least 6% overall reduction in hydrocarbon emissions using an intelligent on-board power-supply technology developed by PBIL.

Fcgamma receptors: old friends and new family members.

PubMed

Nimmerjahn, Falk; Ravetch, Jeffrey V

2006-01-01

Although cellular receptors for immunoglobulins were first identified nearly 40 years ago, their central role in the immune response was discovered only in the last decade. They are key players in both the afferent and efferent phase of an immune response, setting thresholds for B cell activation, regulating the maturation of dendritic cells, and coupling the exquisite specificity of the antibody response to innate effector pathways, such as phagocytosis, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, and the recruitment and activation of inflammatory cells. Moreover, because of their general presence as receptor pairs consisting of activating and inhibitory molecules on the same cell, they have become a paradigm for studying the balance of positive and negative signals that ultimately determine the outcome of an immune response. This review will summarize recent results in Fc-receptor biology with an emphasis on data obtained in in vivo model systems.

T-cell receptor revision: friend or foe?

PubMed

Hale, J Scott; Fink, Pamela J

2010-04-01

T-cell receptor (TCR) revision is a process of tolerance induction by which peripheral T cells lose surface expression of an autoreactive TCR, reinduce expression of the recombinase machinery, rearrange genes encoding extrathymically generated TCRs for antigen, and express these new receptors on the cell surface. We discuss the evidence for this controversial tolerance mechanism below. Despite the apparent heresy of post-thymic gene rearrangement, we argue here that TCR revision follows the rules obeyed by maturing thymocytes undergoing gene recombination. Expression of the recombinase is carefully controlled both spatially and temporally, and may be initiated by loss of signals through surface TCRs. The resulting TCR repertoire is characterized by its diversity, self major histocompatibility complex restriction, self tolerance, and ability to mount productive immune responses specific for foreign antigens. Hence, TCR revision is a carefully regulated process of tolerance induction that can contribute to the protection of the individual against invading pathogens while preserving the integrity of self tissue.

Biomimetic Materials and Fabrication Approaches for Bone Tissue Engineering.

PubMed

Kim, Hwan D; Amirthalingam, Sivashanmugam; Kim, Seunghyun L; Lee, Seunghun S; Rangasamy, Jayakumar; Hwang, Nathaniel S

2017-12-01

Various strategies have been explored to overcome critically sized bone defects via bone tissue engineering approaches that incorporate biomimetic scaffolds. Biomimetic scaffolds may provide a novel platform for phenotypically stable tissue formation and stem cell differentiation. In recent years, osteoinductive and inorganic biomimetic scaffold materials have been optimized to offer an osteo-friendly microenvironment for the osteogenic commitment of stem cells. Furthermore, scaffold structures with a microarchitecture design similar to native bone tissue are necessary for successful bone tissue regeneration. For this reason, various methods for fabricating 3D porous structures have been developed. Innovative techniques, such as 3D printing methods, are currently being utilized for optimal host stem cell infiltration, vascularization, nutrient transfer, and stem cell differentiation. In this progress report, biomimetic materials and fabrication approaches that are currently being utilized for biomimetic scaffold design are reviewed. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Single-cell RNA-seq of rheumatoid arthritis synovial tissue using low-cost microfluidic instrumentation.

PubMed

Stephenson, William; Donlin, Laura T; Butler, Andrew; Rozo, Cristina; Bracken, Bernadette; Rashidfarrokhi, Ali; Goodman, Susan M; Ivashkiv, Lionel B; Bykerk, Vivian P; Orange, Dana E; Darnell, Robert B; Swerdlow, Harold P; Satija, Rahul

2018-02-23

Droplet-based single-cell RNA-seq has emerged as a powerful technique for massively parallel cellular profiling. While this approach offers the exciting promise to deconvolute cellular heterogeneity in diseased tissues, the lack of cost-effective and user-friendly instrumentation has hindered widespread adoption of droplet microfluidic techniques. To address this, we developed a 3D-printed, low-cost droplet microfluidic control instrument and deploy it in a clinical environment to perform single-cell transcriptome profiling of disaggregated synovial tissue from five rheumatoid arthritis patients. We sequence 20,387 single cells revealing 13 transcriptomically distinct clusters. These encompass an unsupervised draft atlas of the autoimmune infiltrate that contribute to disease biology. Additionally, we identify previously uncharacterized fibroblast subpopulations and discern their spatial location within the synovium. We envision that this instrument will have broad utility in both research and clinical settings, enabling low-cost and routine application of microfluidic techniques.

No smoke without fire: The impact of future friends on adolescent smoking behaviour.

PubMed

Mercken, L; Candel, M; van Osch, L; de Vries, H

2011-02-01

This study examined the impact of future friends and the contribution of different social influence and selection processes in predicting adolescents' smoking behaviour by extending the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). We investigated the impact of previous smoking, direct pressure from friends, descriptive norms of present and future friends, smoking-based selection of future friends, and distinguished between reciprocal and desired friends. A longitudinal design with three measurements was used. METHODSL: The sample consisted of 1,475 Dutch high school students (mean age = 12.7 years) that participated as a control group in the European Smoking prevention Framework Approach study at three measurements. Structural equation modelling revealed that adolescent smoking was influenced by intention, previous smoking, descriptive norms of parents and siblings, and that desired as well as reciprocal friends were selected based on similar smoking behaviour. Future friends indirectly influenced adolescent smoking through intention, as did attitude, subjective norms of parents and siblings, previous smoking, and descriptive norms of reciprocal friends and siblings. The present results suggest that descriptive norms and selection of friends need to be considered as major factors explaining smoking behaviour among adolescents besides the TPB components. These insights contribute to the further refinement of smoking prevention strategies. ©2010 The British Psychological Society.

Longitudinal Associations Between Sedentary Behavior of Adolescent Girls, Their Mothers, and Best Friends.

PubMed

Raudsepp, Lennart; Riso, Eva-Maria

2017-08-01

The objective of this study was to examine the prospective relationship and changes in sedentary behavior between adolescent girls, their mothers and best friends over time. The results are based on 122 girls aged 11-12 years at baseline measurement, their mothers and best friends who completed ecological momentary assessment diary for the assessment of sedentary behavior. All measurements were taken at 3 time points separated by one year. We used structural equation modeling to examine associations among sedentary behavior of adolescent girls, their mothers and best friends. A linear growth model for adolescent girls' and their best friends' sedentary behavior fit the data well, revealing an overall significant increase in sedentary behavior across time. Initial levels of mothers' and best friends' sedentary behavior were positively related with sedentary behavior of adolescent girls. The changes of adolescent girls' and best friends' sedentary behavior across 3 years were positively related. Cross-lagged panel analysis demonstrated significant reciprocal effects between adolescent girls' and best friends' sedentary behavior. Mothers' sedentary behavior at baseline predicted daughters' sedentary behavior at 1-year follow-up and vice versa. From early to midadolescence, changes in adolescent girls' sedentary behavior were associated with changes in best friends' sedentary behavior. These findings suggest reciprocal associations between sedentary behavior of adolescent girls and their best friends.

[Having and losing friends: necessary social-emotional competencies in adolescents].

PubMed

von Salisch, Maria; Lüpschen, Nadine; Kanevski, Rimma

2013-01-01

Supportive friendships are an invaluable resource for adolescents because of their various developmental tasks, but establishing and maintaining them requires particular interpersonal skills. In order to identify social-emotional competencies associated with having and losing friends, N = 206 early adolescents (12-14 years of age) were examined longitudinally right after the transition to secondary school in the beginning of grade 7 and again at the end of this school year. Adolescents who had at least one reciprocal friend at both times were compared to those who lost all their friends over the school year. Repeated-measures MANOVAs indicate effects of time (and development) that underline an increase of self-disclosure, explanations and humor as well as a general decrease of openly aggressive behavior when angry at the friend. Interaction effects suggest that adolescents who lost their friend(s) intensified their use of physically and relationally aggressive behavior and of fantasies of revenge over time while continuously befriended adolescents decreased in their aggressive behavior when coping with anger in their friendships. Adolescents who had friends at both times were more willing to disclose private information whereas the self-disclosure of adolescents who lost their friends stagnated. These results are discussed in terms of deficient social-emotional competencies as the cause and the consequence of losing friends.

The closer the relationship, the more the interaction on facebook? Investigating the case of Taiwan users.

PubMed

Hsu, Chiung-Wen Julia; Wang, Ching-Chan; Tai, Yi-Ting

2011-01-01

This study argues for the necessity of applying offline contexts to social networking site research and the importance of distinguishing the relationship types of users' counterparts when studying Facebook users' behaviors. In an attempt to examine the relationship among users' behaviors, their counterparts' relationship types, and the users' perceived acquaintanceships after using Facebook, this study first investigated users' frequently used tools when interacting with different types of friends. Users tended to use less time- and effort-consuming and less privacy-concerned tools with newly acquired friends. This study further examined users' behaviors in terms of their closeness and intimacy and their perceived acquaintanceships toward four different types of friends. The study found that users gained more perceived acquaintanceships from less close friends with whom users have more frequent interaction but less intimate behaviors. As for closer friends, users tended to use more intimate activities to interact with them. However, these activities did not necessarily occur more frequently than the activities they employed with their less close friends. It was found that perceived acquaintanceships with closer friends were significantly lower than those with less close friends. This implies that Facebook is a mechanism for new friends, rather than close friends, to become more acquainted.

Associations between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and fast-food restaurant frequency among adolescents and their friends.

PubMed

Bruening, Meg; MacLehose, Richard; Eisenberg, Marla E; Nanney, Marilyn S; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2014-01-01

To assess associations between adolescents and their friends with regard to sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB)/diet soda intake and fast-food (FF) restaurant visits. Population-based, cross-sectional survey study with direct measures from friends. Twenty Minneapolis/St Paul schools during 2009-2010. Adolescents (n = 2,043; mean age, 14.2 ± 1.9 years; 46.2% female; 80% non-white). Adolescent SSB/diet soda intake and FF visits. Generalized estimating equation logistic models were used to examine associations between adolescents' SSB/diet soda intake and FF visits and similar behaviors in nominated friends (friend groups and best friends). School-level (middle vs high school) interactions were assessed. Significant associations were found between adolescents and friends behaviors for each of the beverages assessed (P < .05), but they varied by friendship type and school level. Five of 6 models of FF visits (including all FF visits) were significantly associated (P < .05) among adolescents and their friends. Significant interactions by school level were present among adolescents' and friends' FF visits, with associations generally for high school participants compared with middle school participants (P < .05). Findings suggest that for many beverages and FF restaurant types, friends' behaviors are associated, especially FF visits for older adolescents. Nutrition education efforts may benefit by integrating knowledge of the impact of adolescents' friends on FF visits. Copyright © 2014 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Young friendship in HFASD and typical development: friend versus non-friend comparisons.

PubMed

Bauminger-Zviely, Nirit; Agam-Ben-Artzi, Galit

2014-07-01

This study conducted comparative assessment of friendship in preschoolers with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HFASD, n = 29) versus preschoolers with typical development (n = 30), focusing on interactions with friends versus acquaintances. Groups were matched on SES, verbal/nonverbal MA, IQ, and CA. Multidimensional assessments included: mothers' and teachers' reports about friends' and friendship characteristics and observed individual and dyadic behaviors throughout interactions with friends versus non-friends during construction, drawing, and free-play situations. Findings revealed group differences in peer interaction favoring the typical development group, thus supporting the neuropsychological profile of HFASD. However, both groups' interactions with friends surpassed interactions with acquaintances on several key socio-communicative and intersubjective capabilities, thus suggesting that friendship may contribute to enhancement and practice of social interaction in HFASD.

Influence of Friends on Children’s Physical Activity: A Review

PubMed Central

Maturo, Claire C.

2013-01-01

We examined evidence for friendship influences on children's physical activity (PA) through systematic searches of online databases in May 2012. We identified 106 studies (25 qualitative) published in English since 2000 that analyzed indicators of friendship influences (e.g., communication about PA, friends’ PA, and PA with friends) among persons younger than 19 years. Children's PA was positively associated with encouragement from friends (43 of 55 studies indicating a positive relationship), friends' own PA (30/35), and engagement with friends in PA (9/10). These findings are consistent with friends influencing PA, but most studies did not isolate influence from other factors that could explain similarity. Understanding friendship influences in childhood can facilitate the promotion of lifelong healthy habits. PA with friends should be considered in health promotion programs. PMID:23678914

Channeling Identity: A Study of Storytelling in Conversations Between Introverted and Extraverted Friends

PubMed Central

Thorne, Avril; Korobov, Neill; Morgan, Elizabeth M.

2009-01-01

This narrative study examined the process of personal storytelling between college-age friends who were similarly introverted or extraverted. Participants were 19 introverted and 20 extraverted same-sex pairs (49 percent female) who had been friends for an average of 18 months. Stories emerged spontaneously during 10-minute catch-up conversations. Extraverted friends more often told stories that changed the topic, and more often co-constructed story plots. Introverted friends more often told stories that were embedded in a developing theme, and constructed story plots solo. With regard to content, extraverted friends told stories about romance more so than introverted friends, whose stories more often concerned family/hometown, and older events. The findings suggest that the traits of extraversion and introversion channel the identity-making process. PMID:19325709

Parents and friends both matter: simultaneous and interactive influences of parents and friends on European schoolchildren's energy balance-related behaviours - the ENERGY cross-sectional study.

PubMed

te Velde, Saskia J; ChinAPaw, Mai J M; De Bourdeaudhuij, Ilse; Bere, Elling; Maes, Lea; Moreno, Luis; Jan, Nataša; Kovacs, Eva; Manios, Yannis; Brug, Johannes

2014-07-08

The family, and parents in particular, are considered the most important influencers regarding children's energy-balance related behaviours (EBRBs). When children become older and gain more behavioural autonomy regarding different behaviours, the parental influences may become less important and peer influences may gain importance. Therefore the current study aims to investigate simultaneous and interactive associations of family rules, parent and friend norms and modelling with soft drink intake, TV viewing, daily breakfast consumption and sport participation among schoolchildren across Europe. A school-based cross-sectional survey in eight countries across Europe among 10-12 year old schoolchildren. Child questionnaires were used to assess EBRBs (soft drink intake, TV viewing, breakfast consumption, sport participation), and potential determinants of these behaviours as perceived by the child, including family rules, parental and friend norms and modelling. Linear and logistic regression analyses (n = 7811) were applied to study the association of parental (norms, modelling and rules) and friend influences (norm and modelling) with the EBRBs. In addition, potential moderating effects of parental influences on the associations of friend influences with the EBRBs were studied by including interaction terms. Children reported more unfavourable friend norms and modelling regarding soft drink intake and TV viewing, while they reported more favourable friend and parental norms and modelling for breakfast consumption and physical activity. Perceived friend and parental norms and modelling were significantly positively associated with soft drink intake, breakfast consumption, physical activity (only modelling) and TV time. Across the different behaviours, ten significant interactions between parental and friend influencing variables were found and suggested a weaker association of friend norms and modelling when rules were in place. Parental and friends norm and modelling are associated with schoolchildren's energy balance-related behaviours. Having family rules or showing favourable parental modelling and norms seems to reduce the potential unfavourable associations of friends' norms and modelling with the EBRBs.

What's in a Friendship? Partner Visibility Supports Cognitive Collaboration between Friends.

PubMed

Brennan, Allison A; Enns, James T

2015-01-01

Not all cognitive collaborations are equally effective. We tested whether friendship and communication influenced collaborative efficiency by randomly assigning participants to complete a cognitive task with a friend or non-friend, while visible to their partner or separated by a partition. Collaborative efficiency was indexed by comparing each pair's performance to an optimal individual performance model of the same two people. The outcome was a strong interaction between friendship and partner visibility. Friends collaborated more efficiently than non-friends when visible to one another, but a partition that prevented pair members from seeing one another reduced the collaborative efficiency of friends and non-friends to a similar lower level. Secondary measures suggested that verbal communication differences, but not psychophysiological arousal, contributed to these effects. Analysis of covariance indicated that females contributed more than males to overall levels of collaboration, but that the interaction of friendship and visibility was independent of that effect. These findings highlight the critical role of partner visibility in the collaborative success of friends.

What’s in a Friendship? Partner Visibility Supports Cognitive Collaboration between Friends

PubMed Central

Brennan, Allison A.; Enns, James T.

2015-01-01

Not all cognitive collaborations are equally effective. We tested whether friendship and communication influenced collaborative efficiency by randomly assigning participants to complete a cognitive task with a friend or non-friend, while visible to their partner or separated by a partition. Collaborative efficiency was indexed by comparing each pair’s performance to an optimal individual performance model of the same two people. The outcome was a strong interaction between friendship and partner visibility. Friends collaborated more efficiently than non-friends when visible to one another, but a partition that prevented pair members from seeing one another reduced the collaborative efficiency of friends and non-friends to a similar lower level. Secondary measures suggested that verbal communication differences, but not psychophysiological arousal, contributed to these effects. Analysis of covariance indicated that females contributed more than males to overall levels of collaboration, but that the interaction of friendship and visibility was independent of that effect. These findings highlight the critical role of partner visibility in the collaborative success of friends. PMID:26619079

Feasibility of a Friendship Network-Based Pediatric Obesity Intervention.

PubMed

Giannini, Courtney M; Irby, Megan B; Skelton, Joseph A; Gesell, Sabina B

2017-02-01

There is growing evidence supporting social network-based interventions for adolescents with obesity. This study's aim was to determine the feasibility of a social network-based intervention by assessing adolescents' friendship networks, willingness to involve friends in treatment, and how these factors influence enjoyment. Adolescents (N = 42) were recruited from a tertiary care obesity clinic. Participants gave a list of closest friends, friendship characteristics, and which of their friends they would involve in treatment. A subset (N = 14) participated in group treatment, were encouraged to bring friends, and invited to a second interview. Participants nominated a mean of 4.0 (standard deviation [SD] = 1.6) friends and were more likely to nominate closer friends (p = 0.003). Friends who attended group sessions were more likely to have multiple friendships in common with the participant's own network (p = 0.04). Involving friends in treatment is feasible and desired by adolescents and may be a novel approach for augmenting obesity treatment outcomes.

l-Glutamic acid assisted eco-friendly one-pot synthesis of sheet-assembled platinum-palladium alloy networks for methanol oxidation and oxygen reduction reactions.

PubMed

Shi, Ya-Cheng; Mei, Li-Ping; Wang, Ai-Jun; Yuan, Tao; Chen, Sai-Sai; Feng, Jiu-Ju

2017-10-15

In this work, bimetallic platinum-palladium sheet-assembled alloy networks (PtPd SAANs) were facilely synthesized by an eco-friendly one-pot aqueous approach under the guidance of l-glutamic acid at room temperature, without any additive, seed, toxic or organic solvent involved. l-Glutamic acid was served as the green shape-director and weak-stabilizing agent. A series of characterization techniques were employed to examine the morphology, structure and formation mechanism of the product. The architectures exhibited improved electrocatalytic activity and durable ability toward methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in contrast with commercial Pt black and Pd black catalysts. This is ascribed to the unique structures of the obtained PtPd SAANs and the synergistic effects of the bimetals. These results demonstrate the potential application of the prepared catalyst in fuel cells. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

STS-99 crew members meet with family and friends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

The day before the expected launch of STS-99, Pilot Dominic Gorie enjoys a reunion with his wife, Wendy, near Launch Pad 39A where family and friends have gathered to greet the crew. STS-99, known as the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), is scheduled to lift off 12:47 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A. The SRTM will chart a new course to produce unrivaled 3-D images of the Earth's surface, using two antennae and a 200-foot-long section of space station-derived mast protruding from the payload bay. The result of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission could be close to 1 trillion measurements of the Earth's topography. Besides contributing to the production of better maps, these measurements could lead to improved water drainage modeling, more realistic flight simulators, better locations for cell phone towers, and enhanced navigation safety. The mission is expected to last about 11days, with Endeavour landing at KSC Friday, Feb. 11, at 4:55 p.m.

STS-99 crew members meet with family and friends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

The day before the expected launch of STS-99, Mission Specialist Janet Lynn Kavandi poses for photographers near Launch Pad 39A where family and friends have gathered to greet the crew. STS-99, known as the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), is scheduled to lift off 12:47 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A. The SRTM will chart a new course to produce unrivaled 3-D images of the Earth's surface, using two antennae and a 200-foot-long section of space station-derived mast protruding from the payload bay. The result of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission could be close to 1 trillion measurements of the Earth's topography. Besides contributing to the production of better maps, these measurements could lead to improved water drainage modeling, more realistic flight simulators, better locations for cell phone towers, and enhanced navigation safety. The mission is expected to last about 11days, with Endeavour landing at KSC Friday, Feb. 11, at 4:55 p.m.

STS-99 crew members meet with family and friends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

The day before the expected launch of STS-99, Commander Kevin Kregel enjoys a reunion with his wife, Jeanne, near Launch Pad 39A where family and friends have gathered to greet the crew. STS-99, known as the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), is scheduled to lift off 12:47 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A. The SRTM will chart a new course to produce unrivaled 3-D images of the Earth's surface, using two antennae and a 200-foot-long section of space station-derived mast protruding from the payload bay. The result of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission could be close to 1 trillion measurements of the Earth's topography. Besides contributing to the production of better maps, these measurements could lead to improved water drainage modeling, more realistic flight simulators, better locations for cell phone towers, and enhanced navigation safety. The mission is expected to last about 11days, with Endeavour landing at KSC Friday, Feb. 11, at 4:55 p.m.

STS-99 crew members meet with family and friends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

Near Launch Pad 39A, STS-99 Mission Specialist Janice Voss enjoys a reunion with friend and fellow astronaut Andrew Thomas the day before the expected launch of her mission. STS-99, known as the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), is scheduled to lift off 12:47 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A. The SRTM will chart a new course to produce unrivaled 3-D images of the Earth's surface, using two antennae and a 200-foot-long section of space station- derived mast protruding from the payload bay. The result of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission could be close to 1 trillion measurements of the Earth's topography. Besides contributing to the production of better maps, these measurements could lead to improved water drainage modeling, more realistic flight simulators, better locations for cell phone towers, and enhanced navigation safety. The mission is expected to last about 11days, with Endeavour landing at KSC Friday, Feb. 11, at 4:55 p.m.

STS-99 crew members meet with family and friends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

The day before the expected launch of STS-99, Mission Specialist Gerhard Thiele enjoys a reunion with his wife near Launch Pad 39A where family and friends have gathered to greet the crew. STS-99, known as the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), is scheduled to lift off 12:47 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A. The SRTM will chart a new course to produce unrivaled 3-D images of the Earth's surface, using two antennae and a 200-foot-long section of space station-derived mast protruding from the payload bay. The result of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission could be close to 1 trillion measurements of the Earth's topography. Besides contributing to the production of better maps, these measurements could lead to improved water drainage modeling, more realistic flight simulators, better locations for cell phone towers, and enhanced navigation safety. The mission is expected to last about 11days, with Endeavour landing at KSC Friday, Feb. 11, at 4:55 p.m.

Ascorbic Acid-Assisted Eco-friendly Synthesis of NiCo2O4 Nanoparticles as an Anode Material for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karunakaran, Gopalu; Maduraiveeran, Govindhan; Kolesnikov, Evgeny; Balasingam, Suresh Kannan; Viktorovich, Lysov Dmitry; Ilinyh, Igor; Gorshenkov, Mikhail V.; Sasidharan, Manickam; Kuznetsov, Denis; Kundu, Manab

2018-05-01

We have synthesized NiCo2O4 nanoparticles (NCO NPs) using an ascorbic acid-assisted co-precipitation method for the first time. When NCO NPs are used as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries, the cell exhibits superior lithium storage properties, such as high capacity (700 mA h g-1 after 300 cycles at 200 mA g-1), excellent rate capabilities (applied current density range 100-1200 mA g-1), and impressive cycling stability (at 1200 mA g-1 up to 650 cycles). The enhanced electrochemical properties of NCO NPs are due to the nanometer dimensions which not only offers a smooth charge-transport pathway and short diffusion paths of the lithium ions but also adequate spaces for volume expansion during Li storage. Hence, this eco-friendly synthesis approach will provide a new strategy for the synthesis of various nanostructured metal oxide compounds, for energy conversion and storage systems applications.

Friendship Dynamics of Adolescent Aggression, Prosocial Behavior, and Social Status: The Moderating Role of Gender.

PubMed

Shin, Huiyoung

2017-11-01

Interactions with friends are a salient part of adolescents' experience at school. Adolescents tend to form friendships with similar peers and, in turn, their friends influence adolescents' behaviors and beliefs. The current study investigated early adolescents' selection of friends and friends' influence with regard to physical aggression, prosocial behavior, and popularity and social preference (i.e., likeability) among fifth and sixth graders (N = 736, 52% girls at wave1, N = 677, 52% girls at wave 2) in elementary schools in South Korea. The moderating role of gender on early adolescents' friend selection and influence was also examined. With longitudinal social network analysis (RSiena), we found that youth tended to select friends with similar levels of physical aggression and popularity, and their friends influenced their own physical aggression and popularity over time. The higher youth were in social preference, the less likely they chose physically aggressive peers as friends. Boys were more likely to select highly popular peers as friends compared to girls, and influence effects for physical aggression and popularity were stronger for boys compared to girls. The results underscore the importance of gender in friendship dynamics among Asian early adolescents.

Long-term commitment of Japanese gas utilities to PAFCs and SOFCs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matsumoto, Kiyokazu; Kasahara, Komei

Tokyo Gas and Osaka Gas have been committed to addressing the energy- and environment-related issues of Japan through promotion of natural gas, an energy friendly to the environment. Being aware of the diversifying market needs (e.g. efficient energy utilization, rising demand for electricity, etc.), active efforts have been made in marketing gas-fired air-conditioning and co-generation systems. In this process, a high priority has also been placed on fuel cells, particularly for realizing their market introduction. Since their participation in the TARGET Program in USA in 1972, the two companies have been involved with the field testing and operation of phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs), whose total capacity has amounted to 12.4 MW. The two companies have played a vital role in promoting and accelerating fuel cell development through the following means: (1) giving incentives to manufacturers through purchase of units and testing, (2) giving feedback on required specifications and technical problems in operation, and (3) verifying and realizing long-term operation utilizing their maintenance techniques. It has been expected that the primary goal of the cumulative operation time of 40 000 h shall be achieved in the near future. Work has also been in progress to develop SOFC. In the joint R&D of a 25-kW solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) with Westinghouse, the record operation time of 13 000 h has been achieved. Though still twice as much as the average price of competing equipment, the commercialization of PAFCs is close at hand. By utilizing government spending and subsidies for field testing, work will be continued to verify reliability and durability of PAFCs installed at users' sites. These activities have been expected to contribute to realizing economically viable systems and enhance market introduction. The superlative advantages of fuel cells, particularly their environment-friendly qualities, should be best taken advantage of at an appropriate time. In order to achieve smooth introduction of fuel cells into the market, immediate action is seriously needed to re-examine the roles of users, manufacturers, and governments, thereby consolidating the efforts of the parties concerned in the most effective manner.

Artificial twin-layer configurations of Zn(O,S) films by radio frequency sputtering in all dry processed eco-friendly Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Wei; Fan, Yu; Li, Xiaodong; Lin, Shuping; Liu, Yang; Shi, Sihan; Wang, He; Zhou, Zhiqiang; Zhang, Yi; Sun, Yun

2018-03-01

Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells are of great interest for research and industrial applications with their high conversion efficiencies, long-term stability and significant lifetimes. Such a solar cell of a p-n junction consists of p-type Cu(In,Ga)Se2 films as a light absorber and n-type CdS as a buffer layer, which often emerges with intrinsic ZnO. Aimed at eco-friendly fabrication protocols, a large number of strategies have been investigated to fabricate a Cd-free n-type buffer layer such as Zn(O,S) in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells. Also, if the Zn(O,S) films are prepared by coevaporation or sputtering, it will offer high compatibility with the preferred mass production. Here, we propose and optimize a dry method for Zn(O,S) deposition in a radio frequency sputtering. In particular, the strategy for the twin-layer configurations of Zn(O,S) films not only greatly improve their electrical conductance and suppress charge carrier recombination, but also avoid degradation of the Zn(O,S)/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 interfaces. Indeed, the high quality of such twin Zn(O,S) layers have been reflected in the similar conversion efficiencies of the complete solar cells as well as the large short-circuit current density, which exceeds the CdS reference device. In addition, Zn(O,S) twin layers have reduced the production time and materials by replacing the CdS/i-ZnO layers, which removes two fabrication steps in the multilayered thin film solar cells. Furthermore, the device physics for such improvements have been fully unveiled with both experimental current-voltage and capacitance-voltage spectroscopies and device simulations via wxAMPS program. Finally, the proposed twin-layer Zn(O,S)/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 interfaces account for the broadening of the depletion region of photogenerated charge carriers, which greatly suppress the carrier recombination at the space charge region, and eventually lead to the more efficient collection of charge carriers at both electrodes.

Mast cells in rheumatoid arthritis: friends or foes?

PubMed

Rivellese, Felice; Nerviani, Alessandra; Rossi, Francesca Wanda; Marone, Gianni; Matucci-Cerinic, Marco; de Paulis, Amato; Pitzalis, Costantino

2017-06-01

Mast cells are tissue-resident cells of the innate immunity, implicated in the pathogenesis of many autoimmune diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). They are present in synovia and their activation has been linked to the potentiation of inflammation in the course of RA. However, recent investigations questioned the role of mast cells in arthritis. In particular, animal models generated conflicting results, so that many of their pro-inflammatory, i.e. pro-arthritogenic functions, even though supported by robust experimental evidence, have been labelled as redundant. At the same time, a growing body of evidence suggests that mast cells can act as tunable immunomodulatory cells. These characteristics, not yet fully understood in the context of RA, could partially explain the inconsistent results obtained with experimental models, which do not account for the pro- and anti-inflammatory functions exerted in more chronic heterogeneous conditions such as RA. Here we present an overview of the current knowledge on mast cell involvement in RA, including the intriguing hypothesis of mast cells acting as subtle immunomodulatory cells and the emerging concept of synovial mast cells as potential biomarkers for patient stratification. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

CD4 T Follicular Helper Cells and HIV Infection: Friends or Enemies?

PubMed

Moukambi, Félicien; Rodrigues, Vasco; Fortier, Yasmina; Rabezanahary, Henintsoa; Borde, Chloé; Krust, Bernard; Andreani, Guadalupe; Silvestre, Ricardo; Petrovas, Constantinos; Laforge, Mireille; Estaquier, Jérôme

2017-01-01

Follicular T helper (Tfh) cells, a subset of CD4 T lymphocytes, are essential for memory B cell activation, survival, and differentiation and assist B cells in the production of antigen-specific antibodies. Work performed in recent years pointed out the importance of Tfh cells in the context of HIV and SIV infections. The importance of tissue distribution of Tfh is also an important point since their frequency differs between peripheral blood and lymph nodes compared to the spleen, the primary organ for B cell activation, and differentiation. Our recent observations indicated an early and profound loss of splenic Tfh cells. The role of transcriptional activator and repressor factors that control Tfh differentiation is also discussed in the context of HIV/SIV infection. Because Tfh cells are important for B cell differentiation and antibody production, accelerating the Tfh responses early during HIV/SIV infection could be promising as novel immunotherapeutic approach or alternative vaccine strategies. However, because Tfh cells are infected during the HIV/SIV infection and represent a reservoir, this may interfere with HIV vaccine strategy. Thus, Tfh represent the good and bad guys during HIV infection.

CD4 T Follicular Helper Cells and HIV Infection: Friends or Enemies?

PubMed Central

Moukambi, Félicien; Rodrigues, Vasco; Fortier, Yasmina; Rabezanahary, Henintsoa; Borde, Chloé; Krust, Bernard; Andreani, Guadalupe; Silvestre, Ricardo; Petrovas, Constantinos; Laforge, Mireille; Estaquier, Jérôme

2017-01-01

Follicular T helper (Tfh) cells, a subset of CD4 T lymphocytes, are essential for memory B cell activation, survival, and differentiation and assist B cells in the production of antigen-specific antibodies. Work performed in recent years pointed out the importance of Tfh cells in the context of HIV and SIV infections. The importance of tissue distribution of Tfh is also an important point since their frequency differs between peripheral blood and lymph nodes compared to the spleen, the primary organ for B cell activation, and differentiation. Our recent observations indicated an early and profound loss of splenic Tfh cells. The role of transcriptional activator and repressor factors that control Tfh differentiation is also discussed in the context of HIV/SIV infection. Because Tfh cells are important for B cell differentiation and antibody production, accelerating the Tfh responses early during HIV/SIV infection could be promising as novel immunotherapeutic approach or alternative vaccine strategies. However, because Tfh cells are infected during the HIV/SIV infection and represent a reservoir, this may interfere with HIV vaccine strategy. Thus, Tfh represent the good and bad guys during HIV infection. PMID:28265271

Exploring parent-sibling communication in families of children with sickle cell disease.

PubMed

Graff, J Carolyn; Hankins, Jane S; Hardy, Belinda T; Hall, Heather R; Roberts, Ruth J; Neely-Barnes, Susan L

2010-01-01

Communication within families of children with sickle cell disease is important yet has not been adequately investigated. Focus group interviews were conducted with parents of children with sickle cell disease to explore parent-sibling communication about sickle cell disease. Communication was influenced by attributes and behaviors of the parent, the child with sickle cell disease, and the sibling; extended family, neighbors, friends, and church members or social networks; and available, accessible resources related to the child's health, child's school, and parent employment. Outcomes that influenced and were influenced by factors within and outside the parent-sibling dyad and nuclear family included parent satisfaction, parent roles, family intactness, and status attainment. These findings support previous research with African-American families and expand our views of the importance of educating parents, family members, and others about sickle cell disease. The findings suggest a need to explore sibling perception of this communication, parent and sibling perception of the impact of frequent hospitalizations and clinic visits on the sibling and family, and variations within families of children with sickle cell disease.

“Dude, You’re Such a Slut!” Barriers and Facilitators of Sexual Communication Among Young Gay Men and Their Best Friends

PubMed Central

McDavitt, Bryce; Mutchler, Matt G.

2014-01-01

Conversations with friends are a crucial source of information about sexuality for young gay men, and a key way that sexual health norms are shared during emerging adulthood. However, friends can only provide this support if they are able to talk openly about sexuality. We explored this issue through qualitative interviews with an ethnically diverse sample of young gay men and their best friends. Using theories of sexual scripts, stigma, and emerging adulthood, we examined how conversations about sex could be obstructed or facilitated by several key factors, including judgmentalism, comfort/discomfort, and receptivity. Gay male friends sometimes spoke about unprotected sex in judgmental ways (e.g., calling a friend “slut” or “whore” for having sex without condoms). In some cases, this language could be used playfully, while in others it had the effect of shaming a friend and obstructing further communication about sexual risk. Female friends were rarely openly judgmental, but often felt uncomfortable talking about gay male sexuality, which could render this topic taboo. Sexual communication was facilitated most effectively when friends encouraged it through humor or supportive questioning. Drawing on these findings, we show how judgmentalism and discomfort may generate sexual scripts with contradictory norms, and potentially obstruct support from friends around sexual exploration during a period of life when it may be most developmentally important. PMID:25419044

Baby-Friendly Practices Minimize Newborn Infants Weight Loss.

PubMed

Procaccini, Diane; Curley, Ann L Cupp; Goldman, Martha

2018-04-01

It is accepted that newborns lose weight in the first few days of life. Baby-Friendly practices that support breastfeeding may affect newborn weight loss. The objective of this study were: 1) To determine whether Baby-Friendly practices are associated with term newborn weight loss day 0-2 in three feeding categories (exclusively breastfed, mixed formula fed and breastfed, and formula fed). 2) To determine whether Baby-Friendly practices increase exclusive breast feeding rates in different ethnic populations. This was a retrospective case-control study. Term newborn birth weight, neonatal weights days 0-2, feeding type, type of birth, and demographic information were collected for 1,000 births for the year before Baby-Friendly designation (2010) and 1,000 in 2013 (after designation). Ultimately 683 in the first group and 518 in the second met the inclusion criteria. Mean weight loss decreased day 0-2 for infants in all feeding types after the initiation of Baby-Friendly practices. There was a statistically significant effect of Baby-Friendly designation on weight loss for day 0-2 in exclusively breastfed infants (p < 0.01) after controlling for birth weight. Exclusive breast feeding increased in all ethnic groups after Baby-Friendly practices were put in place. There was a decrease in mean weight loss day 0-2 regardless of feeding type after Baby-Friendly designation. Exclusive breast feeding increased in the presence of Baby-Friendly practices.

Children's perceptions of relationships with siblings, friends, and mothers: compensatory processes and links with adjustment.

PubMed

Stocker, C M

1994-11-01

Links between children's psychological adjustment and individual differences in their perceptions of relationships with siblings, mothers, and friends were studied in a sample of 85 second-graders. Results indicated that characteristics of these relationships were significantly correlated with children's loneliness, depressive mood, self-esteem, and behavioral conduct. There were some links among children's perceptions of their relationships with siblings, friends, and mothers. A compensatory model of associations among adjustment and warmth in children's relationships with friends and mothers was supported. Children who reported that their relationships with either mothers, friends, or mothers and friends were characterized by high levels of warmth had significantly better adjustment outcomes than children who reported low levels of warmth in relationships with both friends and mothers. The importance of the network of children's relationships for their mental health is discussed.

Friend Affiliations and School Adjustment Among Mexican-American Adolescents: The Moderating Role of Peer and Parent Support

PubMed Central

Gillen-O’Neel, Cari; Gonzales, Nancy A.; Fuligni, Andrew J.

2014-01-01

Studies examining friendships among Mexican-American adolescents have largely focused on their potentially negative influence. The current study examined the extent to which deviant and achievement-oriented friend affiliations are associated with Mexican-American adolescents’ school adjustment and also tested whether support from friends and parents moderates these associations. High school students (N = 412; 49 % male) completed questionnaires and daily diaries; primary caregivers also completed a questionnaire. Although results revealed few direct associations between friend affiliations and school adjustment, several moderations emerged. In general, the influence of friends’ affiliation was strongest when support from friends was high and parental support was low. The findings suggest that only examining links between friend affiliations and school outcomes does not fully capture how friends promote or hinder school adjustment. PMID:24096530

Cytotoxic CD4 T Cells—Friend or Foe during Viral Infection?

PubMed Central

Juno, Jennifer A.; van Bockel, David; Kent, Stephen J.; Kelleher, Anthony D.; Zaunders, John J.; Munier, C. Mee Ling

2017-01-01

CD4 T cells with cytotoxic function were once thought to be an artifact due to long-term in vitro cultures but have in more recent years become accepted and reported in the literature in response to a number of viral infections. In this review, we focus on cytotoxic CD4 T cells in the context of human viral infections and in some infections that affect mice and non-human primates. We examine the effector mechanisms used by cytotoxic CD4 cells, the phenotypes that describe this population, and the transcription factors and pathways that lead to their induction following infection. We further consider the cells that are the predominant targets of this effector subset and describe the viral infections in which CD4 cytotoxic T lymphocytes have been shown to play a protective or pathologic role. Cytotoxic CD4 T cells are detected in the circulation at much higher levels than previously realized and are now recognized to have an important role in the immune response to viral infections. PMID:28167943

Recent advances in yeast cell-surface display technologies for waste biorefineries.

PubMed

Liu, Zhuo; Ho, Shih-Hsin; Hasunuma, Tomohisa; Chang, Jo-Shu; Ren, Nan-Qi; Kondo, Akihiko

2016-09-01

Waste biorefinery aims to maximize the output of value-added products from various artificial/agricultural wastes by using integrated bioprocesses. To make waste biorefinery economically feasible, it is thus necessary to develop a low-cost, environment-friendly technique to perform simultaneous biodegradation and bioconversion of waste materials. Cell-surface display engineering is a novel, cost-effective technique that can auto-immobilize proteins on the cell exterior of microorganisms, and has been applied for use with waste biofinery. Through tethering different enzymes (e.g., cellulase, lipase, and protease) or metal-binding peptides on cell surfaces, various yeast strains can effectively produce biofuels and biochemicals from sugar/protein-rich waste materials, catalyze waste oils into biodiesels, or retrieve heavy metals from wastewater. This review critically summarizes recent applications of yeast cell-surface display on various types of waste biorefineries, highlighting its potential and future challenges with regard to commercializing this technology. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Intestinal M cells.

PubMed

Ohno, Hiroshi

2016-02-01

We have an enormous number of commensal bacteria in our intestine, moreover, the foods that we ingest and the water we drink is sometimes contaminated with pathogenic microorganisms. The intestinal epithelium is always exposed to such microbes, friend or foe, so to contain them our gut is equipped with specialized gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), literally the largest peripheral lymphoid tissue in the body. GALT is the intestinal immune inductive site composed of lymphoid follicles such as Peyer's patches. M cells are a subset of intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) residing in the region of the epithelium covering GALT lymphoid follicles. Although the vast majority of IEC function to absorb nutrients from the intestine, M cells are highly specialized to take up intestinal microbial antigens and deliver them to GALT for efficient mucosal as well as systemic immune responses. I will discuss recent advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of M-cell differentiation and functions. © The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Japanese Biochemical Society. All rights reserved.

Efficient hybrid solar cell with P3HT:PCBM and Cu2ZnSnS4 nanocrystals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jang, Se-Jung; Thuy Ho, Nhu; Lee, Min Hyung; Kim, Yong Soo

2017-06-01

Recently, Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) with band gap about 1.50 eV is predicted to become an ideal light absorption material due to the abundant component elements in the crust being nontoxic and environmentally friendly. However, CZTS solar cells made by high temperature and vacuum-processed are at a perceived cost disadvantage in compared with solution-processed systems such as organic and hybrid solar cells. In this study, we propose a hybrid solar configurations with solution-processed CZTS nanocrystals and P3HT:PCBM bulk heterojunction. The forming double heterojunction, as charge can be separated at both the P3HT:PCBM and CZTS:PCBM interface is attributed to enhance the light harvesting efficiency. As a result, organic solar cells with CZTS nanocrystals show the higher efficiency 3.32 % compare to 2.65 % of reference organic solar cells. A 25 % improvement of power conversion efficiency is obtained by the increasing in short-circuit current and fill factor.

CHOgenome.org 2.0: Genome resources and website updates.

PubMed

Kremkow, Benjamin G; Baik, Jong Youn; MacDonald, Madolyn L; Lee, Kelvin H

2015-07-01

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are a major host cell line for the production of therapeutic proteins, and CHO cell and Chinese hamster (CH) genomes have recently been sequenced using next-generation sequencing methods. CHOgenome.org was launched in 2011 (version 1.0) to serve as a database repository and to provide bioinformatics tools for the CHO community. CHOgenome.org (version 1.0) maintained GenBank CHO-K1 genome data, identified CHO-omics literature, and provided a CHO-specific BLAST service. Recent major updates to CHOgenome.org (version 2.0) include new sequence and annotation databases for both CHO and CH genomes, a more user-friendly website, and new research tools, including a proteome browser and a genome viewer. CHO cell-line specific sequences and annotations facilitate cell line development opportunities, several of which are discussed. Moving forward, CHOgenome.org will host the increasing amount of CHO-omics data and continue to make useful bioinformatics tools available to the CHO community. Copyright © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (anti-EGFR) antibody conjugated fluorescent nanoparticles probe for breast cancer imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hun, Xu; Zhang, Zhujun

2009-10-01

Fluorescent nanoparticles (FNs) with unique optical properties may be useful as biosensors in living cancer cell imaging and cancer targeting. In this study, anti-EGFR antibody conjugated fluorescent nanoparticles (FNs) (anti-EGFR antibody conjugated FNs) probe was used to detect breast cancer cells. FNs with excellent character such as non-toxicity and photostability were first synthesized with a simple, cost-effective and environmentally friendly modified Stőber synthesis method, and then successfully modified with anti-EGFR antibody. This kind of fluorescence probe based on the anti-EGFR antibody conjugated FNs has been used to detect breast cancer cells with fluorescence microscopy imaging technology. The experimental results demonstrate that the anti-EGFR antibody conjugated FNs can effectively recognize breast cancer cells and exhibited good sensitivity and exceptional photostability, which would provide a novel way for the diagnosis and curative effect observation of breast cancer cells and offer a new method in detecting EGFR.

Socioeconomic Status and Smokers’ Number of Smoking Friends: Findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Four Country Survey

PubMed Central

Hitchman, Sara C.; Fong, Geoffrey T.; Zanna, Mark P.; Thrasher, James F.; Chung-Hall, Janet; Siahpush, Mohammad

2014-01-01

Background Smoking rates are higher among low socioeconomic (SES) groups, and there is evidence that inequalities in smoking are widening over time in many countries. Low SES smokers may be more likely to smoke and less likely to quit because smoking is heavily concentrated in their social contexts. This study investigated whether low SES smokers (1) have more smoking friends, and (2) are more likely to gain and less likely to lose smoking friends over time. Correlates of having more smoking friends and gaining or losing smoking friends were also considered. Method Respondents included 6,321 adult current smokers (at recruitment) from Wave 1 (2002) and Wave 2 (2003) of the International Tobacco Control Project (ITC) Four Country Survey, a nationally representative longitudinal cohort survey of smokers in Australia, Canada, UK, and US. Results Low SES smokers reported more smoking friends than moderate and high SES smokers. Low SES smokers were also more likely to gain smoking friends over time compared with high SES smokers. Smokers who were male, younger, and lived with other smokers reported more smoking friends, and were also more likely to gain and less likely to lose smoking friends. Smoking behaviours, such as higher nicotine dependence were related to reporting more smoking friends, but not to losing or gain smoking friends. Conclusions Smoking is highly concentrated in the social networks of lower SES smokers and this concentration may be increasing over time. Cessation interventions should consider how the structure of low SES smokers’ social networks affects quitting. PMID:25156228

Friends and Symptom Dimensions in Patients with Psychosis: A Pooled Analysis

PubMed Central

Giacco, Domenico; McCabe, Rose; Kallert, Thomas; Hansson, Lars; Fiorillo, Andrea; Priebe, Stefan

2012-01-01

Background Having friends is associated with more favourable clinical outcomes and a higher quality of life in mental disorders. Patients with schizophrenia have fewer friends than other mentally ill patients. No large scale studies have evaluated so far what symptom dimensions of schizophrenia are associated with the lack of friendships. Methods Data from four multi-centre studies on outpatients with schizophrenia and related disorders (ICD F20-29) were included in a pooled analysis (N = 1396). We established whether patients had close friends and contact with friends by using the equivalent items on friendships of the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life or of the Lancashire Quality of Life Profile. Symptoms were measured by the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale or by the identical items included in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Results Seven hundred and sixty-nine patients (55.1%) had seen a friend in the previous week and 917 (65.7%) had someone they regarded as a close friend. Low levels of negative symptoms and hostility were significantly associated with having a close friend and contact with a friend. Overall, almost twice as many patients with absent or mild negative symptoms had met a friend in the last week, compared with those with moderate negative symptoms. Conclusions Higher levels of negative symptoms and hostility are specifically associated with the lack of friendships in patients with psychotic disorders. These findings suggest the importance of developing effective treatments for negative symptoms and hostility in order to improve the probability of patients with schizophrenia to have friends. PMID:23185552

Regeneration of the Adult Rat Spinal Cord in Response to Ensheathing Cells and Methylprednisolone

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-01-01

me in academics and research, and also as my friend. I thank Dr. Linda L. Porter, for her continuous efforts on my behalf as the Chairperson of...and Spinal Cord Injury Program. We are grateful to Drs. Barbara S. Bregman and Linda L. Porter for their wonderful suggestions and guidance; to Anna...ES, Pietronigro DD, Seligman ML (1980) The free radical pathology and the microcirculation in the major central nervous system disorders. Acta

The Role of Competence in Children's Creation of Imaginary Friends.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harter, Susan; Chao, Christine

1992-01-01

The function of children's imaginary friends was investigated from the perspective of perceived competence. Teachers judged children with imaginary friends to be less competent and socially accepted by peers than other children. Children's descriptions of themselves and their imaginary friends revealed significant gender differences in the types…

Exceedingly biocompatible and thin-layered reduced graphene oxide nanosheets using an eco-friendly mushroom extract strategy

PubMed Central

Muthoosamy, Kasturi; Bai, Renu Geetha; Abubakar, Ibrahim Babangida; Sudheer, Surya Mudavasseril; Lim, Hong Ngee; Loh, Hwei-San; Huang, Nay Ming; Chia, Chin Hua; Manickam, Sivakumar

2015-01-01

Purpose A simple, one-pot strategy was used to synthesize reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanosheets by utilizing an easily available over-the-counter medicinal and edible mushroom, Ganoderma lucidum. Methods The mushroom was boiled in hot water to liberate the polysaccharides, the extract of which was then used directly for the reduction of graphene oxide. The abundance of polysaccharides present in the mushroom serves as a good reducing agent. The proposed strategy evades the use of harmful and expensive chemicals and avoids the typical tedious reaction methods. Results More importantly, the mushroom extract can be easily separated from the product without generating any residual byproducts and can be reused at least three times with good conversion efficiency (75%). It was readily dispersible in water without the need of ultrasonication or any surfactants; whereas 5 minutes of ultrasonication with various solvents produced RGO which was stable for the tested period of 1 year. Based on electrochemical measurements, the followed method did not jeopardize RGO’s electrical conductivity. Moreover, the obtained RGO was highly biocompatible to not only colon (HT-29) and brain (U87MG) cancer cells, but was also viable towards normal cells (MRC-5). Conclusion Besides being eco-friendly, this mushroom based approach is easily scalable and demonstrates remarkable RGO stability and biocompatibility, even without any form of functionalization. PMID:25759577

Knowledge of Vaccination Needs of HIV-Infected Men Who Have Sex with Men in a National Sample of "Gay Friendly" Health care Providers.

PubMed

Blackwell, Christopher W

2016-09-01

The purpose of this study was to assess knowledge levels regarding vaccination needs of healthy, HIV-infected (with CD4 counts >200 cells/mm(3) ) men who have sex with men (MSM) in a national sample of "gay friendly" health providers. Participants (n = 92) were sent a demographic questionnaire and case vignette asking for correct identification of vaccine needs of an HIV-infected MSM with a CD4 count >200 cells/mm(3) . Participants were recruited from the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association's Health Provider Index. Descriptive statistics and Fisher's exact test were used to answer the research questions and define the sample. The vast majority of the sample (n = 83; 90%) misidentified correct vaccine needs of and/or selected inappropriate vaccines for the HIV-infected MSM. Greater familiarity with the CDC Adult Vaccination Schedule (p = .027), practice specialization (p = .004), and administration of vaccinations within location of practice (p = .009) were associated with greater knowledge of the patient's vaccine needs. Health care providers who prescribe vaccines to HIV-infected MSM need more education regarding their vaccine needs. Nurses can reduce disparities in HIV-infected MSM by advocating for vaccination and augmenting providers' comprehension of vaccine needs of this population. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Functionalization and Dispersion of Carbon Nanomaterials Using an Environmentally Friendly Ultrasonicated Ozonolysis Process.

PubMed

Yeo, Eudora S Y; Mathys, Gary I; Brack, Narelle; Thostenson, Erik T; Rider, Andrew N

2017-05-30

Functionalization of carbon nanomaterials is often a critical step that facilitates their integration into larger material systems and devices. In the as-received form, carbon nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) or graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs), may contain large agglomerates. Both agglomerates and impurities will diminish the benefits of the unique electrical and mechanical properties offered when CNTs or GNPs are incorporated into polymers or composite material systems. Whilst a variety of methods exist to functionalize carbon nanomaterials and to create stable dispersions, many the processes use harsh chemicals, organic solvents, or surfactants, which are environmentally unfriendly and may increase the processing burden when isolating the nanomaterials for subsequent use. The current research details the use of an alternative, environmentally friendly technique for functionalizing CNTs and GNPs. It produces stable, aqueous dispersions free of harmful chemicals. Both CNTs and GNPs can be added to water at concentrations up to 5 g/L and can be recirculated through a high-powered ultrasonic cell. The simultaneous injection of ozone into the cell progressively oxidizes the carbon nanomaterials, and the combined ultrasonication breaks down agglomerates and immediately exposes fresh material for functionalization. The prepared dispersions are ideally suited for the deposition of thin films onto solid substrates using electrophoretic deposition (EPD). CNTs and GNPs from the aqueous dispersions can be readily used to coat carbon- and glass-reinforcing fibers using EPD for the preparation of hierarchical composite materials.

Reassessing Escherichia coli as a cell factory for biofuel production.

PubMed

Wang, Chonglong; Pfleger, Brian F; Kim, Seon-Won

2017-06-01

Via metabolic engineering, industrial microorganisms have the potential to convert renewable substrates into a wide range of biofuels that can address energy security and environmental challenges associated with current fossil fuels. The user-friendly bacterium, Escherichia coli, remains one of the most frequently used hosts for demonstrating production of biofuel candidates including alcohol-, fatty acid- and terpenoid-based biofuels. In this review, we summarize the metabolic pathways for synthesis of these biofuels and assess enabling technologies that assist in regulating biofuel synthesis pathways and rapidly assembling novel E. coli strains. These advances maintain E. coli's position as a prominent host for developing cell factories for biofuel production. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Parental Strategies for Knowledge of Adolescents’ Friends: Distinct from Monitoring?

PubMed Central

Miller, Brenda A.; Duke, Michael R.; Ames, Genevieve M.

2012-01-01

Parental monitoring is defined as a set of behaviors used to gain knowledge about an adolescent’s whereabouts, friends and associates, and activities. However, can knowledge of adolescents’ whereabouts/activities, and friends all be attained through the same strategies? Or do they require their own strategies? This study used qualitative interviews with 173 parents of older adolescents from 100 families. Emergent themes described strategies by which parents gain information about their adolescents’ friends and the substance use of those friends. The strategies included direct interaction with the friend, gaining information from the teen, using second-hand sources, and making assumptions. Some of these strategies were consistent with previous research, while others raise new questions and provide interesting new directions to pursue. Primarily, additional consideration needs to be given to assessments of parental monitoring that include strategies for gaining knowledge of adolescents’ friends and their substance use. PMID:23209361

Friendship characteristics and activity patterns of adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder.

PubMed

Kuo, Melissa H; Orsmond, Gael I; Cohn, Ellen S; Coster, Wendy J

2013-07-01

This study compared perceptions of adolescents' friendships between adolescents with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and their parents, examined factors associated with friendship qualities, and investigated the adolescents' reports on the activities they did with friends and how activity patterns differed by gender. Ninety-one adolescents with an ASD and their parents completed mail-based surveys during the summer months. Adolescents with an ASD identified more friends than did their parents, but they agreed on the friends' characteristics. About half of the adolescents spent an average of 4 hours per day with friends during the summer months. Male adolescents with an ASD most frequently played video games with friends, whereas females most frequently had conversations with friends. The findings suggest that adolescents with an ASD and their parents identify different peers as the adolescent's friends. The findings also reveal similarities and differences in friendships between adolescents with an ASD and typically developing adolescents.

Surface modified alginate microcapsules for 3D cell culture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Yi-Wen; Kuo, Chiung Wen; Chueh, Di-Yen; Chen, Peilin

2016-06-01

Culture as three dimensional cell aggregates or spheroids can offer an ideal platform for tissue engineering applications and for pharmaceutical screening. Such 3D culture models, however, may suffer from the problems such as immune response and ineffective and cumbersome culture. This paper describes a simple method for producing microcapsules with alginate cores and a thin shell of poly(L-lysine)-graft-poly(ethylene glycol) (PLL-g-PEG) to encapsulate mouse induced pluripotent stem (miPS) cells, generating a non-fouling surface as an effective immunoisolation barrier. We demonstrated the trapping of the alginate microcapsules in a microwell array for the continuous observation and culture of a large number of encapsulated miPS cells in parallel. miPS cells cultured in the microcapsules survived well and proliferated to form a single cell aggregate. Droplet formation of monodisperse microcapsules with controlled size combined with flow cytometry provided an efficient way to quantitatively analyze the growth of encapsulated cells in a high-throughput manner. The simple and cost-effective coating technique employed to produce the core-shell microcapsules could be used in the emerging field of cell therapy. The microwell array would provide a convenient, user friendly and high-throughput platform for long-term cell culture and monitoring.

Computer-assisted analysis of the vascular endothelial cell motile response to injury.

PubMed

Askey, D B; Herman, I M

1988-12-01

We have developed an automated, user-friendly method to track vascular endothelial cell migration in vitro using an IBM PC/XT with MS DOS. Analog phase-contrast images of the bovine aortic endothelial cells are converted into digital images (8 bit, 250 x 240 pixel resolution) using a Tecmar Video VanGogh A/D board. Digitized images are stored at selected time points following mechanical injury in vitro. FORTRAN and assembly language subroutines have been implemented to automatically detect the wound edge and the edge of each cell nucleus in the phase-contrast, light-microscope field. Detection of the wound edge is accomplished by intensity thresholding following noise reduction in the image and subsequent sampling of the wound. After the range of wound intensities is determined, the entire image is sampled and a histogram of intensities is formed. The histogram peak corresponding to the wound intensities is subtracted, leaving a histogram peak that gives the range of intensities corresponding to the cell nuclei. Rates of cell migration, as well as cellular trajectories and cell surface areas, can be automatically quantitated and analyzed. This inexpensive, automated cell-tracking system should be widely applicable in a variety of cell biologic applications.

Maternal Affection Moderates Friend Influence on Schoolwork Engagement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marion, Donna; Laursen, Brett; Kiuru, Noona; Nurmi, Jari-Erik; Salmela-Aro, Katariina

2014-01-01

This study investigated friend influence over adolescent schoolwork engagement in 160 same-sex friend dyads (94 female dyads and 66 male dyads). Participants were approximately 16 years of age at the outset. Each friend described his or her own schoolwork engagement, school burnout, and perceptions of maternal affection. The results revealed that…

An Evolutionary Perspective of Friendship Selection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coutinho, Savia A.

2007-01-01

The research reported in this article investigates whether promiscuity plays a role in same-sex and opposite-sex friend selection. Since same-sex friends share strong similarity and spend time with their friends' mates or potential mates, it becomes important to select same-sex friends who will not be sexual rivals. One way to determine rivalry in…

Ethnic Differences among Friend Networks Later in Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kang, Hyunsook; Hebert, Corie

2014-01-01

This study seeks to broaden the understanding of friend relationships in older adults and the differences in those friend relationships among various ethnic groups. Secondary data from the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project (NSHAP) was analyzed to test the hypothesis that Caucasian older adults have stronger friend networks than older…

Birds of an Ethnic Feather? Ethnic Identity Homophily among College-Age Friends

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Syed, Moin; Juan, Mary Joyce D.

2012-01-01

This study assessed the degree to which pairs of friends report similar levels of ethnic identity. College-age friends (n=107 pairs; N=214 overall) completed measures of ethnic identity exploration and commitment, identity synthesis, relationship closeness, and frequency of talking to friends and family about ethnicity-related issues. Participants…

Friends of Survivors: The Community Impact of Unwanted Sexual Experiences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Banyard, Victoria L.; Moynihan, Mary M.; Walsh, Wendy A.; Cohn, Ellen S.; Ward, Sally

2010-01-01

Since sexual assault survivors are most likely to disclose their experiences to a friend; prevention efforts increasingly focus on friends as informal helpers. The current study examined friends' perceptions of the disclosure experience. Undergraduates (N = 1,241) at the University of New Hampshire completed a shortened version of the Ahrens and…

Friendships in Middle School: Influences on Motivation and School Adjustment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wentzel, Kathryn R.; Barry, Carolyn McNamara; Caldwell, Kathryn A.

2004-01-01

In this 2-year longitudinal study (n=242), the authors examined relations of having a reciprocated friend and characteristics of a reciprocated friend to students' social and academic adjustment to middle school. With respect to having a friend, 6th-grade students without friends showed lower levels of prosocial behavior, academic achievement, and…

Gender Norms and Institutional Culture: The Family-Friendly versus the Father-Friendly University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sallee, Margaret W.

2013-01-01

This article investigates the role that gender norms and expectations about parenting play in establishing the family-friendly versus the father-friendly university. Using interviews with 51 male faculty at three research universities, the article considers how faculty and administrators' actions perpetuate cultures that promote or hinder…

Social Balance on Networks: The Dynamics of Friendship and Hatred

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Redner, Sidney

2006-03-01

We study the evolution of social networks that contain both friendly and unfriendly pairwise links between individual nodes. The network is endowed with dynamics in which the sense of a link in an imbalanced triad---a triangular loop with 1 or 3 unfriendly links---is reversed to make the triad balanced. Thus an imbalanced triad is analogous to a frustrated plaquette in a random magnet, while a balanced triad fulfills the adage: ``a friend of my friend is my friend; an enemy of my friend is my enemy; a friend of my enemy is my enemy; an enemy of my enemy is my friend.'' With this frustration-reducing dynamics, an infinite network undergoes a dynamic phase transition from a steady state to ``paradise''---all links are friendly---as the propensity for friendly links to be created in an update event passes through 1/2. On the other hand, a finite network always falls into a socially-balanced absorbing state where no imbalanced triads remain. A prominent example of the achievement of social balance is the evolution of pacts and treaties between various European countries during the late 1800's and early 1900's. Here social balance gave rise to the two major alliances that comprised the protagonists of World War I.

The importance of perceived care and connectedness with friends and parents for adolescent social anxiety.

PubMed

Van Zalk, Nejra; Van Zalk, Maarten

2015-06-01

Nonclinical social anxiety in adolescence can be highly problematic, as it likely affects current and especially new social interactions. Relationships with significant others, such as close friends, mothers, and fathers, could aid socially anxious adolescents' participation in social situations, thereby helping reduce feelings of social anxiety. We examined whether making friends as well as high friendship quality help reduce social anxiety over time, and whether friends', mothers', and fathers' care interact in reducing social anxiety. Using longitudinal data from 2,194 participants in a social network (48% girls; Mage  = 13.58) followed for 3 years, we estimated friendship selection and influence processes via a continuous time-modeling approach using SIENA. We controlled for the effects of depressive symptoms, self-esteem, gender, age, and family structure. Our findings suggest that perceived care by friends mediated the effect of making friends on social anxiety. Perceptions of mother and father, as well as friend care and connectedness, respectively, did not interact in decreasing social anxiety. Nonetheless, care and connectedness with mothers, fathers, and friends jointly predicted decreases in social anxiety. Caring relationships with friends and parents each play a role in mutually protecting early adolescents against increasing in social anxiety over time. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Associations between Parental and Friend Social Support and Children's Physical Activity and Time Spent outside Playing.

PubMed

Loucaides, Constantinos A; Tsangaridou, Niki

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the structural validity of a parent and a child questionnaire that assessed parental and friends' influences on children's physical activity and investigate the associations between the derived factors, physical activity, and time spent outside. Children ( N = 154, mean age = 11.7) and 144 of their parents completed questionnaires assessing parental and friends' influences on children's physical activity. Children wore a pedometer for six days. Exploratory factor analyses revealed four factors for the parental and five for the child's questionnaire that explained 66.71% and 63.85% of the variance, respectively. Five factors were significantly associated with physical activity and five significantly associated with time spent outside. Higher correlations were revealed between "general friend support," "friends' activity norms," and physical activity ( r = 0.343 and 0.333 resp., p < 0.001) and between "general friend support" and time spent outside ( r = 0.460, p < 0.001). Obtaining information relating to parental and friends' influences on physical activity from both parents and children may provide a more complete picture of influences. Parents and friends seem to influence children's physical activity behavior and time spent outside, but friends' influences may have a stronger impact on children's behaviors.

Social and Psychological Factors Associated With Adolescent Physical Activity

PubMed Central

Garcia, Jeanette M.; Sirard, John R.; Larsen, Ross; Bruening, Meg; Wall, Melanie; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2017-01-01

Objective The purpose of this study was to examine, using structural equation modeling, the associations between nominated friend physical activity (PA), friend social support with individual psychological factors, and adolescent PA. Methods Data were obtained from EAT 2010 (Eating and Activity Among Teens), a large cross-sectional study conducted in 20 middle and high schools. The sample consisted of 1951 adolescents (mean age: 14.25 ± 1.96, 54% female, 68% ethnic minorities). PA, parent and friend socia l support (perceived social support for PA from parents and friends), and psychological measures (PA enjoyment, PA self-efficacy, and PA barriers) were assessed by self-report questionnaires. The SEM analysis consisted of 1 observed variable: friend PA, and 2 latent constructs: psychological factors, perceived social support. Results The model was a good fit, indicating that there were significant direct effects of both friend PA (P < .01) and psychological factors (P < .0001) on adolescent PA. In addition, psychological factors mediated the association between friend PA and adolescent PA. Conclusion The results of this model suggest that psychological factors and friend PA are associated with adolescent PA, and that psychological factors may play an important role. Future studies should further examine the association of both friend PA and psychological variables with adolescent PA. PMID:27172613

What they bring: baseline psychological distress differentially predicts neural response in social exclusion by children’s friends and strangers in best friend dyads

PubMed Central

Baddam, Suman; Laws, Holly; Crawford, Jessica L.; Wu, Jia; Bolling, Danielle Z.; Mayes, Linda C.

2016-01-01

Friendships play a major role in cognitive, emotional and social development in middle childhood. We employed the online Cyberball social exclusion paradigm to understand the neural correlates of dyadic social exclusion among best friends assessed simultaneously. Each child played with their friend and an unfamiliar player. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were assessed via electroencephalogram during exclusion by friend and unfamiliar peer. Data were analyzed with hierarchical linear modeling to account for nesting of children within friendship dyads. Results showed that stranger rejection was associated with larger P2 and positive slow wave ERP responses compared to exclusion by a friend. Psychological distress differentially moderated the effects of friend and stranger exclusion such that children with greater psychological distress were observed to have larger neural responses (larger P2 and slow wave) to exclusion by a stranger compared to exclusion by a friend. Conversely, children with lower levels of psychological distress had larger neural responses for exclusion by a friend than by a stranger. Psychological distress within the dyad differentially predicted the P2 and slow wave response. Findings highlight the prominent, but differential role of individual and dyadic psychological distress levels in moderating responses to social exclusion in middle childhood. PMID:27330184

Social and Psychological Factors Associated With Adolescent Physical Activity.

PubMed

Garcia, Jeanette M; Sirard, John R; Larsen, Ross; Bruening, Meg; Wall, Melanie; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2016-09-01

The purpose of this study was to examine, using structural equation modeling, the associations between nominated friend physical activity (PA), friend social support with individual PA-related psychological factors, and adolescent PA. Data were obtained from EAT 2010 (Eating and Activity Among Teens), a large cross-sectional study conducted in 20 middle and high schools. The sample consisted of 1951 adolescents (mean age: 14.25 ± 1.96, 54% female, 68% ethnic minorities). PA, parent and friend social support (perceived social support for PA from parents and friends), and psychological measures (PA enjoyment, PA self-efficacy, and PA barriers) were assessed by self-report questionnaires. The SEM analysis consisted of 1 observed variable: friend PA, and 2 latent constructs: psychological factors, perceived social support. The model was a good fit, indicating that there were significant direct effects of both friend PA (P < .01) and psychological factors (P < .0001) on adolescent PA. In addition, psychological factors mediated the association between friend PA and adolescent PA. The results of this model suggest that psychological factors and friend PA are associated with adolescent PA, and that psychological factors may play an important role. Future studies should further examine the association of both friend PA and psychological variables with adolescent PA.

Associations between Parental and Friend Social Support and Children's Physical Activity and Time Spent outside Playing

PubMed Central

Tsangaridou, Niki

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the structural validity of a parent and a child questionnaire that assessed parental and friends' influences on children's physical activity and investigate the associations between the derived factors, physical activity, and time spent outside. Children (N = 154, mean age = 11.7) and 144 of their parents completed questionnaires assessing parental and friends' influences on children's physical activity. Children wore a pedometer for six days. Exploratory factor analyses revealed four factors for the parental and five for the child's questionnaire that explained 66.71% and 63.85% of the variance, respectively. Five factors were significantly associated with physical activity and five significantly associated with time spent outside. Higher correlations were revealed between “general friend support,” “friends' activity norms,” and physical activity (r = 0.343 and 0.333 resp., p < 0.001) and between “general friend support” and time spent outside (r = 0.460, p < 0.001). Obtaining information relating to parental and friends' influences on physical activity from both parents and children may provide a more complete picture of influences. Parents and friends seem to influence children's physical activity behavior and time spent outside, but friends' influences may have a stronger impact on children's behaviors. PMID:28348605

Social Isolation, Depression, and Psychological Distress Among Older Adults.

PubMed

Taylor, Harry Owen; Taylor, Robert Joseph; Nguyen, Ann W; Chatters, Linda

2018-02-01

To investigate the impact of objective and subjective social isolation from extended family members and friends on depressive symptoms and psychological distress among a national sample of older adults. Data for older adults (55 years and above) from the National Survey of American Life ( N = 1,439) were used to assess level of objective social isolation and subjective social isolation and to test regression models examining their impact on depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression [CES-D] Scale) and psychological distress (Kessler 6 [K6] Scale). The majority of respondents were not socially isolated from family or friends; 5% were objectively isolated from family and friends, and less than 1% were subjectively isolated from family and friends. Regression analyses using both social isolation measures indicated that objective social isolation was unrelated to depressive symptoms and psychological distress. However, subjective social isolation from both family and friends and from friends only was associated with more depressive symptoms, and subjective social isolation from friends only was associated with higher levels of psychological distress. Assessments of social isolation among older populations should account for both subjective and objective dimensions, as well as both family and friend social networks. Social isolation from friends is an important, but understudied, issue that has significant consequences for older adult mental health.

What they bring: baseline psychological distress differentially predicts neural response in social exclusion by children's friends and strangers in best friend dyads.

PubMed

Baddam, Suman; Laws, Holly; Crawford, Jessica L; Wu, Jia; Bolling, Danielle Z; Mayes, Linda C; Crowley, Michael J

2016-11-01

Friendships play a major role in cognitive, emotional and social development in middle childhood. We employed the online Cyberball social exclusion paradigm to understand the neural correlates of dyadic social exclusion among best friends assessed simultaneously. Each child played with their friend and an unfamiliar player. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were assessed via electroencephalogram during exclusion by friend and unfamiliar peer. Data were analyzed with hierarchical linear modeling to account for nesting of children within friendship dyads. Results showed that stranger rejection was associated with larger P2 and positive slow wave ERP responses compared to exclusion by a friend. Psychological distress differentially moderated the effects of friend and stranger exclusion such that children with greater psychological distress were observed to have larger neural responses (larger P2 and slow wave) to exclusion by a stranger compared to exclusion by a friend. Conversely, children with lower levels of psychological distress had larger neural responses for exclusion by a friend than by a stranger. Psychological distress within the dyad differentially predicted the P2 and slow wave response. Findings highlight the prominent, but differential role of individual and dyadic psychological distress levels in moderating responses to social exclusion in middle childhood. © The Author (2016). Published by Oxford University Press.

Gender, Friendship Networks, and Delinquency: A Dynamic Network Approach.

PubMed

Haynie, Dana L; Doogan, Nathan J; Soller, Brian

2014-11-01

Researchers have examined selection and influence processes in shaping delinquency similarity among friends, but little is known about the role of gender in moderating these relationships. Our objective is to examine differences between adolescent boys and girls regarding delinquency-based selection and influence processes. Using longitudinal network data from adolescents attending two large schools in AddHealth ( N = 1,857) and stochastic actor-oriented models, we evaluate whether girls are influenced to a greater degree by friends' violence or delinquency than boys (influence hypothesis) and whether girls are more likely to select friends based on violent or delinquent behavior than boys (selection hypothesis). The results indicate that girls are more likely than boys to be influenced by their friends' involvement in violence. Although a similar pattern emerges for nonviolent delinquency, the gender differences are not significant. Some evidence shows that boys are influenced toward increasing their violence or delinquency when exposed to more delinquent or violent friends but are immune to reducing their violence or delinquency when associating with less violent or delinquent friends. In terms of selection dynamics, although both boys and girls have a tendency to select friends based on friends' behavior, girls have a stronger tendency to do so, suggesting that among girls, friends' involvement in violence or delinquency is an especially decisive factor for determining friendship ties.