Inhibition of miR-21 Promotes Cellular Senescence in NT2-Derived Astrocytes

Biochemistry (Moscow) - Astrocytes are the main homeostatic cells in the central nervous system (CNS) that provide mechanical, metabolic, and trophic support to neurons. Disruption of their...     

Reinventing Biostatistics Education for Basic Scientists

Numerous studies demonstrating that statistical errors are common in basic science publications have led to calls to improve statistical training for basic scientists. In this article, we sought to evaluate statistical requirements for PhD training and to identify opportunities for improving biostatistics education in the basic sciences. We provide recommendations for improving statistics training for basic biomedical scientists, including: 1. Encouraging departments to require statistics training, 2. Tailoring coursework to the students’ fields of research, and 3. Developing tools and strategies to promote education and dissemination of statistical knowledge. We also provide a list of statistical considerations that should be addressed in statistics education for basic scientists.     

Comparative Analysis of SOX3 Protein Orthologs: Expansion of Homopolymeric Amino Acid Tracts During Vertebrate Evolution

To understand more fully the structure and evolution of the SOX3 protein, we comparatively analyzed its orthologs in vertebrates. Since complex disorders are associated with human SOX3 polyalanine expansions, our investigation focused on both compositional and evolutionary analysis of various homopolymeric amino acid tracts observed in SOX3 orthologs. Our analysis revealed that the observed homopolymeric alanine, glycine, and proline tracts are mammal-specific, except for one polyglycine tract present in birds. Since it is likely that the SOX3 protein acquired additional roles in brain development in Eutheria, we might speculate that development of novel brain functions during the course of evolution was affected, at least in part, by such structural–functional changes in the SOX3 protein.     

No Specific Gene Expression Signature in Human Granulosa and Cumulus Cells for Prediction of Oocyte Fertilisation and Embryo Implantation

In human IVF procedures objective and reliable biomarkers of oocyte and embryo quality are needed in order to increase the use of single embryo transfer (SET) and thus prevent multiple pregnancies. During folliculogenesis there is an intense bi-directional communication between oocyte and follicular cells. For this reason gene expression profile of follicular cells could be an important indicator and biomarker of oocyte and embryo quality. The objective of this study was to identify gene expression signature(s) in human granulosa (GC) and cumulus (CC) cells predictive of successful embryo implantation and oocyte fertilization. Forty-one patients were included in the study and individual GC and CC samples were collected; oocytes were cultivated separately, allowing a correlation with IVF outcome and elective SET was performed. Gene expression analysis was performed using microarrays, followed by a quantitative real-time PCR validation. After statistical analysis of microarray data, there were no significantly differentially expressed genes (FDR<0,05) between non-fertilized and fertilized oocytes and non-implanted and implanted embryos in either of the cell type. Furthermore, the results of quantitative real-time PCR were in consent with microarray data as there were no significant differences in gene expression of genes selected for validation. In conclusion, we did not find biomarkers for prediction of oocyte fertilization and embryo implantation in IVF procedures in the present study.     

A policy management game for mass casualty incidents: an experimental study

The number of complex and unique mass casualty incidents has increased due to natural and technological disasters as well as man-made disasters such as political instabilities, economic recession, and terrorism. Thus, health care policy-makers such as the Austrian Samaritan Organization have been continuously improving the training of emergency staff to enable them to quickly evacuate an emergency site, to minimize the number of fatalities at the incident site, and to decrease the patients’ waiting time for treatment. We developed a policy management game to provide a training tool for emergency staff to support such policy-makers. In addition, with this game students can be educated on scheduling and planning techniques such as simulation, queuing theory, and resource allocation. To investigate the potential of our policy management game, we conducted an experimental study with 96 participants including students, practitioners from health care services, and researchers. They acted as incident commanders to decide on sending medical staff to triage, to different treatment rooms for care and to on-site transportation, as well as to transportation to hospitals during three game runs. The participants rated the general structure and organization of the experiment as high. The performance was also improved by many participants during the experiment. We found differences in performance among the different participant groups.     

Application of simple fed-batch technique to high-level secretory production of insulin precursor using <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pichia pastoris</Emphasis> with subsequent purification and conversion to human insulin

Background  

The prevalence of diabetes is predicted to rise significantly in the coming decades. A recent analysis projects that by the year 2030 there will be ~366 million diabetics around the world, leading to an increased demand for inexpensive insulin to make this life-saving drug also affordable for resource poor countries.