Genome-wide association study of idiopathic hypersomnia in a Japanese population

Sleep and Biological Rhythms - Idiopathic hypersomnia (IH) is a rare sleep disorder characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness, great difficulty upon awakening, and prolonged sleep time. In...     

The plant homeodomain finger protein MESR4 is essential for embryonic development in Drosophila

Misexpression Suppressor of Ras 4 (MESR4), a plant homeodomain (PHD) finger protein with nine zinc‐finger motifs has been implicated in various biological processes including the regulation of fat storage and innate immunity in Drosophila. However, the role of MESR4 in the context of development remains unclear. Here it is shown that MESR4 is a nuclear protein essential for embryonic development. Immunostaining of polytene chromosomes using anti‐MESR4 antibody revealed that MESR4 binds to numerous bands along the chromosome arms. The most intense signal was detected at the 39E‐F region, which is known to contain the histone gene cluster. P‐element insertions in the MESR4 locus, which were homozygous lethal during embryogenesis with defects in ventral ectoderm formation and head encapsulation was identified. In the mutant embryos, expression of Fasciclin 3 (Fas3), an EGFR signal target gene was greatly reduced, and the level of EGFR signal‐dependent double phosphorylated ERK (dp‐ERK) remained low. However, in the context of wing vein formation, genetic interaction experiments suggested that MESR4 is involved in the EGFR signaling as a negative regulator. These results suggested that MESR4 is a novel chromatin‐binding protein required for proper expression of genes including those regulated by the EGFR signaling pathway during development. genesis 53:701–708, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

2′‐Deoxymugineic acid promotes growth of rice (Oryza sativa L.) by orchestrating iron and nitrate uptake processes under high pH conditions

Poaceae plants release 2′‐deoxymugineic acid (DMA) and related phytosiderophores to chelate iron (Fe), which often exists as insoluble Fe(III) in the rhizosphere, especially under high pH conditions. Although the molecular mechanisms behind the biosynthesis and secretion of DMA have been studied extensively, little information is known about whether DMA has biological roles other than chelating Fe in vivo. Here, we demonstrate that hydroponic cultures of rice (Oryza sativa) seedlings show almost complete restoration in shoot height and soil‐plant analysis development (SPAD) values after treatment with 3–30 μm DMA at high pH (pH 8.0), compared with untreated control seedlings at normal pH (pH 5.8). These changes were accompanied by selective accumulation of Fe over other metals. While this enhanced growth was evident under high pH conditions, DMA application also enhanced seedling growth under normal pH conditions in which Fe was fairly accessible. Microarray and qRT‐PCR analyses revealed that exogenous DMA application attenuated the increased expression levels of various genes related to Fe transport and accumulation. Surprisingly, despite the preferential utilization of ammonium over nitrate as a nitrogen source by rice, DMA application also increased nitrate reductase activity and the expression of genes encoding high‐affinity nitrate transporters and nitrate reductases, all of which were otherwise considerably lower under high pH conditions. These data suggest that exogenous DMA not only plays an important role in facilitating the uptake of environmental Fe, but also orchestrates Fe and nitrate assimilation for optimal growth under high pH conditions.     

新疆地区白念珠菌基因型分析及其体外药物敏感性研究

目的研究新疆地区汉族和维吾尔族患者来源的50株白念珠菌的基因型及其对两性霉素B、5-氟胞嘧啶、米卡芬净、伊曲康唑、氟康唑和咪康唑的体外敏感性。方法采用PCR法扩增白念珠菌rDNA 25S的Ⅰ类内含子包含区,根据扩增产物的大小判断基因型(A型为450 bp,B型为840 bp,C型为450 bp和840 bp)。采用CLSI M27-A液基微量稀释法测定50株白念珠菌对上述6种抗真菌药的体外敏感性。结果 50株菌分为3种基因型:A型30株,B型和C型各10株。所有菌株对两性霉素B、5-氟胞嘧啶、米卡芬净和咪康唑的MIC值较低,MIC范围依次为0.25～0.5μg/mL,0.125～0.5μg/mL,≤0.03μg/mL,0.25～8μg/mL;对伊曲康唑和氟康唑的MIC值较高,MIC范围分别为0.25～8μg/mL,0.5～64μg/mL。B型和C型对5-氟胞嘧啶的MIC值均为0.125μg/mL,对伊曲康唑和氟康唑的耐药率分别为84%、70%。不同族别来源的菌株基因型比较无显著差异(P>0.05),不同基因型菌株的抗真菌药物敏感性比较也无显著差异(P>0.05)。结论新疆地区白念珠菌分A,B,C三种基因型。汉...     

Multiple stimulations for muscle–nerve–blood vessel unit in compensatory hypertrophied skeletal muscle of rat surgical ablation model

Tissue inflammation and multiple cellular responses in the compensatory enlarged plantaris (OP Plt) muscle induced by surgical ablation of synergistic muscles (soleus and gastrocnemius) were followed over 10 weeks after surgery. Contralateral surgery was performed in adult Wistar male rats. Cellular responses in muscle fibers, blood vessels and nerve fibers were analyzed by immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. Severe muscle fiber damage and disappearance of capillaries associated with apparent tissue edema were observed in the peripheral portion of OP Plt muscles during the first week, whereas central portions were relatively preserved. Marked cell activation/proliferation was also mainly observed in peripheral portions. Similarly, activated myogenic cells were seen not only inside but also outside of muscle fibers. The former were likely satellite cells and the latter may be interstitial myogenic cells. One week after surgery, small muscle fibers, small arteries and capillaries and several branched-muscle fibers were evident in the periphery, thus indicating new muscle fiber and blood vessel formation. Proliferating cells were also detected in the nerve bundles in the Schwann cell position. These results indicate that the compensatory stimulated/enlarged muscle is a suitable model for analyzing multiple physiological cellular responses in muscle–nerve–blood vessel units under continuous stretch stimulation. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Structural analysis of O-glycans of mucin from jellyfish (Aurelia aurita) containing 2-aminoethylphosphonate

The structure of O-glycan in qniumucin (Q-mucin), which is a novel mucin extracted from jellyfish, was analyzed by a combination of NMR and ESI-MS/MS. A previously unidentified monosaccharide involved in the glycan chains was determined to be N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) substituted by 2-aminoethylphosphonate (AEP) at the C-6. The O-glycans in Q-mucin from Aurelia aurita were proved to be mainly composed of three monosaccharides: GalNAc, AEP-(O→6)-GalNAc, and P-6-GalNAc. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example of an O-glycan structure of glycoproteins containing AEP. This exceptionally simple structure of Q-mucin and its potential use in material science and technology are revealed.     

Isolation and Characterization of Globulin from Seeds of Amaranthus hypochondriacus L.

Seeds of grain amaranths contain a high amount (about 60% of total nitrogen) of albumin and globulin and a trace amount of prolamin. From salt-soluble extracts of A. hypochondriacus seeds, a globulin (440,000 in apparent molecular weight and ) was purified by Sepharose 6B gel and DEAE-cellulose column chromatographies. The protein comprised at least four kinds of subunits whose molecular weights were 36,000, 32,000, 20,000 and 18,000, respectively. The amino acid composition of the globulin was almost similar to those of soybean and oat globulins.     

Functional tooth units and nutritional status of older people in care homes in Indonesia

Gerodontology 2012; doi: 10.1111/j.1741‐2358.2012.00673.x Functional tooth units and nutritional status of older people in care homes in Indonesia Objectives: To investigate the relationship between functional tooth units (FTUs) and nutritional status. Methods: One hundred females (mean age: 72.4 ± 8.2 years) at four private care homes in Jakarta, Indonesia were interviewed and clinically examined. The oral examination included the assessment of teeth, prosthetic status, and number of FTUs. The total number of FTUs was further divided by tooth composition: natural tooth against natural tooth (NN‐FTUs), natural tooth against denture (ND‐FTUs), and denture against denture (DD‐FTUs). Nutritional status was evaluated using the body mass index (BMI) and the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA). Results: The mean numbers of teeth present, NN‐FTUs, ND‐FTUs, DD‐FTUs, and total FTUs were 13.1 ± 10.4, 1.7 ± 3.0, 1.2 ± 3.3, 0.4 ± 1.2 and 3.3 ± 4.4, respectively. The mean BMI and MNA scores were 24.8 ± 5.0 and 22.6 ± 2.8, respectively. Subjects with a normal BMI had a significantly higher total number of FTUs (3.6 ± 4.6) compared with underweight subjects (0.1 ± 0.3). Subjects with a normal MNA had a significantly higher number of NN‐FTU (2.6 ± 3.7) compared to those who were at risk or in a state of under‐nutrition (1.2 ± 2.4). Conclusion: This study revealed significant relationships between the number of FTUs and nutritional status. Keeping the posterior occlusion should be emphasized in order to maintain good nutritional status in older subjects.