Modifying the Frequency and Characteristics of Involuntary Autobiographical Memories

Recent studies have shown that involuntary autobiographical memories (IAMs) can be elicited in the laboratory. Here we assessed whether the specific instructions given to participants can change the nature of the IAMs reported, in terms of both their frequency and their characteristics. People were either made or not made aware that the aim of the study was to examine IAMs. They reported mental contents either whenever they became aware of them or following a predetermined schedule. Both making people aware of the aim of the study and following a fixed schedule of interruptions increased significantly the number of IAMs reported. When aware of the aim of the study, participants reported more specific memories that had been retrieved and rehearsed more often in the past. These findings demonstrate that the number and characteristics of memories depend on the procedure used. Explanations of these effects and their implications for research on IAMs are discussed.     

Association Between Trace Element Status and Depression in HTLV-1-Infected Patients: a Retrospective Cohort Study

Depression and Anxiety are two important public health problems that are known to be associated with viral infections. The association between the intake of nutrients such as zinc and copper with symptoms of depression has been studied previously. The aim of the current study was to investigate the association between depression with human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) infection and serum content of zinc and copper in a large Iranian population cohort. The study population consisted of 279 HTLV-1-positive patients who were identified after recruitment as part of a large cohort study: the Mashhad Stroke and Heart Association Disorder (MASHAD) study. They were divided into two groups of diagnosed with or without depression based on their symptoms. Serum zinc and copper levels of all subjects were measured using the flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The population sample comprised of 279 individuals infected with HTLV-1 of whom 192 (68.8%) were women. The mean serum zinc in the group with and without depression was 78.69 ± 13.79 μg/dl and 86.87 ± 19.44 μg/dl, respectively (p < 0.001). Also, the serum copper level was higher in the depressive group (116.75 ± 39.56) than in the non-depressive group (104.76 ± 30.77) (p 0.004). The association between serum zinc and copper with depression in HTLV-1-infected patients which was shown in this study could be considered in the treatment strategies in these patients.

     

The effect of GPx-1 rs1050450 and MnSOD rs4880 polymorphisms on PE susceptibility: a case- control study

Molecular Biology Reports - Preeclampsia (PE) is a serious pregnancy complication whose etiology is not fully understood. However, previous reports have suggested that oxidative stress and genetic...     

Fractionated radiotherapy might induce epithelial-mesenchymal transition and radioresistance in a cellular context manner

Despite the fact that radiotherapy is a main therapeutic modality in cancer treatment, recent evidence suggests that fractionated radiotherapy (FR) might confer radioresistance through epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Nevertheless, the effects of FR on EMT phenotype and the potential link between EMT induction and radioresistance development yet to be clarified. The aim of this study was to assess whether FR could promote EMT, and to elucidate if induction of EMT contributes to the acquisition of radioresistance. To this end, two human cancer cell lines (A549 and HT-29) were irradiated (2 Gy/day) and analyzed using wound healing, transwell migration and invasion assays, real-time polymerase chain reaction (for E-cadherin, N-cadherin, Vimentin, CD44, CD133, Snail, and Twist), clonogenic assay, Annexin V/PI, and 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5 diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Irradiation of A549 (for 5 or 10 consecutive days) resulted in morphological changes including elongation of cytoplasm and nuclei and pleomorphic nuclei. Also, irradiation-enhanced migratory and invasive potential of A549. These phenotypic changes were in agreement with decreased expression of the epithelial marker (E-cadherin), enhanced expression of mesenchymal markers (N-cadherin, Vimentin, Snail, and Twist) and increased stemness factors (CD44 and CD133). Moreover, induction of EMT phenotype was accompanied with enhanced radioresistance and proliferation of irradiated A549. However, FR (for 5 consecutive days) did not increase HT-29 motility. Furthermore, molecular alterations did not resemble EMT phenotype (downregulation of E-cadherin, Vimentin, ALDH, CD44, CD133, and Snail). Eventually, FR led to enhanced radiosensitivity and decreased proliferation of HT-29. Altogether, our findings suggest that FR might induce EMT and confer radioresistance in a cell context-dependent manner.     

Development of a micropropagation protocol for Malus orientalis using axillary buds

Caucasian apple trees (Malus orientalis) grow individually or in small groups with a scattered distribution pattern throughout the Hyrcanian forest. The wild gene pool in such trees has a high genetic diversity which is highly important for apple breeders. Micropropagation can be advantageous due to its quick propagation for apple breeders as well as its maintenance of in vitro and in vivo germplasm collection and exchange. Here, for the first time, we investigated the in vitro propagation of M. orientalis from three populations by collecting axillary buds and established a micropropagation protocol. Two strengths of Murashige and Skoog (MS) basal medium (full and half) in combination with different concentrations of 6-benzylaminopurine (BA) were tested for optimal multiplication. The interaction among the BA concentrations, MS strength, and populations was effective in the promotion of shoot development across the three populations. The average number of the produced shoots, shoot length, and number of leaves was significantly affected by this triple interaction. As a result, BA at the concentration of 0.4 mg L⁻¹ worked for all the populations. The results showed that a rooting percentage of 77.8% was obtained on half strength Linsmaier and Skoog (LS) medium in combination with 0.9 mg L⁻¹ 3-indole butyric acid (IBA). However, the subculture of shoots on half strength LS medium supplemented with 0.9 mg L⁻¹ IBA increased rooting percentage up to 96% and produced the highest number of roots (7.18 roots per shoot).

     

The Rsp5 ubiquitin ligase and the AAA-ATPase Cdc48 control the ubiquitin-mediated degradation of the COPII component Sec23

Ubp3/Bre5 complex is a substrate-specific deubiquitylating enzyme which mediates deubiquitylation of Sec23, a component of the COPII complex involved in the transport between endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus [1]. Here we show that ubiquitylation of Sec23 is controlled by the Rsp5 ubiquitin ligase both in vivo and in vitro. We have recently identified Cdc48, a chaperone-like that plays a key role in the proteasomal escort pathway, as a partner of the Ubp3/Bre5 complex [2]. We now found that cdc48 thermosensitive mutant cells not only accumulate ubiquitylated form of Sec23 but also display a stabilization of this protein at the restrictive temperature. This indicates that Cdc48 controls the proteasome-mediated degradation of Sec23. Our data favor the idea that Cdc48 plays a key role in deciphering fates of ubiquitylated Sec23 to degradation or deubiquitylation/stabilization via its cofactors.     

Adaptation of chickpea to desiccation stress is enhanced by symbiotic rhizobia

This study examined the influence of three inoculant strains of Bradyrhizobium japonicum (Thal-8, Tal 620, Dulawala) on the ability of chickpea (Cicer arietinum (L.) to adapt to drought-stress. Strain Thal-8 was most effective in the root-nodule symbiosis and also partially alleviated decreased growth and yield imposed by drought stress. Strain Thal-8, in pure culture, also produced higher amounts of gibberellic acid (GA) and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and lower amounts of abscisic acid (ABA) than the other two test strains. Thal-8 increased the root biomass, GA and IAA contents of leaves of chickpea plants, including ICC 4948NN, a non-nodulating line. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that GA and IAA is produced by the Thal-8 strain and/or elevates levels of these phytohormones in chickpeas. This contributes to its high performance as a nitrogen-fixing microsymbiont. The growth-promoting response evoked by different strains of Bradyrhizobium correlated with higher ratios of GA and IAA relative to ABA phytohormones in the plants.