Patterns of characterization in folktales across geographic regions and levels of cultural complexity

Literary scholars are generally suspicious of the concept of universals: there are presently no candidates for literary universals that a high proportion of literary scholars would accept as valid. This paper reports results from a content analysis of patterns of characterization in folktales from 48 culture areas, aimed at identifying patterns of characterization that apply across regions of the world and levels of cultural complexity. The search for these patterns was guided by evolutionary theory and the findings are consistent with previous research on patterns of altruism, sex differences in mate preferences, sex differences in reproductive strategy, and differing emphases on male and female physical attractiveness. World literature, especially originally oral literature, represents a vast and neglected repository of information that researchers can use to more precisely map the contours of human nature. Jonathan Gottschall received his Ph.D. in English from Binghamton University and now teaches at St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York. His research focuses on integrating Darwinian approaches to human behavior and psychology with literary studies. The other authors are undergraduate students at St. Lawrence University.     

Aberrant Active cis-Regulatory Elements Associated with Downregulation of RET Finger Protein Overcome Chemoresistance in Glioblastoma

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Hydra: software for tailored processing of H/D exchange data from MS or tandem MS analyses

Background  

Hydrogen/deuterium exchange mass spectrometry (H/DX-MS) experiments implemented to characterize protein interaction and protein folding generate large quantities of data. Organizing, processing and visualizing data requires an automated solution, particularly when accommodating new tandem mass spectrometry modes for H/DX measurement. We sought to develop software that offers flexibility in defining workflows so as to support exploratory treatments of H/DX-MS data, with a particular focus on the analysis of very large protein systems and the mining of tandem mass spectrometry data.     

Cutting Edge: Plasmacytoid dendritic cells provide innate immune protection against mucosal viral infection in situ

Dendritic cells (DCs) are powerful APCs capable of activating naive lymphocytes. Of the DC subfamilies, plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs) are unique in that they secrete high levels of type I IFNs in response to viruses but their role in inducing adaptive immunity remains divisive. In this study, we examined the importance of pDCs and their ability to recognize a virus through TLR9 in immunity against genital HSV-2 infection. We show that a low number of pDCs survey the vaginal mucosa at steady state. Upon infection, pDCs are recruited to the vagina and produce large amounts of type I IFNs in a TLR9-dependent manner and suppress local viral replication. Although pDCs are critical in innate defense against genital herpes challenge, adaptive Th1 immunity developed normally in the absence of pDCs. Thus, by way of migrating directly into the peripheral mucosa, pDCs act strictly as innate antiviral effector cells against mucosal viral infection in situ.     

Growth of beta-amyloid(1-40) protofibrils by monomer elongation and lateral association. Characterization of distinct products by light scattering and atomic force microscopy

Amyloid plaques in brain tissue are a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Primary components of these plaques are 40- and 42-residue peptides, denoted A beta(1-40) and A beta(1-42), that are derived by proteolysis of cellular amyloid precursor protein. Synthetic A beta(1-40) and A beta(1-42) form amyloid fibrils in vitro that share many features with the amyloid in plaques. Soluble intermediates in A beta fibrillogenesis, termed protofibrils, have been identified previously, and here we describe the in vitro formation and isolation of A beta(1-40) protofibrils by size exclusion chromatography. In some experiments, the A beta(1-40) was radiomethylated to better quantify various A beta species. Mechanistic studies clarified two separate modes of protofibril growth, elongation by monomer deposition and protofibril-protofibril association, that could be resolved by varying the NaCl concentration. Small isolated protofibrils in dilute Tris-HCl buffers were directed along the elongation pathway by addition of A beta(1-40) monomer or along the association pathway by addition of NaCl. Multi-angle light scattering analysis revealed that protofibrils with initial molecular masses M(w) of (7-30) x 10(3) kDa grew to M(w) values of up to 250 x 10(3) kDa by these two growth processes. However, the mass per unit length of the associated protofibrils was about 2-3 times that of the elongated protofibrils. Rate constants for further elongation by monomer deposition with the elongated, associated, and initial protofibril pools were identical when equal number concentrations of original protofibrils were compared, indicating that the original number of protofibril ends had not been altered by the elongation or association processes. Atomic force microscopy revealed heterogeneous initial protofibrils that became more rodlike following the elongation reaction. Our data indicate that protofibril elongation in the absence of NaCl results from monomer deposition only at the ends of protofibrils and proceeds without an increase in protofibril diameter. In contrast, protofibril association occurs in the absence of monomer when NaCl is introduced, but this association involves lateral interactions that result in a relatively disordered fibril structure.     

Involvement of oxidative stress and caspase 2-mediated intrinsic pathway signaling in age-related increase in muscle cell apoptosis in mice

Apoptosis has been implicated as a mechanism of loss of muscle cells in normal aging and plays an important role in age-related sarcopenia. To test the hypothesis that caspase 2 and c-Jun NH₂-terminal kinase (JNK)-mediated intrinsic pathway signaling contribute to skeletal muscle cell apoptosis in aging, we compared activation of caspase 2 and JNK and the in vivo expression of 4-hydroxynonenal protein adducts (4-HNE), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2), BAX, and phospho-BCL-2 in gastrocnemius muscles of young (5 months old) and old (25 months old) mice. A distinct age-related increase in 4-HNE and iNOS expression was readily detected in mice. Increased oxidative stress and iNOS induction were further accompanied by a decrease in G6PDH expression, activation of caspase 2 and JNK, and inactivation of BCL-2 through phosphorylation at serine 70, and caspase 9 activation. Regression analysis further revealed that increased muscle cell death in aging was significantly correlated with changes in the levels of these molecules. Taken together, our data indicate that caspase 2 and JNK-mediated intrinsic pathway signaling is one of the mechanisms involved in age-related increase in muscle cell apoptosis.