Numerical simulations of the pulsating flow of cerebrospinal fluid flow in the cervical spinal canal of a Chiari patient

The flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in a patient-specific model of the subarachnoid space in a Chiari I patient was investigated using numerical simulations. The pulsating CSF flow was modeled using a time-varying velocity pulse based on peak velocity measurements (diastole and systole) derived from a selection of patients with Chiari I malformation. The present study introduces the general definition of the Reynolds number to provide a measure of CSF flow instability to give an estimate of the possibility of turbulence occurring in CSF flow. This was motivated by the fact that the combination of pulsating flow and the geometric complexity of the spinal canal may result in local Reynolds numbers that are significantly higher than the commonly used global measure such that flow instabilities may develop into turbulent flow in these regions. The local Reynolds number was used in combination with derived statistics to characterize the flow. The results revealed the existence of both local unstable regions and local regions with velocity fluctuations similar in magnitude to what is observed in fully turbulent flows. The results also indicated that the fluctuations were not self-sustained turbulence, but rather flow instabilities that may develop into turbulence. The case considered was therefore believed to represent a CSF flow close to transition.     

Clinical,Molecular, and Computational Analysis in two cases with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy associated with SUCLG1 mutation in a consanguineous family

Deficiency of the mitochondrial enzyme succinyl COA ligase (SUCL) is associated with encephalomyopathic mtDNA depletion syndrome and methylmalonic aciduria. This disorder is caused by mutations in both SUCL subunits genes: SUCLG1 (α subnit) and SUCLA2 (β subnit). We report here, two Tunisian patients belonging to a consanguineous family with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, hearing loss, lactic acidosis, hypotonia, psychomotor retardation and methylmalonic aciduria. Mutational analysis of SUCLG1 gene showed, for the first time, the presence of c.41T > C in the exon 1 at homozygous state. In-silico analysis revealed that this mutation substitutes a conserved methionine residue to a threonine at position 14 (p.M14T) located at the SUCLG1 protein mitochondrial targeting sequence. Moreover, these analysis predicted that this mutation alter stability structure and mitochondrial translocation of the protein. In Addition, a decrease in mtDNA copy number was revealed by real time PCR in the peripheral blood leukocytes in the two patients compared with controls.     

QTL复合区间作图中标记筛选的效率及其影响因素研究

高效地筛选标记 ,是复合区间作图方法定位QTLs的基础。筛选出的主效标记和互作标记 ,除了用作控制背景遗传效应外 ,在定位具有上位性效应的QTLs时 ,还将用于构筑两维搜索区间。因而 ,标记筛选的效率将直接影响QTL定位的功效和精度。通过对不同方法筛选标记的效率进行模拟研究 ,发现回归方法明显优于随机效应预测方法 ,同归方法中又以前向选择法简单有效。普通遗传力和基因型×环境互作遗传力的增加都能提高标记筛选效率 ,前者对主效应较大的QTLs影响明显 ,后者对主效应较小的QTLs作用较大。过多过密的标记会降低标记筛选效率 ,其中密度增加对标记筛选的负作用更为突出。为了缓解标记筛选效率制约QTL定位功效的缺陷 ,可以用多环境下筛选出的标记共同构建两维搜索区间     

中国东北产6种藓类植物的染色体观察

苔藓植物细胞学研究始于 2 0世纪 [1 ] 。我国有关这方面的研究自 1 988年开始 ,据 1 998年周云龙统计 ,国内学者共报道了 94种苔藓植物的染色体数目 ,其中苔类有 1 6科、1 9属、2 3种 ,5种为首次报道 ;藓类有 2 1科、37属、71种 ,2 7种为首次报道[2 ] 。这些研究为苔藓植物的系统学、生态学、遗传学等提供了直接或间接的资料和证据。1 　材料和方法将采集的苔藓植物培养在室内北窗台上。取生长旺盛的茎尖用对二氯苯饱和水溶液预处理 5～ 7h,卡诺固定液 (纯酒精∶冰醋酸 =3∶ 1 )固定 ,95%酒精∶盐酸 ( 1∶ 1 )离析1 0～ 2 0 min后剥离茎尖…     

Promoter methylation and transgene copy numbers predict unstable protein production in recombinant Chinese hamster ovary cell lines

Mammalian cell lines for recombinant protein production need to maintain productivity over extended cultivation times. Long-term stability studies are time and resource intensive, but are widely performed to identify and eliminate unstable candidates during cell line development. Production instability of manufacturing cell lines can be associated with methylation and silencing of the heterologous promoter. We have identified CpG dinucleotides within the human cytomegalovirus major immediate early promoter/enhancer (hCMV-MIE) that are frequently methylated in unstable antibody-producing Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell lines. We have established methylation-specific real-time qPCR for the rapid and sensitive measurement of hCMV-MIE methylation in multiple cell lines and provide evidence that hCMV-MIE methylation and transgene copy numbers can be used as early markers to predict production instability of recombinant CHO cell lines. These markers should provide the opportunity to enrich stable producers early in cell line development and allow developers to put more emphasis on other criteria, such as product quality and bioprocess robustness.     

A new diploid species of Hieracium sect. Pannosa (Asteraceae) from Bulgaria

Hieracium petrovae Vladimirov & Szeląg sp. nov. , a new diploid (2 n  = 18) species in H. sect. Pannosa Zahn, is described and illustrated from the Rhodope Mountains, South Bulgaria, and compared with related taxa. It grows in relict habitats in crevices of limestone rock together with many Balkan endemics. H. petrovae is morphologically similar to taxa from the H. pannosum , H. pilosissimum and H. heldreichii groups (collective species sensu Zahn) to some of which it is a presumed ancestral species.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 150 , 261–265.     

The aggregate site frequency spectrum for comparative population genomic inference

Understanding how assemblages of species responded to past climate change is a central goal of comparative phylogeography and comparative population genomics, an endeavour that has increasing potential to integrate with community ecology. New sequencing technology now provides the potential to perform complex demographic inference at unprecedented resolution across assemblages of nonmodel species. To this end, we introduce the aggregate site frequency spectrum (aSFS), an expansion of the site frequency spectrum to use single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data sets collected from multiple, co‐distributed species for assemblage‐level demographic inference. We describe how the aSFS is constructed over an arbitrary number of independent population samples and then demonstrate how the aSFS can differentiate various multispecies demographic histories under a wide range of sampling configurations while allowing effective population sizes and expansion magnitudes to vary independently. We subsequently couple the aSFS with a hierarchical approximate Bayesian computation (hABC) framework to estimate degree of temporal synchronicity in expansion times across taxa, including an empirical demonstration with a data set consisting of five populations of the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). Corroborating what is generally understood about the recent postglacial origins of these populations, the joint aSFS/hABC analysis strongly suggests that the stickleback data are most consistent with synchronous expansion after the Last Glacial Maximum (posterior probability = 0.99). The aSFS will have general application for multilevel statistical frameworks to test models involving assemblages and/or communities, and as large‐scale SNP data from nonmodel species become routine, the aSFS expands the potential for powerful next‐generation comparative population genomic inference.     

具垂直传染和连续预防接种的SIRS传染病模型的研究

研究了具有垂直传染的两类连续预防接种传染病模型,分别给出了SIRS传染病模型基本再生数并利用广义Dulac函数方法和LaSalle不变原理证明了无病平衡点和正平衡点的全局稳定性.最后对两种结果进行了比较.     

具有阶段结构和非线性接触率的SI传染病模型的渐近性态

研究了一类具有阶段结构和非线性接触率的传染病模型的渐近性态,得到了传染病最终消除和成为地方病的阀值．