Relation between macronuclear DNA and total protein content and generation time in thechilodonella steini (Ciliata) sister cells

Summary Using the monotone dependence function (mdf) together with correlation coefficient it was found that the Ma-DNA content as well as total protein content are regularly, linearly, positively and strongly dependent in sister cells (proter-opisthe) ofChilodonella steini. Additionally it was shown that proter-opisthe ordering is irrelevant to Ma-DNA and protein contents.Analysis of sister cell generation times (TG) confirmed the existence of regular, linear, positive and strong codependence.The relations between Ma-DNA and total protein contents, between protein content and TG, and between Ma-DNA content and TG were also described. There is a weak, linear dependence between Ma-DNA and total protein contents. Relations of TG and Ma-DNA content or TG and total protein content are non-linear and not even monotone. Low and high levels of DNA or proteins are connected with long generation times.     

Removal of239Pu from mice with 3,4,3 LICAM(C) or N,N′, N″, N‴-tetra-(2,3-dihydroxybenzoyl)-spermine

Summary Male mice SAS/4 were injected i.v. with²³⁹Pu citr(IV) 0.27 µCikg^–1–9.99 kBqkg^–1. After 1 h 30 µmol kg^–1 of 3,4,3 LICAM(C), N, N, N, N-tetra-(2,3-dihydroxybenzoyl)-spermine or Na₃CaDTPA as a reference compound was given intraperitoneally. After 4 days the animals were sacrified and the Pu content in livers, kidneys, femurs and carcasses was determined by the liquid scintillation method. It was found that, as compared with the control, 3,4,3 LICAM(C) removed 83% of the Pu activity deposited in the liver, 71% of that in the femur and 79% of the Pu in the whole body. The Pu content in the kidneys exceeded the control value by about 50%. Na₃CaDTPA removed 96, 86, 40 and 72% of plutonium from the liver, kidneys, femurs and carcasses respectively.Tetra-DHB-spermine caused the excretion of 50, 57 and 39% of Pu from liver, bone and whole body respectively. The retention of Pu in the kidneys was increased to 400% of the control value.     

The ant Lasius niger shows no relationship between task efficiency and body size variation among workers

In ants, workers of different sizes may perform various tasks, even in so-called monomorphic species with relatively low body size variation. However, it is unclear if the body size diversity of monomorphic workers correlates with task efficiency, especially in stressful contingencies. Here we tested if the body size variation of workers corresponds with its efficiency in transferring pupae. Transferring brood is a pre-set behavioral response to stress, e.g. suboptimal temperature. Here we applied a laboratory experiment simulating nest damage. The study was performed on the common garden ant (Lasius niger (Linnaeus, 1758)) – a species with no distinct worker subcastes. The efficiency of workers was measured as the latency of transferring pupae from a lit part of the experimental colony to a darkened part, while the body size diversity was expressed as the within-colony coefficient of variation in head width. We did not find any significant correlation between efficiency and body size variation. Summarizing the existing studies and the present results, we propose the hypothesis that the body size diversity of L. niger may have implications for workers’ division of labor but not for their task efficiency in a stressful contingency.     

Replication variants of the human inactive X chromosome

The sequence of DNA replication was studied within the inactive X chromosome in human lymphocytes, by means of the FPG method. Several variants of the replication sequence were found. The number of variants in the cells of a single donor exceeded 2 in each of the 4 normal individuals studied. The phenomenon is discussed with respect to the regulation of DNA synthesis and to the cell differentiation process.     

IGFs and IGF-Binding Proteins in the Synovial Fluid of Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis

International Journal of Peptide Research and Therapeutics - The progressive damage of human articular cartilage is associated with loss of integrity of its extracellular matrix components. Their...     

Correlates of pentraxin 3 serum concentration in men and women with type 2 diabetes

Elevated levels of plasma pentraxin 3 (PTX3), a marker of inflammation, are associated with the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases in the general population, as well as in patients with type 2 diabetes (DM2). In this study, we aimed to determine factors associated with PTX3 serum concentrations in men and women with DM2. The study included 116 consecutive patients (67 men and 49 women) with DM2 from an outpatient diabetic clinic. Men were characterised by lower age and higher uric acid, creatinine and bilirubin concentrations and waist/hip ratio than women. In women, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were higher than in men. In men, median (interquartile range) values of PTX3 concentration were 4.02 (1.99), and in women they were 4.53 (3.31) ng/ml (NS). In men, PTX3 concentrations correlated with total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides, apolipoprotein (Apo) C3, Apo B48, Glc and creatinine levels. In women, PTX3 correlated significantly with TC and LDL-C and Apo B100. Partial regression analysis revealed that after adjusting for age, PTX3 concentrations in men were significantly associated with TC, LDL-C, triglycerides, creatinine, Apo C3 and Apo B48, while in women they were associated with TC, LDL-C and Apo B100. The results could be of importance in sex-specific prevention of vascular complications in DM2 patients.     

Compositional turnover and variation in Eemian pollen sequences in Europe

Vegetation History and Archaeobotany - The Eemian interglacial represents a natural experiment on how past vegetation with negligible human impact responded to amplified temperature changes...     

High serum sCD163/sTWEAK ratio is associated with lower risk of digital ulcers but more severe skin disease in patients with systemic sclerosis

Introduction

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is an autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation, vascular injury and excessive fibrosis. CD163 is a scavenger receptor which affects inflammatory response and may contribute to connective tissue remodelling. It has recently been demonstrated that CD163 can bind and neutralize the TNF-like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK), a multifunctional cytokine which regulates inflammation, angiogenesis and tissue remodelling. We aimed to investigate the relationships between serum levels of soluble CD163 (sCD163) and soluble TWEAK (sTWEAK) in relation to disease manifestations in SSc patients.

Methods

This study included 89 patients with SSc who had not received immunosuppressive drugs or steroids for at least 6 months and 48 age- and sex-matched healthy controls (HC) from four European centres. Serum concentrations of sTWEAK and sCD163 were measured using commercially available ELISA kits.

Results

The mean serum concentrations of sTWEAK were comparable between SSc patients (mean +/- SD: 270 +/- 171 pg/mL) and HC (294 +/- 147pg/mL, P >0.05). Concentration of sCD163 and sCD163/sTWEAK ratio were significantly greater in SSc patients (984 +/- 420 ng/mL and 4837 +/- 3103, respectively) as compared to HC (823 +/- 331 ng/mL and 3115 +/- 1346 respectively, P <0.05 for both). High sCD163 levels and a high sCD163/sTWEAK ratio (defined as > mean +2SD of HC) were both associated with a lower risk of digital ulcers in SSc patients (OR, 95%CI: 0.09; 0.01, 0.71, and 0.17; 0.06, 0.51, respectively). Accordingly, patients without digital ulcers had a significantly higher sCD163 concentration and sCD163/sTWEAK ratio as compared to SSc patients with digital ulcers (P <0.01 for both) and HC (P <0.05 for both). A high sCD163/sTWEAK ratio, but not high sCD163 levels, was associated with greater skin involvement.

Conclusions

The results of our study indicate that CD163-TWEAK interactions might play a role in the pathogenesis of SSc and that CD163 may protect against the development of digital ulcers in SSc. Further studies are required to reveal whether targeting of the CD163-TWEAK pathway might be a potential strategy for treating vascular disease and/or skin fibrosis in SSc.     

Optimized invertase expression and secretion cassette for improving Yarrowia lipolytica growth on sucrose for industrial applications

Yarrowia lipolytica requires the expression of a heterologous invertase to grow on a sucrose-based substrate. This work reports the construction of an optimized invertase expression cassette composed of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Suc2p secretion signal sequence followed by the SUC2 sequence and under the control of the strong Y. lipolytica pTEF promoter. This new construction allows a fast and optimal cleavage of sucrose into glucose and fructose and allows cells to reach the maximum growth rate. Contrary to pre-existing constructions, the expression of SUC2 is not sensitive to medium composition in this context. The strain JMY2593, expressing this new cassette with an optimized secretion signal sequence and a strong promoter, produces 4,519 U/l of extracellular invertase in bioreactor experiments compared to 597 U/l in a strain expressing the former invertase construction. The expression of this cassette strongly improved production of invertase and is suitable for simultaneously high production level of citric acid from sucrose-based media.     

Altered Phase-Relationship between Peripheral Oscillators and Environmental Time in Cry1 or Cry2 Deficient Mouse Models for Early and Late Chronotypes

The mammalian circadian system is composed of a light-entrainable central clock in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN) of the brain and peripheral clocks in virtually any other tissue. It allows the organism to optimally adjust metabolic, physiological and behavioral functions to the physiological needs it will have at specific time of the day. According to the resonance theory, such rhythms are only advantageous to an organism when in tune with the environment, which is illustrated by the adverse health effects originating from chronic circadian disruption by jetlag and shift work. Using short-period Cry1 and long-period Cry2 deficient mice as models for morningness and eveningness, respectively, we explored the effect of chronotype on the phase relationship between the central SCN clock and peripheral clocks in other organs. Whereas the behavioral activity patterns and circadian gene expression in the SCN of light-entrained Cry1^-/- and Cry2^-/- mice largely overlapped with that of wild type mice, expression of clock and clock controlled genes in liver, kidney, small intestine, and skin was shown to be markedly phase-advanced or phase-delayed, respectively. Likewise, circadian rhythms in urinary corticosterone were shown to display a significantly altered phase relationship similar to that of gene expression in peripheral tissues. We show that the daily dissonance between peripheral clocks and the environment did not affect the lifespan of Cry1^-/- or Cry2^-/- mice. Nonetheless, the phase-shifted peripheral clocks in light-entrained mice with morningness and eveningness-like phenotypes may have implications for personalized preventive and therapeutic (i.e. chronomodulation-based) health care for people with early and late chronotypes.