Mass Collaboration in Earthquake Risk Management

The mechanism of mass collaboration in risk management was studied during the Sichuan earthquake under a Web-based “PeopleFinder” project, where information is contributed and shared among mass contributors. The case study is provided by a great earthquake that happened in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province, of southwestern China at 2:28 p.m. on May 12, 2008. We witnessed and experienced the rescue and relief efforts for the great earthquake. In this article, two fundamental frameworks are developed to study the mechanism of mass collaboration. Mass collaboration is proven to be effective in a big public crisis such as the Sichuan earthquake.     

A Three-Dimensional Skeletal Reconstruction of the Stem Amniote Orobates pabsti (Diadectidae): Analyses of Body Mass,Centre of Mass Position,and Joint Mobility

Orobates pabsti, a basal diadectid from the lower Permian, is a key fossil for the understanding of early amniote evolution. Quantitative analysis of anatomical information suffers from fragmentation of fossil bones, plastic deformation due to diagenetic processes and fragile preservation within surrounding rock matrix, preventing further biomechanical investigation. Here we describe the steps taken to digitally reconstruct MNG 10181, the holotype specimen of Orobates pabsti, and subsequently use the digital reconstruction to assess body mass, position of the centre of mass in individual segments as well as the whole animal, and study joint mobility in the shoulder and hip joints. The shape of most fossil bone fragments could be recovered from micro-focus computed tomography scans. This also revealed structures that were hitherto hidden within the rock matrix. However, parts of the axial skeleton had to be modelled using relevant isolated bones from the same locality as templates. Based on the digital fossil, mass of MNG 10181 was estimated using a model of body shape that was varied within a plausible range to account for uncertainties of the dimension. In the mean estimate model the specimen had an estimated mass of circa 4 kg. Varying of the mass distribution amongst body segments further revealed that Orobates carried most of its weight on the hind limbs. Mostly unrestricted joint morphology further suggested that MNG 10181 was able to effectively generate propulsion with the pelvic limbs. The digital reconstruction is made available for future biomechanical studies.     

LncRNA TP73-AS1 enhances the malignant properties of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma by increasing MMP14 expression through miRNA -200a sponging

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is an invasive and aggressive cancer that remains a major threat to human health across the globe. Despite advances in cancer treatments and diagnosis, the prognosis of PDAC patients remains poor. New and more effective PDAC therapies are therefore urgently required. In this study, we identified a novel host factor, namely the LncRNA TP73-AS1, as overexpressed in PDAC tissues compared to adjacent healthy tissue samples. The overexpression of TP-73-AS1 was found to correlate with both PDAC stage and lymph node metastasis. To reveal its role in PDCA, we targeted TP73-AS1 using LnRNA inhibitors in a range of pancreatic cancer (PC) cell lines. We found that the inhibition of TP73-AS1 led to a loss of MMP14 expression in PC cells and significantly inhibited their migratory and invasive capacity. No effects of TP73-AS1 on cell survival or proliferation were observed. Mechanistically, we found that TP73-AS1 suppressed the expression of the known oncogenic miR-200a. Taken together, these data highlight the prognostic potential of TP73-AS1 for PC patients and highlight it as a potential anti-PDAC therapeutic target.     

De novo purine nucleotide biosynthesis: cloning of human and avian cDNAs encoding the trifunctional glycinamide ribonucleotide synthetase-aminoimidazole ribonucleotide synthetase-glycinamide ribonucleotide transformylase by functional complementation in E. coli.

The trifunctional enzyme encoding glycinamide ribonucleotide synthetase (GARS)-aminoimidazole ribonucleotide synthetase (AIRS)-glycinamide ribonucleotide transformylase (GART) was cloned by functional complementation of an E. coli mutant using an avian liver cDNA expression library. In E. coli, genes encoding these separate activities (purD, purM, and purN, respectively) produce three proteins. The avian cDNA, in contrast, encodes a single polypeptide with all three enzyme activities. Using the avian DNA as a probe, a cDNA encoding the complete coding sequence of the trifunctional human enzyme was also isolated and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequence of the human and avian polyproteins show extensive sequence homologies to the bacterial purD, purM, and purN encoded proteins. Avian and human liver RNAs appear to encode both a trifunctional enzyme (G-ARS-AIRS-GART) as well as an RNA which encodes only GARS. The trifunctional protein has been implicated in the pathology of Downs Syndrome and molecular tools are now available to explore this hypothesis. Initial efforts to compare the expression of GARS-AIRS-GART between a normal fibroblast cell line and a Downs Syndrome cell line indicate that the levels of RNA are similar.