We report results of a theoretical study, based on density functional theory (DFT), on the structural, electronic, optical, and chiroptical properties of small thiolated gold clusters, [Au(n)(SR)(m) (n = 12-15, 16-20; m = 9-12, 12-16)]. Some of these clusters correspond to those recently synthesized with the surfactant-free method. To study ...

The degree of heterogeneity associated with geographic origin and sebaceous adenitis (SA) status in Standard Poodles from the United States (US) and the United Kingdom (UK) was assessed. Healthy and SA-affected Standard Poodles from the US and the UK shared a major mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotype and a single Y ...

Previous studies have found inconsistent results on the association between asthma in children and gas cooking emissions. We aimed to assess the effects of the long term exposure to gas cooking on the onset of asthma and respiratory symptoms, focusing on wheezing, in children from two German birth cohorts: LISAplus ...

MOTIVATION: Gene-model curation creates consensus gene models by combining multiple sources of protein-coding evidence that may be incomplete or inconsistent. To date, manual curation still produces the highest quality models. However, manual curation is too slow and costly to be completed even for the most important organisms. In recent years, ...

Cortactin, an actin-binding protein, is essential for cell growth and motility. We have shown that cortactin is regulated by reversible phosphorylation, but little is known regarding cortactin protein stability. Here, we show that lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced cortactin degradation is mediated by extracellular regulated signal kinase (ERK). LPS induces cortactin serine phosphorylation, ...

Conventional solid films on certain substrates play a crucial role in various applications, for example in flat panel displays, silicon technology, and protective coatings. Recently, tremendous attention has been directed toward the thinning and shaping of solids into so-called nanomembranes, offering a unique and fantastic platform for research in nanoscience ...

Direct evidence: The existence of methoxy radical species formed during an anodic oxidation in MeOH on a boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode was confirmed by ESR spectroscopy. Effective production of a neolignan, licarin A, was accomplished by the BDD-mediated anodic oxidation protocol.

Single-cell protein (SCP) refers to the dried cells of microorganisms. The aim of this research was to evaluate the nutrional characteristics and possible toxic effects of the SCP of Trichoderma harzianum. First, T. harzianum was grown on whey filtrate agar medium and the obtained SCP was analysed. It was rich ...

Elevation in atmospheric CO(2) concentration broadly affects plant phenology and physiology, and these effects may alter the performance of plant viruses. The effects of elevated CO(2) on the susceptibility of tomato plants to Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) were examined for two successive years in open top chambers (OTC) ...

To investigate the mechanisms underlying matrix deposition in Dupuytren's disease, the expression of gelatinase A (MMP-2), the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2 (TIMP-2), transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1) and decorin (DCN) was studied. The level of relative MMP-2 activation was investigated using zymography. The mRNA expression of MMP-2, TIMP-2, TGF-β1 ...

A surface plasmon is the coherent oscillation of the conduction band electrons. When a metal nanoparticle is excited to produce surface plasmons, incident light is both scattered and absorbed, giving rise to brilliant colors. One available technique for measuring these processes, ensemble extinction spectroscopy, only measures the sum of scattering ...

A novel sensitive and specific Hg(2+) chemodosimeter, derived from 1',3'-dithiane-substituted 2,1,3-benzoxadiazole, displays "turn-on" fluorescent and colorimetric responses via an Hg(2+)-triggered aldehyde recovery reaction. Its potential to monitor Hg(2+) in living organisms has been demonstrated using zebrafish larvae.

Adaptive immune systems are present only in vertebrates. How do all the remaining animals withstand continuous attacks of permanently evolving pathogens? Even in the absence of adaptive immunity every organism must be able to unambiguously distinguish "self" cells from any imaginable "non-self". Here, we analysed the function of highly polymorphic ...

We investigated changes in cadherin structure at the cell surface that regulate its adhesive activity. Colo 205 cells are nonadhesive cells with a full but inactive complement of E-cadherin-catenin complexes at the cell surface, but they can be triggered to adhere and form monolayers. We were able to distinguish the ...

With-no-Lysine kinase 4 (WNK4) inhibited ROMK (Kir1.1) channels and the inhibitory effect of WNK4 was abolished by serum-glucocorticoid-induced kinase 1 (SGK1) but restored by c-Src. The aim of the present study is to explore the mechanism by which Src-family tyrosine kinase (SFK) modulates the effect of SGK1 on WNK4 and ...

Purpose: During dowel space preparation, the instrumentation forms a thick smear layer along with sealer-occluded dentinal tubules. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of different obturating materials on push-out bond strength of a fiber dowel. Materials and Methods: Fifty human uniradicular teeth were decoronated and prepared ...

Plant resistance (R) proteins mediate race-specific immunity and initiate host defenses that are often accompanied by a localized cell-death response. Most R proteins belong to the NB-LRR protein family as they carry a central NB-ARC domain fused to an LRR domain. The CC domain at the N-terminus of some Solanaceous ...

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: We explored the risk of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) among gout patients in a representative cohort in Taiwan. METHODS: The primary database used was the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Dataset. Subjects older than 20 years without ESRD, coronary heart disease, or stroke were included in the study. ...

In this review we use images from an 11-year-old male to describe Proteus syndrome, a complex disorder with multisystem involvement and great clinical variability. Our aim is to enhance recognition of the typical imaging findings, which can aid diagnosis of this rare condition.

Damage to the hippocampal formation results in a profound temporally graded retrograde amnesia, implying that it is necessary for memory acquisition but not its long-term storage. It is therefore thought that memories are transferred from the hippocampus to the cortex for long-term storage in a process called systems consolidation (Dudai ...

We describe two cases, both presenting with a 2-year history of isolated language disorders, one compatible with logopenic variant and the other with non-fluent variant of primary progressive aphasia (PPA). Afterwards, each developed a corticobasal syndrome (CBS) with alien limb phenomenon and a multi-domain cognitive impairment. Regional cerebral perfusion (rCBF) ...

Quadrupeds maintain the dorsal side up body orientation due to the activity of the postural control system driven by limb mechanoreceptors. Binaural galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) causes a lateral body sway toward the anode. Previously, we have shown that this new position is actively stabilized, suggesting that GVS changes a ...

Somatosensory afferents are represented within the cortical autonomic network (CAN). However, the representation of somatosensory afferents, and the consequent cardiovascular effects, may be modified by levels of baroreceptor input. Thus, we examined the cortical regions involved with processing somatosensory inputs during baroreceptor unloading. Neuroimaging sessions [functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)] ...

Parasites represent ideal models for unravelling biogeographic patterns and mechanisms of diversification on islands. Both host-mediated dispersal and within-island adaptation can shape parasite island assemblages. In this study, we examined patterns of genetic diversity and structure of Ornithodoros seabird ticks within the Cape Verde Archipelago in relation to their global ...

Although the media and the U.S. public focused primarily on the minimum-coverage requirement, or individual mandate, during the recent oral arguments in the challenges to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) before the Supreme Court, the most important issue before the Court may well be the constitutionality of the ACA's Medicaid ...

Abstract There is a lack of epidemiological data on Toxoplasma gondii infection in chickens in China. In the present study, serum samples from 160 free-range chickens and 450 caged chickens collected from Jinzhou, northeastern China, and detected T. gondii antibodies by a modified agglutination test (MAT). Antibodies to T. gondii ...

The decision to use antithrombotics for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation (AF) requires assessment of an individual patient's risk of stroke balanced with their likelihood of bleeding on treatment. United States (U.S.) practice guidelines have recommended the use of the CHADS(2) score (graded from 0 to 6 according to presence ...

This study used a rodent air-pouch model to assess the acute inflammatory response to cobalt-chromium (CoCr) alloy wear debris from a metal-on-metal hip resurfacing implant that may contribute to joint failure. Air-pouches were injected with either sterile phosphate-buffered saline, 1 μg lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or 2.5 mg CoCr wear debris. The ...

The spreading of surfactants on gel layers has been found to be accompanied by an intriguing instability which involves the formation of crack-like patterns on the surface of the gel. In an attempt to extend the findings on the spreading on agar gels presented in Part 1, this paper examines ...

Background:  Recent genome-wide association studies have identified several genetic risk factors for psoriasis, but data on their association with age of onset are lacking. Objective:  The goal of this study was to compare the association between known risk alleles and psoriasis in well-defined cohorts of paediatric and adult onset psoriasis. ...

The phytochemical investigation conducted on a foliose lichen, Lobaria pulmonaria(L.) Hoffm. (Lobariaceae), led to the isolation of a new depsidone in the form of its diacetate derivative which showed a moderate acetylcholinesterase inhibition activity (1 µg) in vitro. This is the first record of identified depsidone structure in searching for ...

Ischemic heart disease is the major cause of death in Western countries. CTRP9 (C1q/TNF-related protein 9) is a fat-derived plasma protein that has salutary effects on glucose metabolism and vascular function. However, the functional role of CTRP9 in ischemic heart disease has not been clarified. Here, we examined the regulation ...

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: Myositis specific autoantibodies are associated with unique clinical subsets and are useful biomarkers in polymyositis/dermatomyositis (PM/DM). A 120kD protein recognized by certain patients with DM was identified, and clinical features of patients with this specificity were characterized. METHODS: The 120kD protein recognized by a prototype serum was purified ...

Winter chilling is critical for flowering and fruiting of many temperate fruits, with evidence that blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum L.) cropping has been adversely affected by warm winters. Accurate models of chill accumulation in blackcurrant are required so that breeding strategies can be formulated for the generation of new cultivars with ...

BACKGROUND: Persistence of humoral immunity was evaluated in 82 hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients up to 12.5 years after post-transplant immunization against tetanus and diphtheria. PROCEDURE: New immunization, initiated at least 12 months after transplantation, consisted of an average three-dose schedule of vaccine administration on day 1, month 3, and ...

In total hip arthroplasty (THA), short stemmed cementless implants are used because they are thought to stimulate physiological bone remodeling and reduce stress shielding. We performed a numerical investigation on bone remodeling after implantation of a specific short stemmed implant using finite element analysis (FEA). Overall bone mass loss was ...

Prenatal maternal stress (PMS) programs dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) in postnatal life, though time periods vulnerable to PMS are still unclear. We evaluated in pregnant sheep the effect of PMS during early gestation (30 - 100 days, dGA; term is 150 dGA) or late gestation (100-120 dGA) on ...

Establishment of proper connectivity between peripheral sensory neurons and their central targets is required for an animal to sense and respond to various external stimuli. Dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons convey sensory signals of different modalities via their axon projections to distinct laminae in the dorsal horn of the spinal ...

The social rank of an animal is distinguished by its behavior relative to others in its community. Although social-status-dependent differences in behavior must arise because of differences in neural function, status-dependent differences in the underlying neural circuitry have only begun to be described. We report that dominant and subordinate crayfish ...

Age-related depletion of estrogens and androgens is associated with an increase in Alzheimer's disease (AD) brain pathology and diminished cognitive function. Here we investigated AD-associated molecular and cellular changes in brains of aged hypogonadal (hpg) male and female mice. hpg Mice have a spontaneous, inactivating genetic mutation in the GnRH ...

The Reassurance Questionnaire (RQ; Speckens, Spinhoven, Van Hemert, & Bolk, ( 2000 ) is a self-report measure designed to assess the extent to which patients feel reassured by their attending physicians. While the original RQ was validated in Dutch, the invariance of the factor structure has not been examined in ...

Highly biocompatible coordination polymer (Prussian Blue) nanoparticles (LC(50) > 1000 μg mL(-1)) with a hollow interior and a microporous framework (denoted as HPB) are utilized as an anticancer drug (i.e. cisplatin) capsule for chemotherapy of bladder cancer T24 cells.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is highly metastatic, and this malignant feature may be promoted by an EBV oncoprotein, latent membrane protein 2A (LMP2A). Acting as a signal regulator, LMP2A can enhance invasiveness and motility of epithelial cells. Downstream from the LMP2A-triggered signaling events, it is largely unknown what ...

Virtually nothing is known about the activity of morphologically identified neurons in freely moving mammals. Here we describe stabilization and positioning techniques that allow juxtacellular recordings from labeled single neurons in awake, freely moving animals. This method involves the use of a friction-based device that allows stabilization of the recording ...

The cellular mechanisms regulating branching and growth of the intersegmental vessels (ISVs) are not well understood. We have carried out studies demonstrating that Hedgehog (Hh) signaling is a major regulator of intersomitic vessel growth. Inhibition of Hh activity by cyclopamine completely blocks formation of intersomitic vessels in the avian embryo. ...

Concerted actions of estrogen and progesterone via their cognate receptors orchestrate changes in the uterine tissue, regulating implantation during early pregnancy. The uterine stromal cells undergo steroid-dependent differentiation into morphologically and functionally distinct decidual cells, which support embryonic growth and survival. The hormone-regulated pathways underlying this unique cellular transformation are ...

Quinoa is a pseudocereal from South America that is increasing in interest around the world because it is a good source of different nutrients and rich in antioxidant compounds. Thus, this study has focused on the effects of different agronomic variables, such as irrigation and salinity, on the phenolic and ...

In recent years, bone tissue engineering has emerged as one of the main research areas in the field of regenerative biomedicine. Frequency and relevance age-related problems, such as healing and regeneration of bone tissues, are rising due to increasing life expectancy. Even though bone tissue has excellent self-regeneration ability, when ...

Vanadium (V) is a transition metal found in air adsorbed onto suspended particles. As a result, urban populations are often exposed to this element as a constituent of particulate matter (PM). One aspect of the myriad toxicities that might arise from these exposures is altered immune responses. Previous reports from ...

Known risk factors for bleeding during anticoagulant treatment are largely the same as those predicting thromboembolic events in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Our objective was to investigate how to maximize the likelihood of avoiding both stroke and bleeding. All 182 678 subjects with atrial fibrillation in the Swedish Hospital ...