miR-375 gene dosage in pancreatic β-cells: implications for regulation of β-cell mass and biomarker development

MicroRNAs play a crucial role in the regulation of cell growth and differentiation. Mice with genetic deletion of miR-375 exhibit impaired glycemic control due to decreased β-cell and increased α-cell mass and function. The relative importance of these processes for the overall phenotype of miR-375KO mice is unknown. Here, we show that mice overexpressing miR-375 exhibit normal β-cell mass and function. Selective re-expression of miR-375 in β-cells of miR-375KO mice normalizes both, α- and β-cell phenotypes as well as glucose metabolism. Using this model, we also analyzed the contribution of β-cells to the total plasma miR-375 levels. Only a small proportion (≈1 %) of circulating miR-375 originates from β-cells. Furthermore, acute and profound β-cell destruction is sufficient to detect elevations of miR-375 levels in the blood. These findings are supported by higher miR-375 levels in the circulation of type 1 diabetes (T1D) subjects but not mature onset diabetes of the young (MODY) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) patients. Together, our data support an essential role for miR-375 in the maintenance of β-cell mass and provide in vivo evidence for release of miRNAs from pancreatic β-cells. The small contribution of β-cells to total plasma miR-375 levels make this miRNA an unlikely biomarker for β-cell function but suggests a utility for the detection of acute β-cell death for autoimmune diabetes

Energy Conservation as Security

"Energy security" is usually defined as the guarantee of a stable and reliable supply of energy at reasonable prices. However, this definition is often misleading because it equates oil supply as the primary focus of a country's energy security considerations. As a developing country with a limited natural resource endowment China does not rely on oil alone. Instead China is one of the few economies in the world that still uses coal as one of its main sources of energy. Therefore, energy security in China is more comprehensive because it must consider the supply of coal, gas, electricity and nuclear energy along with oil imports

The effect of microRNA-375 overexpression, an inhibitor of Helicobacter pylori-induced carcinogenesis, on lncRNA SOX2OT

Background: Helicobacter pylori is a major human pathogenic bacterium in gastric mucosa. Although the association between gastric cancer and H. pylori has been well-established, the molecular mechanisms underlying H. pylori-induced carcinogenesis are still under investigation. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that modulate gene expression at the posttranscriptional level. Recently, studies have revealed that miRNAs are involved in immune response and host cell response to bacteria. Also, microRNA-375 (miR-375) is a key regulator of epithelial properties that are necessary for securing epithelium-immune system crosstalk. It has been recently reported that miR-375 acts as an inhibitor of H. pylori-induced gastric carcinogenesis. There are few reports on miRNA-mediated targeting long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs). Objectives: This study aimed to examine the possible effect of miR-375 as an inhibitor of H. pylori-induced carcinogenesis on the expression of lncRNA SOX2 overlapping transcript (SOX2OT) and SOX2, a master regulator of pluripotency of cancer stem cells. Materials and Methods: In a model cell line, NT-2 was transfected with the constructed expression vector pEGFP-C1 contained miR- 375. The RNA isolations and cDNA synthesis were performed after 48 hours of transformation. Expression of miR-375 and SOX2OT and SOX2 were quantified using real-time polymerase chain reaction and compared with control cells transfected with pEGFP-C1-Mock clone. Cell cycle modification was also compared after transfections using the flow cytometry analysis. Results: Following ectopic expression of miR-375, SOX2OT and SOX2 expression analysis revealed a significant decrease in their expression level (P < 0.05) in NT-2 cells compared to the control. Cell cycle analysis following ectopic expression of miR-375 in the NT-2 cells using propidium iodine staining revealed significant extension in sub-G1 cell cycle. Conclusions: This is the first report to show down-regulation of SOX2OT and SOX2 following induced expression of miR-375. This findingmaysuggest expression regulation potential between different classes of ncRNAs, for example between miR-375andSOX2OT. This data not only extends our understanding of possible ncRNA interactions in cancers but also may open novel investigation lines towards elucidation of molecular mechanisms controlling H. pylori inflammation and carcinogenesis. © 2016, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences

Interactive searching and browsing of video archives: using text and using image matching

Over the last number of decades much research work has been done in the general area of video and audio analysis. Initially the applications driving this included capturing video in digital form and then being able to store, transmit and render it, which involved a large effort to develop compression and encoding standards. The technology needed to do all this is now easily available and cheap, with applications of digital video processing now commonplace, ranging from CCTV (Closed Circuit TV) for security, to home capture of broadcast TV on home DVRs for personal viewing. One consequence of the development in technology for creating, storing and distributing digital video is that there has been a huge increase in the volume of digital video, and this in turn has created a need for techniques to allow effective management of this video, and by that we mean content management. In the BBC, for example, the archives department receives approximately 500,000 queries per year and has over 350,000 hours of content in its library. Having huge archives of video information is hardly any benefit if we have no effective means of being able to locate video clips which are of relevance to whatever our information needs may be. In this chapter we report our work on developing two specific retrieval and browsing tools for digital video information. Both of these are based on an analysis of the captured video for the purpose of automatically structuring into shots or higher level semantic units like TV news stories. Some also include analysis of the video for the automatic detection of features such as the presence or absence of faces. Both include some elements of searching, where a user specifies a query or information need, and browsing, where a user is allowed to browse through sets of retrieved video shots. We support the presentation of these tools with illustrations of actual video retrieval systems developed and working on hundreds of hours of video content

State of New York Public Employment Relations Board Decisions from August 23, 2013

Bd_Meeting_8_20_2014_Watertown_Prof_FF_Assn_Board_Correction.pdf: 375 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

EXO 2030+375 Restarts in Reverse

The Be X-ray binary pulsar EXO 2030+375, first detected in 1985, has shown a significant detected X-ray outburst at nearly every periastron passage of its 46-day orbit for the past ~25 years, with one low state accompanied by a torque reversal in the 1990s. In early 2015 the outbursts progressively became fainter and less regular while the monotonic spin-up flattened. At the same time a decrease in the H$\alpha$ line equivalent width was reported, indicating a change in the disk surrounding the mass donor. In order to explore the source behaviour in the poorly explored low-flux state with a possible transition to a state of centrifugal inhibition of accretion we have undertaken an observing campaign with Swift/XRT, NuSTAR and the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT). This conference contribution reports the preliminary results obtained from our campaign.Comment: 11th INTEGRAL Conference Gamma-Ray Astrophysics in Multi-Wavelength Perspective, 10-14 October 2016, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 7 page

Quasi-periodic flares in EXO 2030+375 observed with INTEGRAL

Context: Episodic flaring activity is a common feature of X-ray pulsars in HMXBs. In some Be/X-ray binaries flares were observed in quiescence or prior to outbursts. EXO 2030+375 is a Be/X-ray binary showing "normal" outbursts almost every ~46 days, near periastron passage of the orbital revolution. Some of these outbursts were occasionally monitored with the INTEGRAL observatory. Aims: The INTEGRAL data revealed strong quasi-periodic flaring activity during the rising part of one of the system's outburst. Such activity has previously been observed in EXO 2030+375 only once, in 1985 with EXOSAT. (Some indications of single flares have also been observed with other satellites.) Methods: We present the analysis of the flaring behavior of the source based on INTEGRAL data and compare it with the flares observed in EXO 2030+375 in 1985. Results: Based on the observational properties of the flares, we argue that the instability at the inner edge of the accretion disk is the most probable cause of the flaring activity.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A Lette

Inhaled Interleukin-10 before and after induction of experimental endotoxemia in the rat : effects on the inflammatory response

To determine the effects of inhaled IL-10 at different doses and different time points on the pulmonary and systemic inflammatory response during endotoxemia, 48 ventilated, anaesthetized rats (mean body weight ± standard deviation, 500 ± 33g) were randomly assigned to six groups (n = 8, each). Interleukin-10 was nebulised either prior to or following the intravenous injection of LPS (5mg/kg) at two doses (5.0 mycro-g or 0.5 mycro-g) in our groups. Eight rats received the same insult with no further treatment (LPS-only group). Another eight rats served as controls without endotoxemia but with aerosolized phosphate-buffered saline, the solvent of IL-10 (Sham group). Concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, and IFN-gamma were analyzed in plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). In addition, the nitrite release from ex-vivo cultured alveolar macrophages was determined. As compared to the LPS-only group, the concentrations of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, and IFN-gamma in plasma were significantly reduced in the group, which inhaled 5 mycro-g IL-10 before LPS injection (p< 0.0125). Spontaneous nitrite release from exvivo cultured alveolar macrophages was suppressed in this group (p< 0.0125). Inhalation of 0.5 mycro-g IL-10 before LPS injection and both dosages of IL-10 inhalation (5 mycro-g or 0.5 mycro-g) after LPS injection did not significantly influence either inflammatory cytokine concentrations in BALF, in plasma or the nitrite release from ex-vivo cultured alveolar macrophages. In this study, inhaled IL-10 only demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects when it was administered at 5 mycro-g prior to the induction of experimental endotoxemia. Interleukin-10 aerosol had no effect when it was given either following induction of endotoxemia or given at a lower dosage (which here was 0.5 mycro-g) either before or following injection of lipopolysaccharide.Das "Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome" (ARDS) ist eine akut auftretende, überwiegend Sepsis-induzierte, inflammatorische Erkrankung der Lunge mit hoher Letalität. Ein komplexes Netzwerk aus Zytokinen und anderen proinflammatorischen Mediatoren unterhält die pulmonale Entzündungreaktion. Dem Zytokin Interleukin-10 (IL-10) könnte in diesem Zusammenhang aufgrund seines spezifisch antiinflammatorischen und immunmodulierenden Wirkspektrums eine therapeutische Bedeutung zukommen. In tierexperimentellen Untersuchungen konnten die protektiven Wirkungen von systemisch appliziertem Interleukin-10 bezüglich verringerter Wirkspiegel proinflammatorischer Mediatoren sowie des Überlebens der Versuchstiere bei Sepsis belegt werden. In einer Untersuchung an ARDS-Erkrankten wiesen Patienten, deren bronchoalveoläre Lavage (BAL) hohe Konzentrationen an Interleukin-10 enthielt, eine signifikant niedrigere Letalität auf als Patienten mit niedriger IL-10-Konzentration. Die Inhalation von IL-10 über den Luftweg könnte lokal in der Lunge die Freisetzung von Entzündungsmediatoren verringern und so den Verlauf eines ARDS positiv beeinflussen. Im Rahmen einer bereits durchgeführten Studie der eigenen Arbeitsgruppe konnte gezeigt werden, dass die Inhalation von IL-10 (0.19 mycro-g/Tier) vor Induktion einer experimentellen Endotoxinämie (Beobachtungszeitraum 6h) zur signifikanten Reduktion proinflammatorischer Zytokine im Plasma sowie der BAL führte. Daneben bewirkte IL-10 Aerosol eine signifikante Verringerung der Nitritproduktion aus ex vivo kultivierten Alveolarmakrophagen (AM). Mit der vorliegenden Studie sollte untersucht werden, ob vernebeltes IL-10 auch in einer geringeren Dosierung als in der ersten Studie angewandt antiinflammatorisch wirksam ist. Daneben sollte geklärt werden, ob der Zeitpunkt der Applikation des IL-10 Aerosol relevant ist. Konkret sollte untersucht werden, ob die Inhalation von IL-10 erst nach Induktion der experimentellen Endotoxinämie ebenfalls antinflammatorisches Potential besitzt. Die Generierung und Verneblung des IL-10 Aerosols erfolgte in der vorliegenden Untersuchung mittels eines speziell für diesen Einsatz von der eigenen Arbeitsgruppe entwickelten und charakterisierten Verneblersystems. Der Vernebler produziert stabil Aerosopartikel, deren Größenverteilung (rund 2 mycro-m) mit hoher Wahrscheinlichkeit in alvelären Bereichen deponiert. Die alveoläre Depositionsfraktion des Verneblers beträgt rund 4% und liegt damit in einem Bereich, der aus der Humanmedizin für die Verneblung bei intubierten Patienten bekannt ist. An 48 narkotisierten, kontrolliert beatmeten Ratten wurde die antiinflammatorische Wirkung eines IL-10-Aerosols untersucht. Die Induktion des experimentellen Lungenschadens erfolgte durch intravenöse Injektion von Endotoxin (Lipopolysaccharid; LPS, in einer Dosierung von 5mg/kg). Als löslicher Bestandteil der Membran gram-negativer Bakterien führt LPS über die Freisetzung proinflammatorischer Substanzen zu entzündlichen Reaktionen, die lokal beschränkt oder auch systemisch auftreten können. Bei Versuchstieren unterschiedlicher Spezies bewirkt die systemische Applikation von LPS pulmonale Veränderungen, die denen des septisch bedingten ARDS des Menschen qualitativ entsprechen. Die Tiere wurden zufällig in eine der sechs Versuchsgruppen eingeteilt (je n=8): Die LPS-Gruppe erhielt eine LPS-Injektion (5 mg/kg/KG) ohne anschließende therapeutische Intervention. Die mit IL-10 behandelten Tiere erhielten das IL-10-Aerosol entweder vor oder nach Induktion der experimentellen Endotoxinämie nach unten genanntem Protokoll. In einer Kontroll (Sham)-Gruppe wurde die Auswirkung von Narkose, chirurgischer Präparation, Beatmung und Aerosolapplikation (IL-10-Trägerlösung; phosphatgepufferte Kochsalzlösung) evaluiert. Neben der in vivo Beobachtung von Hämodynamik (Herzfrequenz, mittlerer arterieller Blutdruck), Lungenmechanik, arteriellen Blutgasen und Blutbild, untersuchten wir anhand von Blutproben und einer Bronchoalveolären Lavage (BAL) die systemische und pulmonale Inflammation (inflammatorische Zytokine TNFalpha, IL-1beta, IL-6 und IFNgamma in Plasma und BAL). Die Verneblung von IL-10 erfolgte in zwei Dosierungen und zu zwei Zeitpunkten: in einer Gruppe wurde IL-10 in einer Dosierung von 5.0 mycro-g (0.19 mycro-g/Tier) vor, und in einer weiteren Gruppe nach Induktion der experimentellen Endotoxinämie vernebelt. In zwei weiteren Versuchgruppen wurde IL-10 in einer Dosierung von 0.5 mycro-g (0.019 mycro-g/Tier) ebenfalls vor sowie nach Injektion von LPS vernebelt. Die Endotoxinämie führte nur zu geringen Verschlechterungen der klinischen Parameter, aber sowohl pulmonal (BAL) als auch systemisch (Plasma) zeigte sich ein Anstieg proinflammatorischer Mediatoren. Gegenüber den Tieren, deren Endotoxinämie unbehandelt blieb, bewirkte nur die Inhalation von IL-10 in der höheren Dosierung (5 mycro-g) das signifikante Abfallen der proinflammatorischen Zytokine TNFalpha, IL-1beta, IL-6 und IFNgamma im Plasma sowie der Freisetzung von Nitrit aus kultivierten AM. IL-10 Aerosol hatte in keiner Dosierung respektive zu keinem Applikationszeitpunkt antiinflammatorische Effekte auf die Zytokinkonzentrationen in der BAL. Die präemptive Vernebelung von IL-10 in einer Dosierung von 5 mycro-g (0.19 mycro-g/Tier) vor Induktion einer experimentellen Endotoxinämie zeigte sowohl auf die AM Kultur als auch systemisch (Plasma) antinflammatorisches Wirkprofil. Demgegenüber zeigte IL-10 keine antinflammatorische Effekte, wenn es erst nach Injektion von LPS oder aber in geringerer Dosierung vernebelt wurde. Zur antiinflammatorischen Therapie der experimentellen Endotoxinämie durch LPS Injektion in der Spezies Ratte erscheint IL-10 Aerosol nur wirksam, wenn es in ausreichender Dosierung (5 mycro-g) sowie vor Injektion von LPS appliziert wird