Primary Nasal Epithelial Cells as a Surrogate Cell Culture Model for Type-II Alveolar Cells to Study ABCA-3 Deficiency

ATP Binding Cassette Subfamily A Member 3 (ABCA-3) is a lipid transporter protein highly expressed in type-II alveolar (AT-II) cells. Mutations in ABCA3 can result in severe respiratory disease in infants and children. To study ABCA-3 deficiency in vitro, primary AT-II cells would be the cell culture of choice although sample accessibility is limited. Our aim was to investigate the suitability of primary nasal epithelial cells, as a surrogate culture model for AT-II cells, to study ABCA-3 deficiency. Expression of ABCA3, and surfactant protein genes, SFTPB and SFTPC, was detected in primary nasal epithelial cells but at a significantly lower level than in AT-II cells. ABCA-3, SP-B, and SP-C were detected by immunofluorescence microscopy in primary nasal epithelial cells. However, SP-B and SP-C were undetectable in primary nasal epithelial cells using western blotting. Structurally imperfect lamellar bodies were observed in primary nasal epithelial cells using transmission electron microscopy. Functional assessment of the ABCA-3 protein demonstrated that higher concentrations of doxorubicin reduced cell viability in ABCA-3 deficient nasal epithelial cells compared to controls in an assay-dependent manner. Our results indicate that there may be a role for primary nasal epithelial cell cultures to model ABCA-3 deficiency in vitro, although additional cell culture models that more effectively recapitulate the AT-II phenotype may be required

Stacking Order dependent Electric Field tuning of the Band Gap in Graphene Multilayers

The effect of different stacking order of graphene multilayers on the electric field induced band gap is investigated. We considered a positively charged top and a negatively charged back gate in order to independently tune the band gap and the Fermi energy of three and four layer graphene systems. A tight-binding approach within a self-consistent Hartree approximation is used to calculate the induced charges on the different graphene layers. We found that the gap for trilayer graphene with the ABC stacking is much larger than the corresponding gap for the ABA trilayer. Also we predict that for four layers of graphene the energy gap strongly depends on the choice of stacking, and we found that the gap for the different types of stacking is much larger as compared to the case of Bernal stacking. Trigonal warping changes the size of the induced electronic gap by approximately 30% for intermediate and large values of the induced electron density

Armstrong\u27s Joe Roberts Named To ABCA Hall of Fame 2013 Class

Armstrong\u27s Joe Roberts Named To ABCA Hall of Fame 2013 Class. Armstrong Atlantic State University head baseball coach Joe Roberts will be inducted into the America Baseball Coaches\u27 Association Hall of Fame this January as a member of the ABCA\u27s Hall of Fame Class of 2013

Variable order Mittag-Leffler fractional operators on isolated time scales and application to the calculus of variations

We introduce new fractional operators of variable order on isolated time scales with Mittag-Leffler kernels. This allows a general formulation of a class of fractional variational problems involving variable-order difference operators. Main results give fractional integration by parts formulas and necessary optimality conditions of Euler-Lagrange type.Comment: This is a preprint of a paper whose final and definite form is with Springe

A targeted genetic screen identifies crucial players in the specification of the Drosophila abdominal Capaergic neurons

The central nervous system contains a wide variety of neuronal subclasses generated by neural progenitors. The achievement of a unique neural fate is the consequence of a sequence of early and increasingly restricted regulatory events, which culminates in the expression of a specific genetic combinatorial code that confers individual characteristics to the differentiated cell. How the earlier regulatory events influence post-mitotic cell fate decisions is beginning to be understood in the Drosophila NB 5-6 lineage. However, it remains unknown to what extent these events operate in other lineages. To better understand this issue, we have used a very highly specific marker that identifies a small subset of abdominal cells expressing the Drosophila neuropeptide Capa: the ABCA neurons. Our data support the birth of the ABCA neurons from NB 5-3 in a cas temporal window in the abdominal segments A2–A4. Moreover, we show that the ABCA neuron has an ABCA-sibling cell which dies by apoptosis. Surprisingly, both cells are also generated in the abdominal segments A5–A7, although they undergo apoptosis before expressing Capa. In addition, we have performed a targeted genetic screen to identify players involved in ABCA specification. We have found that the ABCA fate requires zfh2, grain, Grunge and hedgehog genes. Finally, we show that the NB 5-3 generates other subtype of Capa-expressing cells (SECAs) in the third suboesophageal segment, which are born during a pdm/cas temporal window, and have different genetic requirements for their specification.This work was supported by a grant from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (BFU-2008-04683-C02-02 to L.T.)

Interactions of Several Lipid-Related Gene Polymorphisms and Cigarette Smoking on Blood Pressure Levels

The interactions of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and cigarette smoking on blood pressure levels are limited. The present study was undertaken to detect nine lipid-related SNPs and their interactions with cigarette smoking on blood pressure levels. Genotyping of ATP-binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA-1) V825I, acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase-1 (ACAT-1) rs1044925, low density lipoprotein receptor (LDL-R) AvaⅡ, hepatic lipase gene (LIPC) -250G>A, endothelial lipase gene (LIPG) 584C>T, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) 677C>T, proprotein convertase subtilisin-like kexin type 9 (PCSK9) E670G, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor delta (PPARD) +294T>C, and Scavenger receptor class B type 1 (SCARB1) rs5888 was performed in 935 nonsmokers and 845 smokers. The interactions were detected by factorial regression analysis. The frequencies of genotypes (ACAT-1 and LIPG), alleles (ABCA-1), and both genotypes and alleles (LDL-R, LIPC, PPARD and SCARB1) were different between nonsmokers and smokers (P < 0.05-0.001). The levels of pulse pressure (PP, ABCA-1), and systolic, diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP) and PP (LIPC) in nonsmokers were different among the genotypes (P < 0.01-0.001). The levels of SBP (ABCA-1, ACAT-1, LIPG and PCSK9), DBP (ACAT-1, LDL-R, LIPC, PCSK9 and PPARD), and PP (LIPC, LIPG, MTHFR and PCSK9) in smokers were different among the genotypes (P < 0.01-0.001). The SNPs of ABCA-1, ACAT-1 and PCSK9; ACAT-1, LDL-R, MTHFR and PCSK9; and ABCA-1, LIPC, PCSK9 and PPARD were shown interactions with cigarette smoking to influence SBP, DBP and PP levels (P < 0.05-0.001); respectively. The differences in blood pressure levels between the nonsmokers and smokers might partly result from different interactions of several SNPs and cigarette smoking