Neuropeptidomic analysis of the embryonic Japanese quail diencephalon

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Endogenous peptides such as neuropeptides are involved in numerous biological processes in the fully developed brain but very little is known about their role in brain development. Japanese quail is a commonly used bird model for studying sexual dimorphic brain development, especially adult male copulatory behavior in relation to manipulations of the embryonic endocrine system. This study uses a label-free liquid chromatography mass spectrometry approach to analyze the influence of age (embryonic days 12 vs 17), sex and embryonic day 3 ethinylestradiol exposure on the expression of multiple endogenous peptides in the developing diencephalon.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We identified a total of 65 peptides whereof 38 were sufficiently present in all groups for statistical analysis. Age was the most defining variable in the data and sex had the least impact. Most identified peptides were more highly expressed in embryonic day 17. The top candidates for EE₂exposure and sex effects were neuropeptide K (downregulated by EE₂in males and females), gastrin-releasing peptide (more highly expressed in control and EE₂exposed males) and gonadotropin-inhibiting hormone related protein 2 (more highly expressed in control males and displaying interaction effects between age and sex). We also report a new potential secretogranin-2 derived neuropeptide and previously unknown phosphorylations in the C-terminal flanking protachykinin 1 neuropeptide.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study is the first larger study on endogenous peptides in the developing brain and implies a previously unknown role for a number of neuropeptides in middle to late avian embryogenesis. It demonstrates the power of label-free liquid chromatography mass spectrometry to analyze the expression of multiple endogenous peptides and the potential to detect new putative peptide candidates in a developmental model.</p

Clustering-based separation of media transfers in DPI-classified cellular video and VoIP traffic

Identifying VoIP and video traffic is often useful in the context of managing a cellular network, and to perform such traffic classification deep packet inspection (DPI) approaches are often used. Commercial DPI classifiers do not necessarily differentiate between, for example, YouTube traffic that arises from browsing inside the YouTube app, and traffic arising from the actual viewing of a YouTube video. Here we apply unsupervised clustering methods on such cellular DPI-labeled VoIP and video traffic to identify the characteristic behavior of the two sub-groups of media-transfer and non media-transfer flows. The analysis is based on a measurement campaign performed inside the core network of a commercial cellular operator, collecting data for more than two billion packets in 40+ million flows. A specially instrumented commercial DPI appliance allows the simultaneous collection of per packet information in addition to the DPI classification output. We show that the majority of flows falls into clusters that are easily identifiable as belonging to one of the traffic sub-groups, and that a surprising majority of DPIlabeled VoIP and video traffic is non-media related.HIT

Effects of selective and combined activation of estrogen receptor α and β on reproductive organ development and sexual behaviour in Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica)

Excess estrogen exposure of avian embryos perturbs reproductive organ development in both sexes and demasculinizes the reproductive behaviors of adult males. We have previously shown that these characteristic effects on the reproductive organs also can be induced by exposure of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) embryos to selective agonists of estrogen receptor alpha (ER alpha). In contrast, the male copulatory behavior is only weakly affected by developmental exposure to an ERa agonist. To further elucidate the respective roles of ER alpha and ER beta in estrogen-induced disruption of sexual differentiation, we exposed Japanese quail embryos in ovo to the selective ER alpha agonist 16 alpha-lactone-estradiol (16 alpha LE2), the selective ER beta agonist WAY-200070, or both substances in combination. The ERa agonist feminized the testes in male embryos and reduced cloacal gland size in adult males. Furthermore, anomalous retention and malformations of the Mullerian ducts/oviducts were seen in embryos and juveniles of both sexes. The ER beta agonist did not induce any of these effects and did not influence the action of the ERa agonist. Male copulatory behavior was not affected by embryonic exposure to either the ER alpha-or the ER beta-selective agonist but was slightly suppressed by treatment with the two compounds combined. Our results suggest that the reproductive organs become sexually differentiated consequent to activation of ER alpha by endogenous estrogens; excessive activation of ER alpha, but not ER beta, during embryonic development may disrupt this process. Our results also suggest that the demasculinizing effect of estrogens on male copulatory behavior is only partly mediated by ER alpha and ER beta, and may rather involve other estrogen-responsive pathways

A First Study on Using MPTCP to Reduce Latency for Cloud Based Mobile Applications

Currently, Multipath TCP (MPTCP) – a modifica- tion to standard TCP that enables the concurrent use of several network paths in a single TCP connection – is being standardized by IETF. This paper provides a comprehensive evaluation of the use of MPTCP to reduce latency and thus improve the quality of experience or QoE for cloud-based applications. In particular, the paper considers the possible reductions in latency that could be obtained by using MPTCP and multiple network paths between a cloud service and a mobile end user. To obtain an appreciation of the expected latency performance for different types of cloud traffic, three applications are studied, Netflix, Google Maps, and Google Docs, representing typical applications generating high-, mid-, and low-intensity traffic. The results suggest that MPTCP could provide significant latency reductions for cloud applications, especially for applications such as Netflix and Google Maps. Moreover, the results suggest that MPTCP offers a reduced latency despite a few percent packet loss, and in spite of limited differences in the round-trip times of the network paths in an MPTCP connection. Still, larger differences in the round-trip times seem to significantly increase the application latency, especially for Netflix, Google Maps, and similar applications. Thus, to become an even better alternative to these applications, this paper suggests that the MPTCP packet scheduling policy should be changed: Apart from the round-trip times of the network paths in a connection, it should also consider the difference in round-trip time between the network paths.Research Environment fro Advancing Low Latency Internet (READY

Developmental exposure to a mixture of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) affects the thyroid hormone system and the bursa of Fabricius in the chicken

Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants and eggs and nestlings of raptors and fish-eating birds often contain high levels of PFAAs. We studied developmental effects of a mixture of ten PFAAs by exposing chicken embryos to 0.5 or 3 mu g/g egg of each compound in the mixture. Histological changes of the thyroid gland were noted at both doses and increased expression of mRNA coding for type III deiodinase was found at 0.5 mu g/g egg. Serum concentrations of the free fraction of thyroid hormones (T3 and T4) were reduced by the PFAA mixture at 3 mu g/g egg, which is in line with a decreased synthesis and increased turnover of thyroid hormones as indicated by our histological findings and the decreased mRNA expression of type III deiodinase. The relative weight of the bursa of Fabricius increased at a dose of 3 mu g/g egg in females. The bursa is the site of B-cell development in birds and is crucial for the avian adaptive immune system. Analysis of plasma and liver concentrations of the mixture components showed differences depending on chain length and functional group. Our results highlight the vulnerability of the thyroid hormone and immune systems to PFAAs

Examining cellular access systems on trains : Measurements and change detection

Abstract:Access to reliable high-quality communication services on trains is important for today's mobile users. Train-mounted aggregation routers that provide WiFi access to train passengers and bundle external communication over multiple cellular modems/links is an efficient way of providing such services. Still, the characteristics of such systems have received limited attention in the literature. In this paper we examine the communication characteristics of such systems based on a large data set gathered over six months from an operational Swedish railway system. We characterize the conditions in terms of usage load, train velocity profiles, and observed throughput and delay as well as the relation between these parameters. Furthermore, we examine the data from an anomaly detection perspective. Based on a changepoint detection method, we examine how the collected metrics varies over the six months. Being able to detect shifts in the metrics over time can help detect anomalous changes in the hardware or environment, and also further helps explain the factors affecting the observed behaviors.HIT

A Survey of TCP-Friendly Congestion Control Mechanisms for Multimedia Traffic

The stability and performance of the Internet to date have in a large part been due tothe congestion control mechanism employed by TCP. However, while the TCP congestioncontrol is appropriate for traditional applications such as bulk data transfer, it hasbeen found less than ideal for multimedia applications. In particular, audio and videostreaming applications have difficulties managing the rate halving performed by TCP inresponse to congestion. To this end, the majority of multimedia applications use eithera congestion control scheme which reacts less drastic to congestion and therefore oftenis more aggressive than TCP, or, worse yet, no congestion control whatsoever. Sincethe Internet community strongly fears that a rapid deployment of multimedia applicationswhich do not behave in a fair and TCP-friendly manner could endanger the currentstability and performance of the Internet, a broad spectrum of TCP-friendly congestioncontrol schemes have been proposed. In this report, a survey over contemporary proposalsof TCP-friendly congestion control mechanisms for multimedia traffic in the Internetis presented. A classification scheme is outlined which shows how the majority of theproposed congestion control schemes emanate from a relatively small number of designprinciples. Furthermore, we illustrate how these design principles have been applied ina selection of congestion control scheme proposals and actual transport protocols

Metabolic Profiling of Chicken Embryos Exposed to Perfluorooctanoic Acid ( PFOA) and Agonists to Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors

Untargeted metabolic profiling of body fluids in experimental animals and humans exposed to chemicals may reveal early signs of toxicity and indicate toxicity pathways. Avian embryos develop separately from their mothers, which gives unique possibilities to study effects of chemicals during embryo development with minimal confounding factors from the mother. In this study we explored blood plasma and allantoic fluid from chicken embryos as matrices for revealing metabolic changes caused by exposure to chemicals during embryonic development. Embryos were exposed via egg injection on day 7 to the environmental pollutant perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), and effects on the metabolic profile on day 12 were compared with those caused by GW7647 and rosiglitazone, which are selective agonists to peroxisome-proliferator activated receptor a (PPAR alpha) and PPAR gamma, respectively. Analysis of the metabolite concentrations from allantoic fluid by Orthogonal Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis (OPLS-DA) showed clear separation between the embryos exposed to GW7647, rosiglitazone, and vehicle control, respectively. In blood plasma only GW7647 caused a significant effect on the metabolic profile. PFOA induced embryo mortality and increased relative liver weight at the highest dose. Sublethal doses of PFOA did not significantly affect the metabolic profile in either matrix, although single metabolites appeared to be altered. Neonatal mortality by PFOA in the mouse has been suggested to be mediated via activation of PPAR alpha. However, we found no similarity in the metabolite profile of chicken embryos exposed to PFOA with those of embryos exposed to PPAR agonists. This indicates that PFOA does not activate PPAR pathways in our model at concentrations in eggs and embryos well above those found in wild birds. The present study suggests that allantoic fluid and plasma from chicken embryos are useful and complementary matrices for exploring effects on the metabolic profile resulting from chemical exposure during embryonic development

A Measurement Based Study of TCP Protocol Efficiency in Cellular Networks

This paper examines the efficiency of resource utilization with respect to short-lived TCP flows in various cellular networks. The examination is done from the vantage point of an end-user who would like to use as much as possible of the cellular transmission resources that are available at any given time, thus minimizing the delays associated with communication. Based on a comprehensive measurement campaign we first derive network characteristics with regards to base RTT, RTT under load, and average throughput. A protocol efficiency metric is introduced to capture how efficiently short TCP flows are in fact able to use the instantaneously available transmission resources in a cellular network. The measurements show that short TCP connections have low efficiency in 3. SG (HSPA+) and 4G (LTE) mobile broadband networks, and that the improved latency and throughput characteristics of 4G in relation to 3. SG nevertheless results in lower short-flow efficiency for 4G