Dual-specificity MAP kinase phosphatases in health and disease

Source at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbamcr.2018.09.002.It is well established that a family of dual-specificity MAP kinase phosphatases (MKPs) play key roles in the regulated dephosphorylation and inactivation of MAP kinase isoforms in mammalian cells and tissues. MKPs provide a mechanism of spatiotemporal feedback control of these key signalling pathways, but can also mediate crosstalk between distinct MAP kinase cascades and facilitate interactions between MAP kinase pathways and other key signalling modules. As our knowledge of the regulation, substrate specificity and catalytic mechanisms of MKPs has matured, more recent work using genetic models has revealed key physiological functions for MKPs and also uncovered potentially important roles in regulating the pathophysiological outcome of signalling with relevance to human diseases. These include cancer, diabetes, inflammatory and neurodegenerative disorders. It is hoped that this understanding will reveal novel therapeutic targets and biomarkers for disease, thus contributing to more effective diagnosis and treatment for these debilitating and often fatal conditions

Creating a Common Voice for Liberal Arts Education

As Sam Schuman so eloquently argues in his lead article, these are challenging times for the liberal arts. A society that owes so much to graduates of liberal arts colleges has come to see them as an education for a simpler time. Why does a liberal arts education now seem out of place? Perhaps it is that, in times of rapid change, an education that offers the certainty of “textbook solutions” is more comforting than one that promises creative, thoughtful, and flexible “improvisation” in the face of a complex world. It may be that a narrowly focused, carefully applied education seems to provide a solid anchor for our fast-paced lifestyle. Does the quick exchange of information and experiences favor an education that offers certain, immediate, and visible rewards? Certainly it takes an element of faith to pursue the counter-intuitive promises of a liberal arts education in a results-oriented society

The Distance Call of Domesciated Zebra Finches (Poephila Guttata)

Wildzebra finches use distance calls in a wide variety of contexts including flight, mild alarm, perching, and courtship. The call is also thought to allow paired males and females to maintain contact in large flocks. The purpose of this study is to compare the acoustic structure of distance calls of wild and domesticated zebra finches. We analyzed distance calls from our own colony and combined the results of this analysis with the findings from two other published studies on distance calls of domesticated finches. The results from these studies were compared to earlier research on the distance calls of wild zebra finches. Overall, domesticated male and female zebra finches produce calls that have longer duration, lower fundamental frequency, and higher frequency of maximum amplitude than those of wild zebra finches. These differences were generally consistent across different domesticated populations. Domesticated males produce distance calls in which the frequency modulation of the noise element is substantially different from the noise element of wild males. Furthermore, there was little consistency in the structure and location of the male's noise element across different domesficated populations. It remains to be demonstrated whether these changes have altered the function of this call in domesticated finches. 

The Distance Call of Domesciated Zebra Finches (Poephila Guttata)

Wild zebra finches use distance calls in a wide variety of contexts including flight, mild alarm, perching, and courtship. The call is also thought to allow paired males and females to maintain contact in large flocks. The purpose of this study is to compare the acoustic structure of distance calls of wild and domesticated zebra finches. We analyzed distance calls from our own colony and combined the results of this analysis with the findings from two other published studies on distance calls of domesticated finches. The results from these studies were compared to earlier research on the distance calls of wild zebra finches. Overall, domesticated male and female zebra finches produce calls that have longer duration, lower fundamental frequency, and higher frequency of maximum amplitude than those of wild zebra finches. These differences were generally consistent across different domesticated populations. Domesticated males produce distance calls in which the frequency modulation of the noise element is substantially different from the noise element of wild males. Furthermore, there was little consistency in the structure and location of the male's noise element across different domesficated populations. It remains to be demonstrated whether these changes have altered the function of this call in domesticated finches. &nbsp