The use of interactional metadiscourse in the construction of gender identities among Malaysian ESL learners

The study investigates how interactional metadiscourse resources are used to articulate and construct gender identity among ESL learners in Malaysia. The main purpose of the study is to provide language practitioners with empirical data of how gender is projected in the academic writings of ESL learners and to what extent learners’ writings are affected by their gender. The data can then be utilised for the design and development of more effective academic writing courses in Malaysia. Quantitative and qualitative analyses were performed on the similarities and differences in the use of interactional metadiscourse resources, namely; hedges, boosters, attitude markers, engagement markers and self mentions between male and female ESL learners involved in the study. The findings of the quantitative analyses show no obvious differences in the writing style of female and male writers in the study, while the qualitative findings reveal slight differences in the way writers position themselves in the reader/writer interaction and in the expression of agreement statement

Synergistic effect of imp/ostA and msbA in hydrophobic drug resistance of Helicobacter pylori

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Contamination of endoscopy equipment by <it>Helicobacter pylori </it>(<it>H. pylori</it>) frequently occurs after endoscopic examination of <it>H. pylori</it>-infected patients. In the hospital, manual pre-cleaning and soaking in glutaraldehyde is an important process to disinfect endoscopes. However, this might not be sufficient to remove <it>H. pylori </it>completely, and some glutaraldehyde-resistant bacteria might survive and be passed to the next patient undergoing endoscopic examination through unidentified mechanisms. We identified an Imp/OstA protein associated with glutaraldehyde resistance in a clinical strain, NTUH-C1, from our previous study. To better understand and manage the problem of glutaraldehyde resistance, we further investigated its mechanism.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of glutaraldehyde andexpression of <it>imp/ostA </it>RNA in 11 clinical isolates from the National Taiwan University Hospital were determined. After glutaraldehyde treatment, RNA expression in the strains with the MICs of 4–10 μg/ml was higher than that in strains with the MICs of 1–3 μg/ml. We examined the full-genome expression of strain NTUH-S1 after glutaraldehyde treatment using a microarray and found that 40 genes were upregulated and 31 genes were downregulated. Among the upregulated genes, <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA</it>, two putative lipopolysaccharide biogenesis genes, were selected for further characterization. The sensitivity to glutaraldehyde or hydrophobic drugs increased in both of <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>single mutants. The <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>double mutant was also hypersensitive to these chemicals. The lipopolysaccharide contents decreased in individual <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>mutants and dramatically reduced in the <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>double mutant. Outer membrane permeability assay demonstrated that the <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>double mutation resulted in the increase of outer membrane permeability. Ethidium bromide accumulation assay demonstrated that MsbA was involved in efflux of hydrophobic drugs.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The expression levels of <it>imp/ostA </it>and <it>msbA </it>were correlated with glutaraldehyde resistance in clinical isolates after glutaraldehyde treatment. Imp/OstA and MsbA play a synergistic role in hydrophobic drugs resistance and lipopolysaccharide biogenesis in <it>H. pylori</it>.</p

Minimum Energy Expenditure of Arm and Leg Motions

The purpose of the study is to find the optimized arm and leg motions by computer simulation. The research method of this study was based on Lagrange-Euler equations (LEE) of motion and the seven types of homogeneous transformation matrices (CH-7T) defin

Discriminating Glucose Tolerance Status by Regions of Interest of Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry: Clinical Implications of Body Fat Distribution

WSTĘP. Zbadanie, czy ocena rozmieszczenia tkanki tłuszczowej w organizmie metodą absorpcjometrii promieniowania rentgenowskiego o podwójnej energii (DEXA, dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) może być pomocny w ocenie stanu tolerancji glukozy. MATERIAŁ I METODY. U 1015 badanych mieszkańców Chin (559 mężczyzn i 456 kobiet) zastosowano doustny test obciążenia glukozą (75,0 g). Na podstawie jego wyników wyodrębniono osoby o prawidłowej (NGT, normal glucose tolerance) i upośledzonej (IGT, impaired glucose tolerance) tolerancji glukozy oraz osoby, u których rozpoznano cukrzycę (DM, diabetes mellitus). Mierzono wysokość ciśnienia tętniczego i oceniano profil lipidowy. Na podstawie stosunku obwodu talii do bioder (WHR, waist-to-hip ratio) i wyników DEXA oceniano rozmieszczenie tkanki tłuszczowej u osób w poszczególnych grupach. WYNIKI. Rozmieszczenie tkanki tłuszczowej, wyrażone poprzez WHR oraz wskaźnik centralizacji, wykazało znamienną częściową korelację ze stężeniem hemoglobiny glikowanej, wysokością ciśnienia tętniczego i profilem lipidowym u wszystkich badanych. Po skorygowaniu wyników wobec wieku i wskaźnika masy ciała (BMI, body mass index), stwierdzono znamienne różnice częstości wszystkich sercowo-naczyniowych czynników ryzyka w poszczególnych grupach, z wyjątkiem stężenia cholesterolu całkowitego. W grupie DM odnotowano znamiennie wyż-sze wartości WHR i wskaźnika centralizacji przy niższej procentowo zawartości tkanki tłuszczowej w udach. Ponadto, pacjentów z grupy IGT charakteryzował wyższy wskaźnik centralizacji niż osoby z grupy NGT. Nie stwierdzono jednakże znamiennych różnic masy tkanek beztłuszczowych w porównywanych grupach. Po dokonaniu wieloczynnikowej analizy logistycznej regresji wskaźnik centralizacji pozostał istotnym czynnikiem umożliwiającym ocenę tolerancji glukozy, niezależnie od procentowej zawartości tkanki tłuszczowej w organizmie. WNIOSKI. Otyłość centralna wykazuje znamienną korelację z sercowo-naczyniowymi czynnikami ryzyka w grupach osób o różnej tolerancji glukozy. Indeks centralizacji, oceniany metodą DEXA, wydaje się lepszym wskaźnikiem upośledzenia tolerancji glukozy niż WHR, otyłość brzuszna czy uogólniona otyłość (wyrażone odpowiednio jako odsetek zawartości tłuszczu całkowitego lub BMI) w dużej grupie badanych Chińczyków.OBJECTIVE. To determine whether measuring body fat distribution by dual-energy X-ray a bsor ptio metry (DEXA) can be used to discriminate glucose tolerance status. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS. Using a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test, a total of 1,015 Chinese subjects (559 men and 456 women) were categorized as having normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), or diabetes. Blood pre ssure and lipid profiles of these subjects were measured. Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) and DEXA were used to evaluate the varying patterns of body fat distribution among the gro ups. RESULTS. Body fat distribution, as reflected by WHR and the centrality index, showed significant partial correlation coefficients with glycosylated hemoglobin, blood pressure, and lipid profiles in all subjects. After adjusting for age and BMI, there were significant differences among the three glycemic groups for all the cardiovascular risk factors except for total cholesterol level. The diabetic group had a significantly higher WHR and centrality index, but lower femoral fat percentage than the NGT and IGT groups. The diabetic group also showed higher abdominal fat percentage than the NGT group. More over, the IGT group had a higher centrality index than the NGT group. However, no significant differences were found in the percentage of lean tissue mass among the three groups. Using multiple stepwise logistic regression models, the centrality index remained a significant factor for discriminating different glucose tolerance status independent of the percentage total body fat. CONCLUSIONS. Central obesity has shown significant correlation with cardio vascular risk factors among the three different glycemic groups. Centrality index measured by DEXA appears to be the better predictor of glucose intolerance, compared with WHR, abdominal fat, and general obesity (reflected by percentage total body fat or BMI) in a large cohort of the Chinese population

Empagliflozin Protects HK-2 Cells from High Glucose-Mediated Injuries via a Mitochondrial Mechanism

Empagliflozin is known to retard the progression of kidney disease in diabetic patients. However, the underlying mechanism is incompletely understood. High glucose induces oxidative stress in renal tubules, eventually leading to mitochondrial damage. Here, we investigated whether empagliflozin exhibits protective functions in renal tubules via a mitochondrial mechanism. We used human proximal tubular cell (PTC) line HK-2 and employed western blotting, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling assay, fluorescence staining, flow cytometry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to investigate the impact of high glucose and empagliflozin on cellular apoptosis, mitochondrial morphology, and functions including mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) generation. We found that PTCs were susceptible to high glucose-induced mitochondrial fragmentation, and empagliflozin ameliorated this effect via the regulation of mitochondrial fission (FIS1 and DRP1) and fusion (MFN1 and MFN2) proteins. Empagliflozin reduced the high glucose-induced cellular apoptosis and improved mitochondrial functions by restoring mitochondrial ROS production, MMP, and ATP generation. Our results suggest that empagliflozin may protect renal PTCs from high glucose-mediated injuries through a mitochondrial mechanism. This could be one of the novel mechanisms explaining the benefits demonstrated in EMPA-REG OUTCOME trial

Bioengineering of the plant culture of Capsicum frutescens with vanillin synthase gene for the production of vanillin

Production of vanillin by bioengineering has gained popularity due to consumer demand towards vanillin produced by biological systems. Natural vanillin from vanilla beans is very expensive to produce compared to its synthetic counterpart. Current bioengineering works mainly involve microbial biotechnology. Therefore, alternative means to the current approaches are constantly being explored. This work describes the use of vanillin synthase (VpVAN), to bioconvert ferulic acid to vanillin in a plant system. The VpVAN enzyme had been shown to directly convert ferulic acid and its glucoside into vanillin and its glucoside, respectively. As the ferulic acid precursor and vanillin were found to be the intermediates in the phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway of Capsicum species, this work serves as a proof-of-concept for vanillin production using Capsicum frutescens (C. frutescens or hot chili pepper). The cells of C. frutescens were genetically transformed with a codon optimized VpVAN gene via biolistics. Transformed explants were selected and regenerated into callus. Successful integration of the gene cassette into the plant genome was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction. High performance liquid chromatography was used to quantify the phenolic compounds detected in the callus tissues. The vanillin content of transformed calli was 0.057% compared to 0.0003% in untransformed calli

Photonic hydrogel sensors

Analyte-sensitive hydrogels that incorporate optical structures have emerged as sensing platforms for point-of-care diagnostics. The optical properties of the hydrogel sensors can be rationally designed and fabricated through self-assembly, microfabrication or laser writing. The advantages of photonic hydrogel sensors over conventional assay formats include label-free, quantitative, reusable, and continuous measurement capability that can be integrated with equipment-free text or image display. This Review explains the operation principles of photonic hydrogel sensors, presents syntheses of stimuli-responsive polymers, and provides an overview of qualitative and quantitative readout technologies. Applications in clinical samples are discussed, and potential future directions are identified

Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy (3rd edition)

In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. For example, a key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process versus those that measure fl ux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process including the amount and rate of cargo sequestered and degraded). In particular, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation must be differentiated from stimuli that increase autophagic activity, defi ned as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (inmost higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium ) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the fi eld understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. It is worth emphasizing here that lysosomal digestion is a stage of autophagy and evaluating its competence is a crucial part of the evaluation of autophagic flux, or complete autophagy. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. Along these lines, because of the potential for pleiotropic effects due to blocking autophagy through genetic manipulation it is imperative to delete or knock down more than one autophagy-related gene. In addition, some individual Atg proteins, or groups of proteins, are involved in other cellular pathways so not all Atg proteins can be used as a specific marker for an autophagic process. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead