The retroviral oncoprotein Tax targets the coiled-coil centrosomal protein TAX1BP2 to induce centrosome overduplication

Emerging evidence suggests that supernumerary centrosomes drive genome instability and oncogenesis. Human T-cell leukaemia virus type I (HTLV-I) is etiologically associated with adult T-cell leukaemia (ATL). ATL cells are aneuploid, but the causes of aneuploidy are incompletely understood. Here, we show that centrosome amplification is frequent in HTLV-I-transformed cells and that this phenotype is caused by the viral Tax oncoprotein. We also show that the fraction of Tax protein that localizes to centrosomes interacts with TAX1BP2, a novel centrosomal protein composed almost entirely of coiled-coil domains. Overexpression of TAX1BP2 inhibited centrosome duplication, whereas depletion of TAX1BP2 by RNAi resulted in centrosome hyperamplification. Our findings suggest that the HTLV-I Tax oncoprotein targets TAX1BP2 causing genomic instability and aneuploidy. © 2006 Nature Publishing Group.postprin

Urinary levels of organophosphate flame retardants metabolites in a young population from Southern Taiwan and potential health effects

BackgroundOrganophosphate flame retardants (OPFRs) are widely distributed in the environment and their metabolites are observed in urine, but little is known regarding OPFRs in a broad-spectrum young population from newborns to those aged 18 years.ObjectivesInvestigate urinary levels of OPFRs and OPFR metabolites in Taiwanese infants, young children, schoolchildren, and adolescents within the general population.MethodsDifferent age groups of subjects (n=136) were recruited from southern Taiwan to detect 10 OPFR metabolites in urine samples. Associations between urinary OPFRs and their corresponding metabolites and potential health status were also examined.ResultsThe mean level of urinary Σ10 OPFR in this broad-spectrum young population is 2.25 μg/L (standard deviation (SD) of 1.91 μg/L). Σ10 OPFR metabolites in urine are 3.25 ± 2.84, 3.06 ± 2.21, 1.75 ± 1.10, and 2.32 ± 2.29 μg/L in the age groups comprising of newborns, 1-5 year-olds, 6-10 year-olds, and 11-18 year-olds, respectively, and borderline significant differences were found in the different age groups (p=0.125). The OPFR metabolites of TCEP, BCEP, DPHP, TBEP, DBEP, and BDCPP predominate in urine and comprise more than 90% of the total. TBEP was highly correlated with DBEP in this population (r=0.845, p<0.001). The estimated daily intake (EDI) of Σ5OPFRs (TDCPP, TCEP, TBEP, TNBP, and TPHP) was 2,230, 461, 130, and 184 ng/kg bw/day for newborns, 1-5 yr children, 6-10 yr children, and 11-17 yr adolescents, respectively. The EDI of Σ5OPFRs for newborns was 4.83-17.2 times higher than the other age groups. Urinary OPFR metabolites are significantly correlated with birth length and chest circumference in newborns.ConclusionTo our knowledge, this is the first investigation of urinary OPFR metabolite levels in a broad-spectrum young population. There tended to be higher exposure rates in both newborns and pre-schoolers, though little is known about their exposure levels or factors leading to exposure in the young population. Further studies should clarify the exposure levels and factor relationships

Study of Mn Dissolution from LiMn[sub 2]O[sub 4] Spinel Electrodes Using Rotating Ring-Disk Collection Experiments

The goal of this research was to measure Mn dissolution from a thin porous spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} electrode by rotating ring-disk collection experiments. The amount of Mn dissolution from the spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} electrode under various conditions was detected by potential step chronoamperometry. The concentration of dissolved Mn was found to increase with increasing cycle numbers and elevated temperature. The dissolved Mn was not dependent on disk rotation speed, which indicated that the Mn dissolution from the disk was under reaction control. The in situ monitoring of Mn dissolution from the spinel was carried out under various conditions. The ring currents exhibited maxima corresponding to the end-of-charge (EOC) and end-of-discharge (EOD), with the largest peak at EOC. The results suggest that the dissolution of Mn from spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} occurs during charge/discharge cycling, especially in a charged state (at >4.1 V) and in a discharged state (at <3.1 V). The largest peak at EOC demonstrated that Mn dissolution took place mainly at the top of charge. At elevated temperatures, the ring cathodic currents were larger due to the increase of Mn dissolution rate

Pretreatment carcinoembryonic antigen level is a risk factor for para-aortic lymph node recurrence in addition to squamous cell carcinoma antigen following definitive concurrent chemoradiotherapy for squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To identify pretreatment carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) levels as a risk factor for para-aortic lymph node (PALN) recurrence following concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) for cervical cancer.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>From March 1995 to January 2008, 188 patients with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the uterine cervix were analyzed retrospectively. No patient received PALN irradiation as the initial treatment. CEA and squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCC-Ag) were measured before and after radiotherapy. PALN recurrence was detected by computer tomography (CT) scans. We analyzed the actuarial rates of PALN recurrence by using Kaplan-Meier curves. Multivariate analyses were carried out with Cox regression models. We stratified the risk groups based on the hazard ratios (HR).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Both pretreatment CEA levels ≥ 10 ng/mL and SCC-Ag levels < 10 ng/mL (<it>p </it>< 0.001, HR = 8.838), SCC-Ag levels ≥ 40 ng/mL (<it>p </it>< 0.001, HR = 12.551), and SCC-Ag levels of 10-40 ng/mL (<it>p </it>< 0.001, HR = 4.2464) were significant factors for PALN recurrence. The corresponding 5-year PALN recurrence rates were 51.5%, 84.8%, and 27.5%, respectively. The 5-year PALN recurrence rate for patients with both low (< 10 ng/mL) SCC and CEA was only 9.6%. CEA levels ≥ 10 ng/mL or SCC-Ag levels ≥ 10 ng/mL at PALN recurrence were associated with overall survival after an isolated PALN recurrence. Pretreatment CEA levels ≥ 10 ng/mL were also associated with survival after an isolated PALN recurrence.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Pretreatment CEA ≥ 10 ng/mL is an additional risk factor of PALN relapse following definitive CCRT for SCC of the uterine cervix in patients with pretreatment SCC-Ag levels < 10 ng/mL. More comprehensive examinations before CCRT and intensive follow-up schedules are suggested for early detection and salvage in patients with SCC-Ag or CEA levels ≥ 10 ng/mL.</p

Knowledge withholding intentions in teams: the roles of normative conformity, affective bonding, rational choice and social cognition

The decision of members in a knowledge-intensive team to withhold their knowledge may threaten the performance of the team. To address the problem of knowledge resource risk in project teams, we maintain that it is important to understand why team members choose to withhold their knowledge, conceptualized as knowledge-withholding intention. In line with the literature on effort withholding, the research on multifoci relations between justice perceptions and social exchanges, and social cognitive theory, we proposed that the social exchange relationships that individuals form in the workplace, their perceptions of justice, and their knowledge withholding self-efficacy would influence their knowledge-withholding intentions. Through a survey of 227 information system development team workers, we found that all social exchange relationship variables had a significant impact on knowledge-withholding intentions. However, the justice perception variables only indirectly influenced knowledge-withholding intentions through the mediation of social exchange relationships. In addition, one of the task variables, task interdependence, influenced knowledge withholding intention through the mediation of knowledge withholding self-efficacy. Our results contribute to the knowledge management literature by providing a better understanding of the antecedents of knowledge withholding. We also offer suggestions for future research utilizing the framework of Kidwell and Bennett (1993) to study effort and knowledge withholding

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

Study of Mn dissolution from LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} spinel electrodes using rotating ring-disk collection experiments

The goal of this research was to measure Mn dissolution from a thin porous spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} electrode by rotating ring-disk collection experiments. The amount of Mn dissolution from the spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} electrode under various conditions was detected by potential step chronoamperometry. The concentration of dissolved Mn was found to increase with increasing cycle numbers and elevated temperature. The dissolved Mn was not dependent on disk rotation speed, which indicated that the Mn dissolution from the disk was under reaction control. The in situ monitoring of Mn dissolution from the spinel was carried out under various conditions. The ring currents exhibited maxima corresponding to the end-of-charge (EOC) and end-of-discharge (EOD), with the largest peak at EOC. The results suggest that the dissolution of Mn from spinel LiMn{sub 2}O{sub 4} occurs during charge/discharge cycling, especially in a charged state (at &gt;4.1 V) and in a discharged state (at &lt;3.1 V). The largest peak at EOC demonstrated that Mn dissolution took place mainly at the top of charge. At elevated temperatures, the ring cathodic currents were larger due to the increase of Mn dissolution rate

Long-term frequent use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs might protect patients with ankylosing spondylitis from cardiovascular diseases: a nationwide case-control study.

The objective of this case-control study was to investigate the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) following non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). A total of 10,763 new AS patients were identified from the National Taiwan Health Insurance claims database during the period from 1997 to 2008. In all, 421 AS patients with CVD were recruited as cases, and up to 2-fold as many sex- and age-matched controls were selected. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) between NSAID use and CVD incidence. The medication possession rate (MPR) was used to evaluate NSAID exposure during the study period. AS patients had increased risk of CVD (OR, 1.68; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.57 to 1.80). Among frequent (MPR≥80%) COX II users, the risks for all types of CVD were ten times lower than those among non-users at 24 months (OR, 0.08; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.92). Among frequent NSAID users, the risks of major adverse cardiac event (MACE) were significantly lower at 12 months (OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.07 to 0.76)--a trend showing that longer exposure correlated with lower risk. Regarding non-frequent NSAID users (MPR<80%), short-term exposure did carry higher risk (for 6 months: OR, 1.41; 95% CI, 1.07 to 1.86), but after 12 months, the risk no longer existed. We conclude that long-term frequent use of NSAIDs might protect AS patients from CVD; however, NSAIDs still carried higher short-term risk in the non-frequent users

Perceived Stress, Parent-Adolescent/Young Adult Communication, and Family Resilience Among Adolescents/Young Adults Who Have a Parent With Cancer in Taiwan: A Longitudinal Study

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