114 research outputs found
TERT and TERT promoter in melanocytic neoplasms: Current concepts in pathogenesis, diagnosis, and prognosis
Background and objectiveLocated on chromosome locus 5p15.33, telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT or hTERT) encodes the catalytic subunit of telomerase which permits lengthening and preservation of telomeres following mitosis. Mutations in TERT promoter (TERTâp) upregulate expression of TERT, allowing survival of malignant cells and tumor progression in wide variety of malignancies including melanoma. The objective of this review is to examine the roles of TERT and TERTâp in the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and prognostication of cutaneous melanoma.MethodsAll studies of TERT or TERTâp in cutaneous melanocytic neoplasms with the following inclusion criteria were reviewed: publication date between 2010 and 2019, English language, and series of â„3 cases were reviewed for evidence supporting the role of TERT in pathogenesis, diagnosis, and prognosis. Studies with <3 cases or focused primarily on mucosal or uveal melanocytic tumors were excluded.Results and conclusionTERTâp mutations are frequent in chronic and nonâchronic sun damage melanoma and correlate with adverse prognosis, inform pathogenesis, and may provide diagnostic support. While TERTâp mutations are uncommon in acral melanoma, TERT copy number gains and gene amplification predict reduced survival. Among atypical spitzoid neoplasms, TERTâp mutations identify biologically aggressive tumors and support the diagnosis of spitzoid melanoma. TERTâp methylation may have prognostic value in pediatric conventional melanoma and drive tumorigenesis in melanoma arising within congenital nevi. Finally, TERTâp mutations may aid in the differentiation of recurrent nevi from recurrent melanoma.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156143/2/cup13691.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156143/1/cup13691_am.pd
MuirâTorre syndrome appropriate use criteria: Effect of patient age on appropriate use scores
Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/150503/1/cup13459_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/150503/2/cup13459.pd
Appropriate use criteria in dermatopathology: Initial recommendations from the American Society of Dermatopathology
Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/145218/1/cup13142.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/145218/2/cup13142_am.pd
A chemical survey of exoplanets with ARIEL
Thousands of exoplanets have now been discovered with a huge range of masses, sizes and orbits: from rocky Earth-like planets to large gas giants grazing the surface of their host star. However, the essential nature of these exoplanets remains largely mysterious: there is no known, discernible pattern linking the presence, size, or orbital parameters of a planet to the nature of its parent star. We have little idea whether the chemistry of a planet is linked to its formation environment, or whether the type of host star drives the physics and chemistry of the planetâs birth, and evolution. ARIEL was conceived to observe a large number (~1000) of transiting planets for statistical understanding, including gas giants, Neptunes, super-Earths and Earth-size planets around a range of host star types using transit spectroscopy in the 1.25â7.8 ÎŒm spectral range and multiple narrow-band photometry in the optical. ARIEL will focus on warm and hot planets to take advantage of their well-mixed atmospheres which should show minimal condensation and sequestration of high-Z materials compared to their colder Solar System siblings. Said warm and hot atmospheres are expected to be more representative of the planetary bulk composition. Observations of these warm/hot exoplanets, and in particular of their elemental composition (especially C, O, N, S, Si), will allow the understanding of the early stages of planetary and atmospheric formation during the nebular phase and the following few million years. ARIEL will thus provide a representative picture of the chemical nature of the exoplanets and relate this directly to the type and chemical environment of the host star. ARIEL is designed as a dedicated survey mission for combined-light spectroscopy, capable of observing a large and well-defined planet sample within its 4-year mission lifetime. Transit, eclipse and phase-curve spectroscopy methods, whereby the signal from the star and planet are differentiated using knowledge of the planetary ephemerides, allow us to measure atmospheric signals from the planet at levels of 10â100 part per million (ppm) relative to the star and, given the bright nature of targets, also allows more sophisticated techniques, such as eclipse mapping, to give a deeper insight into the nature of the atmosphere. These types of observations require a stable payload and satellite platform with broad, instantaneous wavelength coverage to detect many molecular species, probe the thermal structure, identify clouds and monitor the stellar activity. The wavelength range proposed covers all the expected major atmospheric gases from e.g. H2O, CO2, CH4 NH3, HCN, H2S through to the more exotic metallic compounds, such as TiO, VO, and condensed species. Simulations of ARIEL performance in conducting exoplanet surveys have been performed â using conservative estimates of mission performance and a full model of all significant noise sources in the measurement â using a list of potential ARIEL targets that incorporates the latest available exoplanet statistics. The conclusion at the end of the Phase A study, is that ARIEL â in line with the stated mission objectives â will be able to observe about 1000 exoplanets depending on the details of the adopted survey strategy, thus confirming the feasibility of the main science objectives.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio
Photobiomodulation reduces the cytokine storm syndrome associated with Covid-19 in the zebrafish model
Although the exact mechanism of the pathogenesis of COVID-19 is not fully understood, oxidative stress and the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines have been highlighted as playing a vital role in the pathogenesis of the disease. In this sense, alternative treatments are needed to reduce the inflammation caused by COVID-19. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the potential effect of red PBM as an attractive therapy to downregulate the cytokine storm caused by COVID-19 from a zebrafish model. RT-PCR analyses and protein-protein interaction prediction among SARS-CoV-2 and Danio rerio proteins showed that rSpike was responsible for generating systemic inflammatory processes with significantly increased pro-inflammatory (il1b, il6, tnfa, and nfkbiab), oxidative stress (romo1) and energy metabolism (slc2a1a, coa1) mRNA markers, with a pattern like those observed in COVID-19 cases in humans. On the other hand, PBM treatment decreased the mRNA levels of these pro-inflammatory and oxidative stress markers compared with rSpike in various tissues, promoting an anti-inflammatory response. Conversely, PBM promotes cellular and tissue repair of injured tissues and significantly increases the survival rate of rSpike-inoculated individuals. Additionally, metabolomics analysis showed that the most impacted metabolic pathways between PBM and the rSpike-treated groups were related to steroid metabolism, immune system, and lipids metabolism. Together, our findings suggest that the inflammatory process is an incisive feature of COVID-19, and red PBM can be used as a novel therapeutic agent for COVID-19 by regulating the inflammatory response. Nevertheless, the need for more clinical trials remains, and there is a significant gap to overcome before clinical trials.publishedVersio
An estimate of the number of tropical tree species
The high species richness of tropical forests has long been recognized, yet there remains substantial uncertainty regarding the actual number of tropical tree species. Using a pantropical tree inventory database from closed canopy forests, consisting of 657,630 trees belonging to 11,371 species, we use a fitted value of Fisherâs alpha and an approximate pantropical stem total to estimate the minimum number of tropical forest tree species to fall between âŒ40,000 and âŒ53,000, i.e. at the high end of previous estimates. Contrary to common assumption, the Indo-Pacific region was found to be as species-rich as the Neotropics, with both regions having a minimum of âŒ19,000â25,000 tree species. Continental Africa is relatively depauperate with a minimum of âŒ4,500â6,000 tree species. Very few species are shared among the African, American, and the Indo-Pacific regions. We provide a methodological framework for estimating species richness in trees that may help refine species richness estimates of tree-dependent taxa
Photography-based taxonomy is inadequate, unnecessary, and potentially harmful for biological sciences
The question whether taxonomic descriptions naming new animal species without type specimen(s) deposited in collections should be accepted for publication by scientific journals and allowed by the Code has already been discussed in Zootaxa (Dubois & NemĂ©sio 2007; Donegan 2008, 2009; NemĂ©sio 2009aâb; Dubois 2009; Gentile & Snell 2009; Minelli 2009; Cianferoni & Bartolozzi 2016; Amorim et al. 2016). This question was again raised in a letter supported
by 35 signatories published in the journal Nature (Pape et al. 2016) on 15 September 2016. On 25 September 2016, the following rebuttal (strictly limited to 300 words as per the editorial rules of Nature) was submitted to Nature, which on
18 October 2016 refused to publish it. As we think this problem is a very important one for zoological taxonomy, this text is published here exactly as submitted to Nature, followed by the list of the 493 taxonomists and collection-based
researchers who signed it in the short time span from 20 September to 6 October 2016
A tale of two cognitions: The Evolution of Social Constructivism in International Relations
Ethical considerations related to participation and partnership: an investigation of stakeholdersâ perceptions of an action-research project on user fee removal for the poorest in Burkina Faso
Phylogenetic classification of the world's tropical forests
Knowledge about the biogeographic affinities of the worldâs tropical forests helps to better understand regional differences in forest structure, diversity, composition, and dynamics. Such understanding will enable anticipation of region-specific responses to global environmental change. Modern phylogenies, in combination with broad coverage of species inventory data, now allow for global biogeographic analyses that take species evolutionary distance into account. Here we present a classification of the worldâs tropical forests based on their phylogenetic similarity. We identify five principal floristic regions and their floristic relationships: (i) Indo-Pacific, (ii) Subtropical, (iii) African, (iv) American, and (v) Dry forests. Our results do not support the traditional neo- versus paleotropical forest division but instead separate the combined American and African forests from their Indo-Pacific counterparts. We also find indications for the existence of a global dry forest region, with representatives in America, Africa, Madagascar, and India. Additionally, a northern-hemisphere Subtropical forest region was identified with representatives in Asia and America, providing support for a link between Asian and American northern-hemisphere forests.</p
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