Effect of porcelain thickness and translucency on the final shade of IPS e.max CAD overlaying a dark substrate.

IPS e.max is a very esthetic lithium disilicate used in dental ceramics. Unfortunately, it can unintentionally change color after cementation with resin cements. The purpose of this study is to better understand how combining thickness and translucency affects the post-cementation shade of IPS e.max CAD overlaying a dark substrate, thereby enabling clinicians to choose more appropriate techniques and materials. IPS e.max CADs (A1 shade) had either a low translucency (LT) or high translucency (HT), and cut with 0.3mm, 0.5mm, and 1.0mm thicknesses. Each sample overlaid a resin cement and dark substrate, a spectrophotometer helped derive the color difference (ΔE*ab), and a 2-way ANOVA (p3.3) shade changes

Effets de la pauvreté, la vulnérabilité biologique et la vulnérabilité psychosociale pendant la petite enfance pour les crises d'asthme à 7 ans dans la cohorte ÉLDEQ

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

The Utility of Graph Clustering of 5S Ribosomal DNA Homoeologs in Plant Allopolyploids, Homoploid Hybrids, and Cryptic Introgressants

Introduction: Ribosomal DNA (rDNA) loci have been widely used for identification of allopolyploids and hybrids, although few of these studies employed high-throughput sequencing data. Here we use graph clustering implemented in the RepeatExplorer (RE) pipeline to analyze homoeologous 5S rDNA arrays at the genomic level searching for hybridogenic origin of species. Data were obtained from more than 80 plant species, including several well-defined allopolyploids and homoploid hybrids of different evolutionary ages and from widely dispersed taxonomic groups. Results: (i) Diploids show simple circular-shaped graphs of their 5S rDNA clusters. In contrast, most allopolyploids and other interspecific hybrids exhibit more complex graphs composed of two or more interconnected loops representing intergenic spacers (IGS). (ii) There was a relationship between graph complexity and locus numbers. (iii) The sequences and lengths of the 5S rDNA units reconstituted in silico from k-mers were congruent with those experimentally determined. (iv) Three-genomic comparative cluster analysis of reads from allopolyploids and progenitor diploids allowed identification of homoeologous 5S rRNA gene families even in relatively ancient (c. 1 Myr) Gossypium and Brachypodium allopolyploids which already exhibit uniparental partial loss of rDNA repeats. (v) Finally, species harboring introgressed genomes exhibit exceptionally complex graph structures. Conclusion: We found that the cluster graph shapes and graph parameters (k-mer coverage scores and connected component index) well-reflect the organization and intragenomic homogeneity of 5S rDNA repeats. We propose that the analysis of 5S rDNA cluster graphs computed by the RE pipeline together with the cytogenetic analysis might be a reliable approach for the determination of the hybrid or allopolyploid plant species parentage and may also be useful for detecting historical introgression events

Enterobius vermicularis: Ancient DNA from North and South American Coprolites

A molecular paleoparasitological diagnostic approach was developed for Enterobius vermicularis. Ancient DNA was extracted from 27 coprolites from archaeological sites in Chile and USA. Enzymatic amplification of human mtDNA sequences confirmed the human origin. We designed primers specific to the E. vermicularis 5S ribosomal RNA spacer region and they allowed reproducible polymerase chain reaction identification of ancient material. We suggested that the paleoparasitological microscopic identification could accompany molecular diagnosis, which also opens the possibility of sequence analysis to understand parasite-host evolution

Public Perception of Urban Air Quality Using Volunteered Geographic Information Services

Investigating perceived air quality (AQ) in urban areas is a rather new topic of interest. Papers presenting results from studies on perception of AQ have thus far focused on the individual characteristics leading to a certain AQ perception or have compared personal perception with on-site measurements. Here we present a novel approach, namely applying volunteered geographic information (VGI) technologies in urban AQ monitoring. We present two smartphone applications that have been developed and applied in two EU projects (FP7 CITI-SENSE and H2020 hackAIR) to obtain citizens’ perception of AQ. We focus on observations reported through the smartphone apps for the greater Oslo area in Norway. In order to evaluate whether the reports on perceived AQ contain information about the actual spatial patterns of AQ, we carried out a comparison of the perception data against the output from the high-resolution urban AQ model EPISODE. The results indicate an association between modelled annual average pollutant concentrations and the provided perception reports. This demonstrates that the spatial patterns of perceived AQ are not entirely random but follow to some extent what would be expected due to proximity of emission sources and transport. This information shows that VGI about citizens’ perception of AQ has the potential to identify areas with low environmental quality for urban development

Environmental exposure to xenoestrogens and oestrogen related cancers: reproductive system, breast, lung, kidney, pancreas, and brain

The role of steroids in carcinogenesis has become a major concern in environmental protection, biomonitoring, and clinical research. Although historically oestrogen has been related to development of reproductive system, research over the last decade has confirmed its crucial role in the development and homeostasis of other organ systems. As a number of anthropogenic agents are xenoestrogens, environmental health research has focused on oestrogen receptor level disturbances and of aromatase polymorphisms. Oestrogen and xenoestrogens mediate critical points in carcinogenesis by binding to oestrogen receptors, whose distribution is age-, gender-, and tissue-specific. This review brings data about cancer types whose eatiology may be found in environmental exposure to xenoestrogens. Cancer types that have been well documented in literature to be related with environmental exposure include the reproductive system, breast, lung, kidney, pancreas, and brain. The results of our data mining show (a) a significant correlation between exposure to xenoestrogens and increased, gender-related, cancer risk and (b) a need to re-evaluate agents so far defined as endocrine disruptors, as they are also key molecules in carcinogenesis. This revision may be used to further research of cancer aetiology and to improvement of related legislation. Investigation of cancers caused by xenoestrogens may elucidate yet unknown mechanisms also valuable for oncology and the development of new therapies

Изучение налогового поведения будущих налогоплательщиков в России и Беларуси путем проведения лабораторного налогового эксперимента

The paper aims to examine the internal motivation of taxpayer’s behavior, and the factors affecting tax morale and voluntary tax compliance The authors provide scientific results of the tax experiments in post-Soviet countries (Russia and Belarus). The laboratory tax experiment was carried out in a form of a business game engaging students of various levels of education and background. The controllability of the experiment with the impossibility of material encouragement is ensured in the student’s environment in the form of scores to the final attestation. In order to obtain data on tax behavior motivation, a survey on attitude to tax system was conducted. Respondents (experiment participants) were asked to indicate their level of agreement with defined statements by Likert scale. To assess the differences between two groups of participants (who paid and who do not paid tax), the data obtained as a result of filling out the questionnaire using the Mann-Whitney U-test and the Kruskal-Wallis H-test were analyzed. The study results affirmed the hypothesis generated earlier, the personal tax morale influences the national tax system and the tax behavior of an individual. The article proves that the awareness of the ways government spends public revenue and the trust level to the state and tax system itself influence tax behavior directly. The civil awareness on the real state of fiscal distribution increases the trust level to the government among taxpayers and is the essential motivation to pay taxes. The developed methodology may be used in an educational process to increase tax literacy, its further application in the scientific research will allow us to derive evidence-based methods and ways to directly influence tax behavior, which may enlarge the public revenue in the times of an unstable global economy.Highlights1. The study reveals that the tax audit affects more the amount of evading taxes than the number of evaders, where an increase of education level helps to reduce tax evasion through citizens, to make an individual more competent and more responsible as a taxpayer2. Laboratory tax behavior monitoring of students allows us to identify the factors that influence on the real national tax behavior and tax experiments could become a tool for the formation of strategies of interaction between tax authorities and taxpayers in Russia and Belarus3. The main incentives for paying taxes are the trust towards the government and the tax system and the understanding of the society-oriented character of the stateFOR CITATION Kireenko A. P., Nevzorova E. N., Kireyeva A. F., Filippovich A. S., Khoroshavina E. S. Lab experiment to investigate tax compliance: the case of future taxpayers' behavior in Russia and Belarus. Journal of Tax Reform, 2018, vol. 4, no. 3, pp. 266–290. DOI: 10.15826/jtr.2018.4.3.056ARTICLE INFO Received August 14, 2018; accepted October 22, 2018Целью статьи является исследование внутренней мотивации поведения налогоплательщиков и изучение факторов, влияющих на налоговую дисциплину и ответственное соблюдение налогового законодательства. Представлены научные результаты проведенных авторами лабораторных налоговых экспериментов в постсоветских странах (Россия и Беларусь). Эксперимент проводился в форме деловой игры среди студентов различных уровней обучения. Для обеспечения контролируемости эксперимента студенты получали условный доход в виде баллов к промежуточной аттестации. Для получения данных о мотивах налогового поведения был проведен опрос об отношении к налоговой системе. Респондентам (участникам эксперимента) было предложено указать свой уровень согласия с определенными утверждениями по шкале Ликерта. Чтобы оценить различия между двумя группами участников (заплативших и не заплативших налог), проанализированы данные, полученные в результате заполнения анкеты с использованием U-критерия Манна-Уитни и H-критерия Краскела-Уоллиса. Результаты исследования подтвердили предположение о влиянии отношения к налогам на налоговое поведение. Исследование доказывает, что доверие к правительству и налоговой системе, осознание социальной направленности деятельности государства, является основным мотивом для уплаты налогов. Разработанная методика и инструментарий налогового эксперимента могут быть использованы в учебном процессе для повышения налоговой грамотности, а дальнейшее их применение в научных исследованиях позволит предложить научно обоснованные методы и формы воздействия на поведение налогоплательщиков, гарантирующие увеличение налоговых поступлений в бюджет в условиях нестабильности мировой экономической системы.Основные положения1. В результате исследования выявлено, что вероятность проверки в большей степени влияет на объем скрываемых налогов, чем на количество нарушителей, а повышение образовательного уровня позволяет сформировать не только более грамотного, но и более ответственного налогоплательщика2. Исследование показало, что наблюдение за налоговым поведением студентов в лаборатории позволяет определить факторы, влияющие на поведение реальных налогоплательщиков, поэтому налоговые эксперименты могут стать полезным инструментом в разработке стратегии взаимодействия налогоплательщиков и налоговых органов в России и Беларуси3. Исследование доказывает, что доверие к правительству и налоговой системе, осознание социальной направленности деятельности государства, является основным мотивом для уплаты налоговДЛЯ ЦИТИРОВАНИЯ Киреенко А. П. Изучение налогового поведения будущих налогоплательщиков в России и Беларуси путем проведения лабораторного налогового эксперимента / А. П. Киреенко, Е. Н. Невзорова, Е. Ф. Киреева, Е. С. Филиппович, Е. С. Хорошавина // Journal of Tax Reform. — 2018. — Т. 4, № 3. — С. 266–290. — DOI: 10.15826/jtr.2018.4.3.056ИНФОРМАЦИЯ О СТАТЬЕ Дата поступления 14 августа 2018 г.; дата принятия к печати 22 октября 2018 г

Myosin-cross-reactive antigen (MCRA) protein from Bifidobacterium breve is a FAD-dependent fatty acid hydratase which has a function in stress protection

peer-reviewedBackground The aim of this study was to determine the catalytic activity and physiological role of myosin-cross-reactive antigen (MCRA) from Bifidobacterium breve NCIMB 702258. MCRA from B. breve NCIMB 702258 was cloned, sequenced and expressed in heterologous hosts (Lactococcus and Corynebacterium) and the recombinant proteins assessed for enzymatic activity against fatty acid substrates. Results MCRA catalysed the conversion of palmitoleic, oleic and linoleic acids to the corresponding 10-hydroxy fatty acids, but shorter chain fatty acids were not used as substrates, while the presence of trans-double bonds and double bonds beyond the position C12 abolished hydratase activity. The hydroxy fatty acids produced were not metabolised further. We also found that heterologous Lactococcus and Corynebacterium expressing MCRA accumulated increasing amounts of 10-HOA and 10-HOE in the culture medium. Furthermore, the heterologous cultures exhibited less sensitivity to heat and solvent stresses compared to corresponding controls. Conclusions MCRA protein in B. breve can be classified as a FAD-containing double bond hydratase, within the carbon-oxygen lyase family, which may be catalysing the first step in conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) production, and this protein has an additional function in bacterial stress protection

Treatment with bexarotene, a compound that increases apolipoprotein-E, provides no cognitive benefit in mutant APP/PS1 mice

BACKGROUND: Though the precise cause(s) of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) remain unknown, there is strong evidence that decreased clearance of β-amyloid (Aβ) from the brain can contribute to the disease. Therapeutic strategies to promote natural Aβ clearance mechanisms, such as the protein apolipoprotein-E (APOE), hold promise for the treatment of AD. The amount of APOE in the brain is regulated by nuclear receptors including retinoid X receptors (RXRs). Drugs that activate RXRs, including bexarotene, can increase APOE and ABCA1 production, and have been shown to decrease the Aβ burden and improve cognition in mouse models of Aβ amyloidosis. Although recent bexarotene studies failed to replicate the rapid clearance of Aβ from brains, behavioral and cognitive effects of this compound remain controversial. FINDINGS: In efforts to clarify these behavioral findings, mutant APP/PS1 mice were acutely dosed with bexarotene. While ABCA1 was upregulated in mutant APP/PS1 mice treated with bexarotene, this drug failed to attenuate Aβ plaques or cognitive deficits in these mice. CONCLUSIONS: We recommend rigorous preclinical study to evaluate the mechanism and utility of such a compound for AD therapy