Evidence suggesting that di-n-butyl phthalate has anti-androgenic effects in fish

This article is the pre-print version of the full and final published article.Phthalate ester plasticizers are anti-androgenic in mammals. High doses of certain phthalates consistently interfere with the normal development of male offspring exposed in utero, causing disrupted sperm production, abnormal development of the genitalia, and in some cases infertility. In the environment, phthalates are considered ubiquitous and are commonly measured in aquatic ecosystems at low ng to mu g per litre concentrations. Given the similarity between mammalian and teleost endocrine systems, phthalate esters may be able to cause anti-androgenic endocrine disruption in fish in the wild. In the present study, adult male three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculetaus) (n = 8) were exposed to di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) (0, 15, and 35 mu g DBP/L) for 22 d and analyzed for changes in nesting behavior, plasma androgen concentrations, spiggin concentrations, and steroidogenic gene expression. Plasma testosterone concentrations were significantly higher in males from the 35 mu g DBP/L group compared with the solvent control, whereas plasma 11-ketotestosterone concentrations were not significantly affected. Expression of steroid acute regulatory protein and 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase remained unchanged. Spiggin concentrations were significantly lower in the males exposed to 35 mu g DBP/L. Nest building appeared to be slower in some males exposed to DBP, but this was not statistically significant. These results suggest that DBP has anti-androgenic effects in fish. However, further research is required to firmly establish the consequences of chronic DBP exposure in fish

On the phenomenology of a two-Higgs-doublet model with maximal CP symmetry at the LHC

Predictions for LHC physics are worked out for a two-Higgs-doublet model having four generalized CP symmetries. In this maximally-CP-symmetric model (MCPM) the first fermion family is, at tree level, uncoupled to the Higgs fields and thus massless. The second and third fermion families have a very symmetric coupling to the Higgs fields. But through the electroweak symmetry breaking a large mass hierarchy is generated between these fermion families. Thus, the fermion mass spectrum of the model presents a rough approximation to what is observed in Nature. In the MCPM there are, as in every two-Higgs-doublet model, five physical Higgs bosons, three neutral ones and a charged pair. In the MCPM the couplings of the Higgs bosons to the fermions are completely fixed. This allows us to present clear predictions for the production at the LHC and for the decays of the physical Higgs bosons. As salient feature we find rather large cross sections for Higgs-boson production via Drell-Yan type processes. With experiments at the LHC it should be possible to check these predictions.Comment: 17 pages, 14 figures, some clarifications added, typos correcte

Developmental Considerations for Substance Use Interventions From Middle School Through College

This article summarizes a symposium organized by Dr. Elizabeth D’Amico and presented at the 2004 Annual Meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism in Vancouver, Canada. The four presentations illustrate the importance of creating substance use interventions that are developmentally appropriate for youth. They represent innovative approaches to working with preteens, teenagers, and young adults. Dr. D’Amico’s paper describes her research on the development of a voluntary brief intervention targeting alcohol use among middle school students. Findings indicated that by using school and community input, she was able to obtain a diverse a sample of youth across grades, sex, ethnicity, and substance use status. Dr. Ellickson’s paper describes her research on Project ALERT, a school-based prevention program for middle school youth. Her findings indicate that Project ALERT worked for students at all levels of risk (low, moderate, and high) and for all students combined. Dr. Wagner’s Teen Intervention Project was a ran-domized clinical trial to test the efficacy of a standardized Student Assistance Program for treating middle and high school students with alcohol and other drug problems. The study provided a unique opportunity to begin to examine how development may impact response to an alcohol or other drug intervention. Dr. Turrisi’s paper examined processes underlying the nature of the effects of a parent intervention on college student drinking tendencies. Findings suggested that the parent intervention seems to have its impact on student drinking by reducing the influence of negative communications and decreasing the susceptibility of influences from closest friends. Dr. Kim Fromme provided concluding remarks

Coherent diffraction of single Rice Dwarf virus particles using hard X-rays at the Linac Coherent Light Source

Single particle diffractive imaging data from Rice Dwarf Virus (RDV) were recorded using the Coherent X-ray Imaging (CXI) instrument at the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). RDV was chosen as it is a wellcharacterized model system, useful for proof-of-principle experiments, system optimization and algorithm development. RDV, an icosahedral virus of about 70 nm in diameter, was aerosolized and injected into the approximately 0.1 mu m diameter focused hard X-ray beam at the CXI instrument of LCLS. Diffraction patterns from RDV with signal to 5.9 angstrom ngstrom were recorded. The diffraction data are available through the Coherent X-ray Imaging Data Bank (CXIDB) as a resource for algorithm development, the contents of which are described here.11Ysciescopu

p125A exists as part of the mammalian Sec13/Sec31 COPII subcomplex to facilitate ER-Golgi transport

p125A is an accessory protein for COPII-mediated vesicle budding that links the Sec13/Sec31 and Sec23/24 subcomplexes

Molecular characterization of the endoplasmic reticulum: Insights from proteomic studies

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a multifunctional intracellular organelle responsible for the synthesis, processing and trafficking of a wide variety of proteins essential for cell growth and survival. Therefore, comprehensive characterization of the ER proteome is of great importance to the understanding of its functions and has been actively pursued in the past decade by scientists in the proteomics field. This review summarizes major proteomic studies published in the past decade that focused on the ER proteome. We evaluate the data sets obtained from two different organs, liver and pancreas each of which contains a primary cell type (hepatocyte and acinar cell) with specialized functions. We also discuss how the nature of the proteins uncovered is related to the methods of organelle purification, organelle purity and the techniques used for protein separation prior to MS. In addition, this review also puts emphasis on the biological insights gained from these studies regarding the molecular functions of the ER including protein synthesis and translocation, protein folding and quality control, ER-associated degradation and ER stress, ER export and membrane trafficking, calcium homeostasis and detoxification and drug metabolism.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/78298/1/4040_ftp.pd

Pengaruh Kesesuaian Harga Dan Promosi Terhadap Keputusan Pembelian Teh Pucuk Harum (Studi Pada Mahasiswa Manajemen Fakultas Ekonomi dan Bisnis Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta)

This study aims to analyze the effect of prices, and promotion of the decision to purchase Teh Pucuk Harum. Studies conducted at UMS faculty of economics and business management students. The sample taken in the study was 100 respondents who had bought Teh Pucuk Harum. The analytical method used is multiple linear regression analysis, validity and reliability test. Based on the results of the analysis found, it can be explained that prices and promotions have a positive and significant influence on purchasing decisions. In the model formed price and promotion variables are able to explain the purchase decision variable by 24.3% and the remaining 75.7% is still influenced by other variables

Theory and phenomenology of two-Higgs-doublet models

We discuss theoretical and phenomenological aspects of two-Higgs-doublet extensions of the Standard Model. In general, these extensions have scalar mediated flavour changing neutral currents which are strongly constrained by experiment. Various strategies are discussed to control these flavour changing scalar currents and their phenomenological consequences are analysed. In particular, scenarios with natural flavour conservation are investigated, including the so-called type I and type II models as well as lepton-specific and inert models. Type III models are then discussed, where scalar flavour changing neutral currents are present at tree level, but are suppressed by either specific ansatze for the Yukawa couplings or by the introduction of family symmetries. We also consider the phenomenology of charged scalars in these models. Next we turn to the role of symmetries in the scalar sector. We discuss the six symmetry-constrained scalar potentials and their extension into the fermion sector. The vacuum structure of the scalar potential is analysed, including a study of the vacuum stability conditions on the potential and its renormalization-group improvement. The stability of the tree level minimum of the scalar potential in connection with electric charge conservation and its behaviour under CP is analysed. The question of CP violation is addressed in detail, including the cases of explicit CP violation and spontaneous CP violation. We present a detailed study of weak basis invariants which are odd under CP. A careful study of spontaneous CP violation is presented, including an analysis of the conditions which have to be satisfied in order for a vacuum to violate CP. We present minimal models of CP violation where the vacuum phase is sufficient to generate a complex CKM matrix, which is at present a requirement for any realistic model of spontaneous CP violation.Comment: v3: 180 pages, 506 references, new chapter 7 with recent LHC results; referee comments taken into account; submitted to Physics Report

Segmented flow generator for serial crystallography at the European X-ray free electron laser

Serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) with X-ray free electron lasers (XFELs) allows structure determination of membrane proteins and time-resolved crystallography. Common liquid sample delivery continuously jets the protein crystal suspension into the path of the XFEL, wasting a vast amount of sample due to the pulsed nature of all current XFEL sources. The European XFEL (EuXFEL) delivers femtosecond (fs) X-ray pulses in trains spaced 100 ms apart whereas pulses within trains are currently separated by 889 ns. Therefore, continuous sample delivery via fast jets wastes >99% of sample. Here, we introduce a microfluidic device delivering crystal laden droplets segmented with an immiscible oil reducing sample waste and demonstrate droplet injection at the EuXFEL compatible with high pressure liquid delivery of an SFX experiment. While achieving ~60% reduction in sample waste, we determine the structure of the enzyme 3-deoxy-D-manno-octulosonate-8-phosphate synthase from microcrystals delivered in droplets revealing distinct structural features not previously reported