Cloning and characterization of mr-s, a novel SAM domain protein, predominantly expressed in retinal photoreceptor cells

BACKGROUND: Sterile alpha motif (SAM) domains are ~70 residues long and have been reported as common protein-protein interaction modules. This domain is found in a large number of proteins, including Polycomb group (PcG) proteins and ETS family transcription factors. In this work, we report the cloning and functional characterization of a novel SAM domain-containing protein, which is predominantly expressed in retinal photoreceptors and the pineal gland and is designated mouse mr-s (major retinal SAM domain protein). RESULTS: mr-s is evolutionarily conserved from zebrafish through human, organisms through which the mechanism of photoreceptor development is also highly conserved. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the SAM domain of mr-s is most closely related to a mouse polyhomeotic (ph) ortholog, Mph1/Rae28, which is known as an epigenetic molecule involved in chromatin modifications. These findings provide the possibility that mr-s may play a critical role by regulating gene expression in photoreceptor development. mr-s is preferentially expressed in the photoreceptors at postnatal day 3–6 (P3-6), when photoreceptors undergo terminal differentiation, and in the adult pineal gland. Transcription of mr-s is directly regulated by the cone-rod homeodomain protein Crx. Immunoprecipitation assay showed that the mr-s protein self-associates mainly through the SAM domain-containing region as well as ph. The mr-s protein localizes mainly in the nucleus, when mr-s is overexpressed in HEK293T cells. Moreover, in the luciferase assays, we found that mr-s protein fused to GAL4 DNA-binding domain functions as a transcriptional repressor. We revealed that the repression activity of mr-s is not due to a homophilic interaction through its SAM domain but to the C-terminal region. CONCLUSION: We identified a novel gene, mr-s, which is predominantly expressed in retinal photoreceptors and pineal gland. Based on its expression pattern and biochemical analysis, we predict that mr-s may function as a transcriptional repressor in photoreceptor cells and in pinealocytes of the pineal gland

Pupillary dilation response reflects surprising moments in music

There are indications that the pupillary dilation response (PDR) reflects surprising moments in an auditory sequence such as the appearance of a deviant noise against repetitively presented pure tones (Liao, Yoneya, Kidani, Kashino, & Furukawa, 2016), and salient and loud sounds that are evaluated by human participants subjectively (Liao, Kidani, Yoneya, Kashino, & Furukawa, 2016). In the current study, we further examined whether the reflection of PDR in auditory surprise can be accumulated and revealed in complex and yet structured auditory stimuli, i.e., music, and when the surprise is defined subjectively. Participants listened to 15 excerpts of music while their pupillary responses were recorded. In the surprise-rating session, participants rated how surprising an instance in the excerpt was, i.e., rich in variation versus monotonous, while they listened to it. In the passive-listening session, they listened to the same 15 excerpts again but were not involved in any task. The pupil diameter data obtained from both sessions were time-aligned to the rating data obtained from the surprise-rating session. Results showed that in both sessions, mean pupil diameter was larger at moments rated more surprising than unsurprising. The result suggests that the PDR reflects surprise in music automatically

The relationship between men in Fukunaga Takehiko\u27s "Kusa no Hana" : From "Chigo ai" to platonic fraternity

福永武彦の「草の花」は、1930年代の第一高等学校の学生たちを主人公とする小説である。この論文は、その「草の花」で描かれた、男どうしの関係と、それをめぐる登場人物のさまざまな認識、およびその背後にある価値観を分析することが目的である。さらに、そうした認識や価値観が、近代日本における男どうしの関係の変容において、どのような意味をもっているのかを明らかにする。主人公の汐見茂思の下級生藤木忍に対する愛は、永遠のイデアの世界をめざす、精神的な一致と高揚をともなう自己完結的な思いというものであった。それに対し、男どうしの愛＝肉体的な欲望への批判や、下級生への執着が同学年集団の結束へ悪影響をもたらすという批判があった。しかし、周囲の大多数はそうした汐見の藤木への愛を許容していた。それは、同性への愛を異性愛へいたる一つの段階とみる見方と、前近代からの硬派的稚児愛文化の延長線上として汐見の愛を理解するものである。しかし、周囲の理解の仕方は汐見のプラトニックな愛の理論とは異なる視点からの理解であった。このような、男どうしの関係をめぐる多様な視点を含んでいることと、伝統的な硬派的稚児愛とは異なる新たな男どうしの関係を主題としたという意味で、「草の花」は、近代日本の少年愛小説の系譜の集大成と位置づけることができる。Fukunaga Takehiko\u27s "Kusa no Hana" is a novel about the first high school students in the 1930s. This paper focuses on the relationship between men, their understandings of such relations, and the value systems behind their understandings in "Kusa no Hana." Furthermore, it clarifies the significance of these understandings and value systems in the transformation of the relationship between men in modern Japan. Shiomi Shigeshi, the protagonist in "Kusa no Hana," loves a younger student, Fujiki Shinobu. His is a selfcontained love, spiritually uniting and uplifting, aiming for the eternal world of "idea". Some criticize his love because of its corporal aspect (i.e., physical desire) as well as its negative impact on the unity of a peer group. On the other hand, most students acknowledge Shiomi\u27s love. One explains his homosexual love as a step toward heterosexual love, while others recognize it as "Chigo ai" (a man\u27s love for boy) in the tradition of "Kou ha" in modern Japanese society. However, both understandings are different from Shiomi\u27s idea of platonic love. "Kusa no Hana" contains various points of view on the relationship between men, and it shows the new model of this relationship. It is a compilation of the novels on male love in modern Japan

Changes in calbindin-D28k and parvalbumin expression in the superior olivary complex following unilateral cochlear ablation in neonatal rats

金沢大学医薬保健研究域医学系Conclusion. Unilateral congenital deafness with a volume reduction in cochlear nucleus (CN) induced changes in the calcium-binding proteins (CaBPs) in the contralateral superior olivary complex (SOC) in the rat. With the loss of neurons and a volume reduction in the CN, a decrease in the input to the contralateral SOC may occur, which results in the down-regulation of CaBPs in these nuclei. This study may provide some implications regarding the neurochemistry in the auditory brainstem of deaf children. Objective. Hearing loss produced by cochlear damage during early development can result in persistent changes in the organization of the central auditory system in adults. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the neurochemical changes produced in the auditory brainstem of rats with unilateral cochlear ablation conducted before the onset of hearing. Materials and methods. Following unilateral cochlear ablation during early development, we examined the changes in the distribution of two CaBPs, calbindin-D28k (CB) and parvalbumin (PV), in the SOC. Results. Upon reaching adulthood, a marked decrease in CB- and PV-immunoreactive neurons was observed in the contralateral SOC, particularly in the medial nucleus of the trapezoid body (MNTB), although no neuronal cell death was observed. A volume reduction in the ipsilateral CN was also observed. © 2009 Informa UK Ltd

Characterization of TRPA channels in the starfish Patiria pectinifera: involvement of thermally activated TRPA1 in thermotaxis in marine planktonic larvae.

The vast majority of marine invertebrates spend their larval period as pelagic plankton and are exposed to various environmental cues. Here we investigated the thermotaxis behaviors of the bipinnaria larvae of the starfish, Patiria pectinifera, in association with TRPA ion channels that serve as thermal receptors in various animal species. Using a newly developed thermotaxis assay system, we observed that P. pectinifera larvae displayed positive thermotaxis toward high temperatures, including toward temperatures high enough to cause death. In parallel, we identified two TRPA genes, termed PpTRPA1 and PpTRPA basal, from this species. We examined the phylogenetic position, spatial expression, and channel properties of each PpTRPA. Our results revealed the following: (1) The two genes diverged early in animal evolution; (2) PpTRPA1 and PpTRPA basal are expressed in the ciliary band and posterior digestive tract of the larval body, respectively; and (3) PpTRPA1 is activated by heat stimulation as well as by known TRPA1 agonists. Moreover, knockdown and rescue experiments demonstrated that PpTRPA1 is involved in positive thermotaxis in P. pectinifera larvae. This is the first report to reveal that TRPA1 channels regulate the behavioral response of a marine invertebrate to temperature changes during its planktonic larval period

Periodicities of palaeo-climatic records extracted from the Dome Fuji deep core

The Antarctic ice sheet preserves palaeo-climate information in the form of physical and chemical stratigraphy. A deep ice core was continuously drilled down to a depth of 2503m at Dome Fuji Station, East Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, during the 1993-97 JARE inland operations. A time scale for the Dome Fuji core is calculated from past accumulation rates and an ice flow model. A depth-age profile was obtained for the past 320kyr back in time. The obtained palaeo-temperature profile shows the past three glacial and interglacial periods. The power spectrum for oxygen isotope variation for 320kyr shows three dominant cycles of 107kyr, 40kyr and 21kyr. Each of these three cycles is similar to Milankovitch cycles. Moving-window spectrum analysis, using a 130kyr window stepped by 10kyr over the past 320kyr, found these main cycles in every age. Variations of other chemical concentrations were also recovered from the Dome Fuji ice core, and are inversely correlated to the temperature profile. Concentrations of terrestrial and marine origin substances are high in glacial periods, and low in interglacial periods. Over the past 320kyr, the dominant periodicities of temperature were also detected in almost all chemical records

Synchronous Quadruple Lung Cancer Treated Curatively by Photodynamic Therapy

A 54-year-old male was diagnosed as having synchronous quadruple early stage lung cancer. All four tumors showed the same histologic type of in-situ or microinvasive squamous cell carcinoma, but existed independently in different bronchi. Photodynamic therapy of these four lesions was successfully performed by fiberoptic bronchoscopy because of the patient's poor pulmonary function. The patient is alive and well 51 months later