Telomere length regulation: coupling DNA end processing to feedback regulation of telomerase

The conventional DNA polymerase machinery is unable to fully replicate the ends of linear chromosomes. To surmount this problem, nearly all eukaryotes use the telomerase enzyme, a specialized reverse transcriptase that utizes its own RNA template to add short TG-rich repeats to chromosome ends, thus reversing their gradual erosion occurring at each round of replication. This unique, non-DNA templated mode of telomere replication requires a regulatory mechanism to ensure that telomerase acts at telomeres whose TG tracts are too short, but not at those with long tracts, thus maintaining the protective TG repeat cap at an appropriate average length. The prevailing notion in the field is that telomere length regulation is brought about through a negative feedback mechanism that counts TG repeat-bound protein complexes to generate a signal that regulates telomerase action. This review summarizes experiments leading up to this model and then focuses on more recent experiments, primarily from yeast, that begin to suggest how this counting mechanism might work. The emerging picture is that of a complex interplay between the conventional DNA replication machinery, DNA damage response factors, and a specialized set of proteins that help to recruit and regulate the telomerase enzyme

STRoe deer: a validated forensic STR profiling system for the European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.) are the most common game species in Europe, hunted for meat and trophies. Forensic investigations involving roe deer poaching may often benefit from an individual identification method to link a suspect to a specific incident. The current paper presents a forensically validated DNA profiling system for European roe deer called “STRoe deer”. This DNA profiling system consists of 12 novel unlinked tetra-nucleotide short tandem repeat (STR) loci and two sexing markers, with an allelic ladder to facilitate accurate genotyping. Validation results using 513 European roe deer samples collected from a single population from the Swiss Plateau demonstrated successful amplification of all 14 loci with as little as 0.05 ng of European roe deer DNA. Species-specificity tests showed that other members of the Cervidae family exhibited partial profiles and non-specific peaks, whereas most members of the Bovidae family showed just non-specific cross-species amplification products. Three different methods to calculate match probabilities for randomly sampled European roe deer genotypes resulted in median match probabilities ranging from 1.4 × 10−13 to 2.5 × 10−5. These methods accounted for possible population structure, occurrence of null alleles and individual relatedness. Based on these results, we conclude that STRoe deer is a robust genotyping system that should prove a valuable tool for individual identification and sexing of European roe deer to support criminal investigations

Anticorrosive waterborne paints with reduced phosphate content

The most important challenges in the field of paint technology are concerned with the development of safer products, safer processes and reduced solvent emissions to the atmosphere with zero emissions as the goal [1]. In the case of anticorrosive paints safer products means, primarily, the complete elimination of chromates and the employment of water instead of organic solvents. In this sense, from 1970 on, two major goals were achieved in the field of paint technology: the replacement of toxic inhibitive pigments containing lead and chromate compounds by phosphates and the progressive elimination of solvents in paint formulations to fit VOC’s regulations. Three generations of phosphates were introduced in the market, being zinc phosphate the precursor [1-10]. The second generation was developed by performing suitable modifications in the zinc phosphate particle [7-14]. Finally, the third generation was designed to meet high technological applications and was obtained changing the orthophosphate anion by the tripolyphosphate one [15- 25]. Both, the second and third generation phosphate pigments are claimed to have equal or superior anticorrosive behaviour than chromates and better than zinc phosphate on its own. Other anticorrosive pigments, apart from phosphates, were found to be suitable to formulate anticorrosive paints. Among them ferrites, calcium exchanged silicas, etc [26, 27]. More recently the development of intelligent anticorrosive paints was reported [28].Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Tecnología de Pintura

What is new in surgical treatment of vesicoureteric reflux?

In addition to conventional open surgery and endoscopic techniques, laparoscopic correction of vesicoureteric reflux, sometimes even robot-assisted, is becoming an alternative surgical treatment modality for this condition in a number of centres around the world. At least for a subgroup of patients laparoscopists are trying to develop new techniques in an effort to combine the best of both worlds: the minimal invasiveness of the STING and the same lasting effectiveness as in open surgery. The efficacy and potential advantages or disadvantages of these techniques are still under investigation. The different laparoscopic techniques and available data are presented