3,219 research outputs found
36 degree step size of proton-driven c-ring rotation in FoF1-ATP synthase
Synthesis of the biological "energy currency molecule" adenosine triphosphate
ATP is accomplished by FoF1-ATP synthase. In the plasma membrane of Escherichia
coli, proton-driven rotation of a ring of 10 c subunits in the Fo motor powers
catalysis in the F1 motor. While F1 uses 120 degree stepping, Fo models predict
a step-by-step rotation of c subunits 36 degree at a time, which is here
demonstrated by single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer.Comment: 8 pages, 1 figur
Distinct functions of S. pombe Rec12 (Spo11) protein and Rec12-dependent crossover recombination (chiasmata) in meiosis I; and a requirement for Rec12 in meiosis II
BACKGROUND: In most organisms proper reductional chromosome segregation during meiosis I is strongly correlated with the presence of crossover recombination structures (chiasmata); recombination deficient mutants lack crossovers and suffer meiosis I nondisjunction. We report that these functions are separable in the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. RESULTS: Intron mapping and expression studies confirmed that Rec12 is a member of the Spo11/Top6A topoisomerase family required for the formation of meiotic dsDNA breaks and recombination. rec12-117, rec12-D15 (null), and rec12-Y98F (active site) mutants lacked most crossover recombination and chromosomes segregated abnormally to generate aneuploid meiotic products. Since S. pombe contains only three chromosome pairs, many of those aneuploid products were viable. The types of aberrant chromosome segregation were inferred from the inheritance patterns of centromere linked markers in diploid meiotic products. The rec12-117 and rec12-D15 mutants manifest segregation errors during both meiosis I and meiosis II. Remarkably, the rec12-Y98F (active site) mutant exhibited essentially normal meiosis I segregation patterns, but still exhibited meiosis II segregation errors. CONCLUSIONS: Rec12 is a 345 amino acid protein required for most crossover recombination and for chiasmatic segregation of chromosomes during meiosis I. Rec12 also participates in a backup distributive (achiasmatic) system of chromosome segregation during meiosis I. In addition, catalytically-active Rec12 mediates some signal that is required for faithful equational segregation of chromosomes during meiosis II
Sampling Plans for Control-Inspection Schemes Under Independent and Dependent Sampling Designs With Applications to Photovoltaics
The evaluation of produced items at the time of delivery is, in practice,
usually amended by at least one inspection at later time points. We extend the
methodology of acceptance sampling for variables for arbitrary unknown
distributions when additional sampling infor- mation is available to such
settings. Based on appropriate approximations of the operating characteristic,
we derive new acceptance sampling plans that control the overall operating
characteristic. The results cover the case of independent sampling as well as
the case of dependent sampling. In particular, we study a modified panel
sampling design and the case of spatial batch sampling. The latter is advisable
in photovoltaic field monitoring studies, since it allows to detect and analyze
local clusters of degraded or damaged modules. Some finite sample properties
are examined by a simulation study, focusing on the accuracy of estimation
Monitoring the rotary motors of single FoF1-ATP synthase by synchronized multi channel TCSPC
Confocal time resolved single-molecule spectroscopy using pulsed laser
excitation and synchronized multi channel time correlated single photon
counting (TCSPC) provides detailed information about the conformational changes
of a biological motor in real time. We studied the formation of adenosine
triphosphate, ATP, from ADP and phosphate by FoF1-ATP synthase. The reaction is
performed by a stepwise internal rotation of subunits of the lipid
membrane-embedded enzyme. Using fluorescence resonance energy transfer, FRET,
we detected rotation of this biological motor by sequential changes of
intramolecular distances within a single FoF1-ATP synthase. Prolonged
observation times of single enzymes were achieved by functional immobilization
to the glass surface. The stepwise rotary subunit movements were identified by
Hidden Markov Models (HMM) which were trained with single-molecule FRET
trajectories. To improve the accuracy of the HMM analysis we included the
single-molecule fluorescence lifetime of the FRET donor and used alternating
laser excitation to co-localize the FRET acceptor independently within a photon
burst. The HMM analysis yielded the orientations and dwell times of rotary
subunits during stepwise rotation. In addition, the action mode of bactericidal
drugs, i.e. inhibitors of FoF1-ATP synthase like aurovertin, could be
investigated by the time resolved single-molecule FRET approach.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure
The on-top pair-correlation density in the homogeneous electron liquid
The ladder theory, in which the Bethe-Goldstone equation for the effective
potential between two scattering particles plays a central role, is well known
for its satisfactory description of the short-range correlations in the
homogeneous electron liquid. By solving exactly the Bethe-Goldstone equation in
the limit of large transfer momentum between two scattering particles, we
obtain accurate results for the on-top pair-correlation density , in both
three dimensions and two dimensions. Furthermore, we prove, in general, the
ladder theory satisfies the cusp condition for the pair-correlation density
at zero distance .Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Top Management Team Diversity: A systematic Review
Empirical research investigating the impact of top management team (TMT)
diversity on executives’ decision making has produced inconclusive results.
To synthesize and aggregate the results on the diversity-performance
link, a meta-regression analysis (MRA) is conducted. It integrates more
than 200 estimates from 53 empirical studies investigating TMT diversity
and its impact on the quality of executives’ decision making as reflected
in corporate performance. The analysis contributes to the literature by
theoretically discussing and empirically examining the effects of TMT diversity
on corporate performance. Our results do not show a link between TMT
diversity and performance but provide evidence for publication bias. Thus,
the findings raise doubts on the impact of TMT diversity on performance
The two-fluid model with superfluid entropy
The two-fluid model of liquid helium is generalized to the case that the
superfluid fraction has a small entropy content. We present theoretical
arguments in favour of such a small superfluid entropy. In the generalized
two-fluid model various sound modes of HeII are investigated. In a
superleak carrying a persistent current the superfluid entropy leads to a new
sound mode which we call sixth sound. The relation between the sixth sound and
the superfluid entropy is discussed in detail.Comment: 22 pages, latex, published in Nuovo Cimento 16 D (1994) 37
Current-density functional theory of time-dependent linear response in quantal fluids: recent progress
Vignale and Kohn have recently formulated a local density approximation to
the time-dependent linear response of an inhomogeneous electron system in terms
of a vector potential for exchange and correlation. The vector potential
depends on the induced current density through spectral kernels to be evaluated
on the homogeneous electron-gas. After a brief review of their theory, the case
of inhomogeneous Bose superfluids is considered, with main focus on dynamic
Kohn-Sham equations for the condensate in the linear response regime and on
quantal generalized hydrodynamic equations in the weak inhomogeneity limit. We
also present the results of calculations of the exchange-correlation spectra in
both electron and superfluid boson systems.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures, Postscript fil
How Many Lymph Nodes Are Enough? Assessing the Adequacy of Lymph Node Yield for Staging in Favorable Histology Wilms Tumor
© 2019 Elsevier Inc. Purpose: Current investigational priorities in the treatment of favorable histology Wilms tumor (FHWT) center on accurate staging and risk-stratification. The extent of lymph node (LN) sampling has not been clearly defined; its importance cannot be overstated as it guides adjuvant therapy. The identification of a minimum LN yield to minimize the risk of harboring occult metastatic disease could help development of surgical guidelines. This study focuses on using the beta-binomial distribution to estimate the risk of occult metastatic disease in patients with FHWT. Materials & methods: The National Cancer Database was queried for patients with unilateral FHWT from 2004 to 2013. Data were used to characterize nodal positivity for patients who underwent surgery and had ≥ 1 positive LN and ≥ 2 LNs examined. The probability of missing a positive LN (i.e., false negative) for a given LN yield was calculated using an empirical estimation and the beta-binomial model. Patients were then stratified by tumor size. Results: 422 patients met study criteria. To limit the chance of missing a positive LN to ≤ 10%, the empirical estimation and beta-binomial model estimated that 6 and 10 LNs needed to be sampled, respectively. Tumor size did not influence the result. Internal validation showed little variation to maintain a false negative rate ≤ 10%. Conclusions: Using mathematical modeling, it appears that the desired LN yield in FHWT to reduce the risk of false-negative LN sampling to ≤ 10% is between 6 and 10. The current analysis represents an objective attempt to determine the desired surgical approach to LN sampling to accurately stage patients with FHWT. Level of evidence: I
Political institutions and debt crises
This paper shows that political institutions matter in explaining defaults on external and domestic debt obligations. We explore a large number of political and macroeconomic variables using a non-parametric technique to predict safety from default. The advantage of this technique is that it is able to identify patterns in the data that are not captured in standard probit analysis. We find that political factors matter, and do so in different ways for democratic and non-democratic regimes, and for domestic and external debt. In democracies, a parliamentary system or sufficient checks and balances almost guarantee the absence of default on external debt when economic fundamentals or liquidity are sufficiently strong. In dictatorships, high stability and tenure play a similar role for default on domestic debt
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