Consistency of shared reference frames should be reexamined

In a recent Letter [G. Chiribella et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 120501 (2007)], four protocols were proposed to secretly transmit a reference frame. Here We point out that in these protocols an eavesdropper can change the transmitted reference frame without being detected, which means the consistency of the shared reference frames should be reexamined. The way to check the above consistency is discussed. It is shown that this problem is quite different from that in previous protocols of quantum cryptography.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure, comments are welcom

Poly (GR) in C9ORF72-related ALS/FTD Compromises Mitochondrial Function and Increases Oxidative Stress and DNA Damage in iPSC- derived Motor Neurons

GGGGCC repeat expansions in C9ORF72 are the most common genetic cause of both ALS and FTD. To uncover underlying pathogenic mechanisms, we found that DNA damage was greater, in an age dependent manner, in motor neurons differentiated from iPSCs of multiple C9ORF72 patients than control neurons. Ectopic expression of the dipeptide repeat (DPR) protein (GR)80 in iPSC-derived control neurons increased DNA damage, suggesting poly(GR) contributes to DNA damage in aged C9ORF72neurons. Oxidative stress was also increased inC9ORF72 neurons in an age-dependent manner. Pharmacological or genetic reduction of oxidative stress partially rescued DNA damage in C9ORF72neurons and control neurons expressing (GR)80 or (GR)80-induced toxicity in flies. Moreover, interactome analysis revealed that (GR)80 preferentially bound to mitochondrial ribosomal proteins and caused mitochondrial dysfunction. Thus, poly(GR) in C9ORF72 neurons compromises mitochondrial function and causes DNA damage in part by increasing oxidative stress, revealing another pathogenic mechanism in C9ORF72-related ALS and FTD

Modeling key pathological features of frontotemporal dementia with C9ORF72 repeat expansion in iPSC-derived human neurons

The recently identified GGGGCC repeat expansion in the noncoding region of C9ORF72 is the most common pathogenic mutation in patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). We generated a human neuronal model and investigated the pathological phenotypes of human neurons containing GGGGCC repeat expansions. Skin biopsies were obtained from two subjects who had \u3e 1,000 GGGGCC repeats in C9ORF72 and their respective fibroblasts were used to generate multiple induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines. After extensive characterization, two iPSC lines from each subject were selected, differentiated into postmitotic neurons, and compared with control neurons to identify disease-relevant phenotypes. Expanded GGGGCC repeats exhibit instability during reprogramming and neuronal differentiation of iPSCs. RNA foci containing GGGGCC repeats were present in some iPSCs, iPSC-derived human neurons and primary fibroblasts. The percentage of cells with foci and the number of foci per cell appeared to be determined not simply by repeat length but also by other factors. These RNA foci do not seem to sequester several major RNA-binding proteins. Moreover, repeat-associated non-ATG (RAN) translation products were detected in human neurons with GGGGCC repeat expansions and these neurons showed significantly elevated p62 levels and increased sensitivity to cellular stress induced by autophagy inhibitors. Our findings demonstrate that key neuropathological features of FTD/ALS with GGGGCC repeat expansions can be recapitulated in iPSC-derived human neurons and also suggest that compromised autophagy function may represent a novel underlying pathogenic mechanism

Fifteen-Year Population Attributable Fractions and Causal Pies of Risk Factors for Newly Developed Hepatocellular Carcinomas in 11,801 Men in Taiwan

Development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a multi-factorial process. Chronic infections with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are important risk factors of HCC. Host factors, such as alcohol drinking, may also play a role. This study aims to provide a synthesis view on the development of HCC by examining multiple risk factors jointly and collectively. Causal-pie modeling technique was applied to analyze a cohort of 11,801 male residents (followed up for 15 years) in Taiwan, during which a total of 298 incident HCC cases were ascertained. The rate ratios adjusted by age were further modeled by an additive Poisson regression. Population attributable fractions (PAFs) and causal-pie weights (CPWs) were calculated. A PAF indicates the magnitude of case-load reduction under a particular intervention scenario, whereas a CPW for a particular class of causal pies represents the proportion of HCC cases attributable to that class. Using PAF we observed a chance to reduce around 60% HCC risk moving from no HBV-related intervention to the total elimination of the virus. An additional ∼15% (or ∼5%) reduction can be expected, if the HBV-related intervention is coupled with an HCV-related intervention (or an anti-drinking campaign). Eight classes of causal pies were found to be significant, including four dose-response classes of HBV (total CPW=52.7%), one independent-effect class of HCV (CPW=14.4%), one HBV-alcohol interaction class (CPW=4.2%), one HBV-HCV interaction class (CPW=1.7%), and one all-unknown class (CPW=27.0%). Causal-pie modeling for HCC helps clarify the relative importance of each viral and host factor, as well as their interactions

Expected Performance of the ATLAS Experiment - Detector, Trigger and Physics

A detailed study is presented of the expected performance of the ATLAS detector. The reconstruction of tracks, leptons, photons, missing energy and jets is investigated, together with the performance of b-tagging and the trigger. The physics potential for a variety of interesting physics processes, within the Standard Model and beyond, is examined. The study comprises a series of notes based on simulations of the detector and physics processes, with particular emphasis given to the data expected from the first years of operation of the LHC at CERN

Social Isolation-Induced Aggression Potentiates Anxiety and Depressive-Like Behavior in Male Mice Subjected to Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress

Accumulating epidemiological evidence shows that life event stressors are major vulnerability factors for psychiatric diseases such as major depression. It is also well known that social isolation in male mice results in aggressive behavior. However, it is not known how social isolation-induced aggression affects anxiety and depressive-like behavior in isolated male mice subjected to unpredictable chronic mild stress (CMS), an animal model of depression.C57/B6 male mice were divided into 3 groups; non-stressed controls, in Group I; isolated mice subjected to the CMS protocol in Group II and aggression by physical contact in socially isolated mice subjected to the CMS protocol in Group III. In the sucrose intake test, ingestion of a 1% sucrose solution by mice in Groups II and III was significantly lower than in Group I. Furthermore, intake of this solution in Group III mice was significantly lower than in Group II mice. In the open field test, mice in Group III, showed reduced locomotor activity and reduced entry and retention time in the central zone, compared to Groups I and II mice. Moreover, the distances moved in 1 hour by Group III mice did not differ between night and morning. In the light/black box test, Groups II and III animals spent significantly less time in the light box compared to Group I animals. In the tail suspension test (TST) and forced swimming test (FST), the immobility times of Group II and Group III mice were significantly longer than in Group I mice. In addition, immobility times in the FST were significantly longer in Group III than in Group II mice.These findings show that social isolation-induced aggression could potentiate anxiety and depressive-like behaviors in isolated male mice subjected to CMS

Analysis of the functional conservation of ethylene receptors between maize and Arabidopsis

Ethylene, a regulator of plant growth and development, is perceived by specific receptors that act as negative regulators of the ethylene response. Five ethylene receptors, i.e., ETR1, ERS1, EIN4, ETR2, and ERS2, are present in Arabidopsis and dominant negative mutants of each that confer ethylene insensitivity have been reported. In contrast, maize contains just two types of ethylene receptors: ZmERS1, encoded by ZmERS1a and ZmERS1b, and ZmETR2, encoded by ZmETR2a and ZmETR2b. In this study, we introduced a Cys to Tyr mutation in the transmembrane domain of ZmERS1b and ZmETR2b that is present in the etr1-1 dominant negative mutant and expressed each protein in Arabidopsis. Mutant Zmers1b and Zmetr2b receptors conferred ethylene insensitivity and Arabidopsis expressing Zmers1b or Zmetr2b were larger and exhibited a delay in leaf senescence characteristic of ethylene insensitive Arabidopsis mutants. Zmers1b and Zmetr2b were dominant and functioned equally well in a hemizygous or homozygous state. Expression of the Zmers1b N-terminal transmembrane domain was sufficient to exert dominance over endogenous Arabidopsis ethylene receptors whereas the Zmetr2b N-terminal domain failed to do so. Neither Zmers1b nor Zmetr2b functioned in the absence of subfamily 1 ethylene receptors, i.e., ETR1 and ERS1. These results suggest that Cys65 in maize ZmERS1b and ZmETR2b plays the same role that it does in Arabidopsis receptors. Moreover, the results demonstrate that the mutant maize ethylene receptors are functionally dependent on subfamily 1 ethylene receptors in Arabidopsis, indicating substantial functional conservation between maize and Arabidopsis ethylene receptors despite their sequence divergence

The use of lysozyme to prepare biologically active chitooligomers

International audienceTwo types of crustacean commercial chitosans (CS1, CS2) were dissolved in lactic acid solutions, hydrolysed by lysozyme and finally fractioned by methanol solutions into two parts containing chito-oligomers (CS-O1, CS-O2). The antioxidant power and antimicrobial properties of both fractions were studied and compared with non-hydrolysed CS1 and CS2. The antioxidant properties were determined by the ferric ion reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) method while the bioactive properties were evaluated against a strain of Listeria monocytogenes. CS-O obtained from the solid fraction of the chito-oligomers solid fractions treated with 90% methanol showed the highest reducing power. Microbiological tests showed that CS-O exhibit higher antilisterial activity than CS