Exploring hepatic hormone actions using a compilation of gene expression profiles

BACKGROUND: Microarray analysis is attractive within the field of endocrine research because regulation of gene expression is a key mechanism whereby hormones exert their actions. Knowledge discovery and testing of hypothesis based on information-rich expression profiles promise to accelerate discovery of physiologically relevant hormonal mechanisms of action. However, most studies so-far concentrate on the analysis of actions of single hormones and few examples exist that attempt to use compilation of different hormone-regulated expression profiles to gain insight into how hormone act to regulate tissue physiology. This report illustrates how a meta-analysis of multiple transcript profiles obtained from a single tissue, the liver, can be used to evaluate relevant hypothesis and discover novel mechanisms of hormonal action. We have evaluated the differential effects of Growth Hormone (GH) and estrogen in the regulation of hepatic gender differentiated gene expression as well as the involvement of sterol regulatory element-binding proteins (SREBPs) in the hepatic actions of GH and thyroid hormone. RESULTS: Little similarity exists between liver transcript profiles regulated by 17-α-ethinylestradiol and those induced by the continuos infusion of bGH. On the other hand, strong correlations were found between both profiles and the female enriched transcript profile. Therefore, estrogens have feminizing effects in male rat liver which are different from those induced by GH. The similarity between bGH and T3 were limited to a small group of genes, most of which are involved in lipogenesis. An in silico promoter analysis of genes rapidly regulated by thyroid hormone predicted the activation of SREBPs by short-term treatment in vivo. It was further demonstrated that proteolytic processing of SREBP1 in the endoplasmic reticulum might contribute to the rapid actions of T3 on these genes. CONCLUSION: This report illustrates how a meta-analysis of multiple transcript profiles can be used to link knowledge concerning endocrine physiology to hormonally induced changes in gene expression. We conclude that both GH and estrogen are important determinants of gender-related differences in hepatic gene expression. Rapid hepatic thyroid hormone effects affect genes involved in lipogenesis possibly through the induction of SREBP1 proteolytic processing

Incomplete Mixing Model at Cross-Junctions in Epanet by Polynomial Equations

[EN] In Water Distribution Networks (WDN), the water quality could become vulnerable due to several operational and temporal factors. Epanet is a hydraulic and water quality simulation software, widely used, to preserve the control of chemical disinfectants in WDN among other capabilities. Several researchers have shown that the flow mixing at Cross-Junctions (CJs) is not complete as Epanet assumes for the cases of two contiguous inlets and outlets. This paper presents a methodology to obtain the outlet concentrations in CJs based on experimental scenarios and a validated Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model. In this work, the results show that the Incomplete Mixing Model (IMM) based on polynomial equations, represents in a better way the experimental scenarios. Therefore, the distribution of the concentration could be in different proportions in some sectors of the network. Some comparisons were made with the complete mixing model and the Epanet-Bulk Advective Mixing (BAM), obtaining relative errors of 90% in some CJs.To CONACYT for the scholarship of the first author Daniel Hernández; to Rubén Martínez, laboratory technician of the Universidad de Guanajuato, and to PROMEP projects of authors Jesús Mora, Xitlali Delgado, and Antonio Arciniega.Hernández Cervantes, D.; López Jiménez, PA.; Arciniega Nevárez, JA.; Delgado Galván, X.; Jiménez Magaña, MR.; Pérez-Sánchez, M.; Mora Rodríguez, JDJ. (2021). Incomplete Mixing Model at Cross-Junctions in Epanet by Polynomial Equations. Water. 13(4):1-20. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13040453S120134Knobelsdorf Miranda, J., & Mujeriego Sahuquillo, R. (1997). Crecimiento bacteriano en las redes de distribución de agua potable: una revisión bibliográfica. Ingeniería del agua, 4(2). doi:10.4995/ia.1997.2719Grbčić, L., Kranjčević, L., Lučin, I., & Sikirica, A. (2021). Large Eddy Simulation of turbulent fluid mixing in double-tee junctions. Ain Shams Engineering Journal, 12(1), 789-797. doi:10.1016/j.asej.2020.06.004Hernández-Cervantes, D., Delgado-Galván, X., Nava, J., López-Jiménez, P., Rosales, M., & Mora Rodríguez, J. (2018). Validation of a Computational Fluid Dynamics Model for a Novel Residence Time Distribution Analysis in Mixing at Cross-Junctions. Water, 10(6), 733. doi:10.3390/w10060733Mompremier, R., Pelletier, G., Fuentes Mariles, Ó. A., & Ghebremichael, K. (2015). Impact of incomplete mixing in the prediction of chlorine residuals in municipal water distribution systems. Journal of Water Supply: Research and Technology - Aqua, 64(8), 904-914. doi:10.2166/aqua.2015.148Shao, Y., Jeffrey Yang, Y., Jiang, L., Yu, T., & Shen, C. (2014). Experimental testing and modeling analysis of solute mixing at water distribution pipe junctions. Water Research, 56, 133-147. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2014.02.053Paez, N., Saldarriaga, J., & Bohorquez, J. (2017). Water Quality Modeling Considering Incomplete Mixing in Extended Periods. Procedia Engineering, 186, 54-60. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2017.03.207Ho, C. K. (2008). Solute Mixing Models for Water-Distribution Pipe Networks. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 134(9), 1236-1244. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9429(2008)134:9(1236)Yu, T. C., Shao, Y., & Shen, C. (2014). Mixing at Cross Joints with Different Pipe Sizes in Water Distribution Systems. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 140(5), 658-665. doi:10.1061/(asce)wr.1943-5452.0000372Shao, Y., Zhao, L., Yang, Y. J., Zhang, T., & Ye, M. (2019). Experimentally Determined Solute Mixing under Laminar and Transitional Flows at Junctions in Water Distribution Systems. Advances in Civil Engineering, 2019, 1-10. doi:10.1155/2019/3686510Austin, R. G., Waanders, B. van B., McKenna, S., & Choi, C. Y. (2008). Mixing at Cross Junctions in Water Distribution Systems. II: Experimental Study. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 134(3), 295-302. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9496(2008)134:3(295)Song, I., Romero-Gomez, P., & Choi, C. Y. (2009). Experimental Verification of Incomplete Solute Mixing in a Pressurized Pipe Network with Multiple Cross Junctions. Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 135(11), 1005-1011. doi:10.1061/(asce)hy.1943-7900.0000095Romero-Gomez, P., Choi, C. Y., van Bloemen Waanders, B., & McKenna, S. (2008). Transport Phenomena at Intersections of Pressurized Pipe Systems. Water Distribution Systems Analysis Symposium 2006. doi:10.1061/40941(247)155Romero-Gomez, P., Ho, C. K., & Choi, C. Y. (2008). Mixing at Cross Junctions in Water Distribution Systems. I: Numerical Study. Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management, 134(3), 285-294. doi:10.1061/(asce)0733-9496(2008)134:3(285)Ho, C. K., & O’Rear, L. (2009). Evaluation of solute mixing in water distribution pipe junctions. Journal - American Water Works Association, 101(9), 116-127. doi:10.1002/j.1551-8833.2009.tb09964.xAndrade, M. A., Rojano, F., Romero-Gomez, P., & Choi, C. Y. (2011). Integrated Water Quality Modeling of Water Distribution Systems. Water Distribution Systems Analysis 2010. doi:10.1061/41203(425)63Hernández Cervantes, D., Mora Rodríguez, J., Delgado Galván, X., Ortiz Medel, J., & Jiménez Magaña, M. R. (2015). Optimal use of chlorine in water distribution networks based on specific locations of booster chlorination: analyzing conditions in Mexico. Water Supply, 16(2), 493-505. doi:10.2166/ws.2015.161Boccelli, D. L., Tryby, M. E., Uber, J. G., & Summers, R. S. (2003). A reactive species model for chlorine decay and THM formation under rechlorination conditions. Water Research, 37(11), 2654-2666. doi:10.1016/s0043-1354(03)00067-8Jabari Kohpaei, A., & Sathasivan, A. (2011). Chlorine decay prediction in bulk water using the parallel second order model: An analytical solution development. Chemical Engineering Journal, 171(1), 232-241. doi:10.1016/j.cej.2011.03.03

Regulation of death receptor signaling by the autophagy protein TP53INP2

TP53INP2 positively regulates autophagy by binding to Atg8 proteins. Here, we uncover a novel role of TP53INP2 in death‐receptor signaling. TP53INP2 sensitizes cells to apoptosis induced by death receptor ligands. In keeping with this, TP53INP2 deficiency in cultured cells or mouse livers protects against death receptor‐induced apoptosis. TP53INP2 binds caspase‐8 and the ubiquitin ligase TRAF6, thereby promoting the ubiquitination and activation of caspase‐8 by TRAF6. We have defined a TRAF6‐interacting motif (TIM) and a ubiquitin‐interacting motif in TP53INP2, enabling it to function as a scaffold bridging already ubiquitinated caspase‐8 to TRAF6 for further polyubiquitination of caspase‐8. Mutations of key TIM residues in TP53INP2 abrogate its interaction with TRAF6 and caspase‐8, and subsequently reduce levels of death receptor‐induced apoptosis. A screen of cancer cell lines showed that those with higher protein levels of TP53INP2 are more prone to TRAIL‐induced apoptosis, making TP53INP2 a potential predictive marker of cancer cell responsiveness to TRAIL treatment. These findings uncover a novel mechanism for the regulation of caspase‐8 ubiquitination and reveal TP53INP2 as an important regulator of the death receptor pathway

Dietary and Lifestyle Patterns in the Spanish Pediatric Population (One to <10 Years Old): Design, Protocol, and Methodology of the EsNuPI Study

The interest in a healthy diet and lifestyle during the early stages of life increased, pointing out its role in the development of noncommunicable chronic diseases throughout adult life. Dietary habits and dietary patterns begin to be established in early childhood and persist during adulthood. Therefore, the EsNuPI (“Nutritional Study in Spanish Pediatric Population”) study aims to depict the dietary patterns, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors in Spanish children aged from one to <10 years old. This prospective, cross-sectional, observational study recruited a total of 1514 children from Spanish cities with >50,000 inhabitants, stratified by Nielsen areas. Participants were involved in one face-to-face survey, followed by a telephone survey after at least one week. Information about dietary intake and habits was obtained using a quantitative food frequency questionnaire and two 24-h dietary recalls. Physical activity and sedentary behaviors were registered using a specific questionnaire based on a seven-day record. Data were processed and stratified by categorical variables to be statistically analyzed in order to meet the study objectives. This study is the first of its kind in a Spanish reference population of this age range and the first to evaluate whether the consumption of adapted milk formulas and dairy products is associated with healthier dietary patterns and better diet quality and lifestyles in this group.This research was funded by Instituto Puleva de Nutrición (IPN)

Temperature Effects Explain Continental Scale Distribution of Cyanobacterial Toxins

Insight into how environmental change determines the production and distribution of cyanobacterial toxins is necessary for risk assessment. Management guidelines currently focus on hepatotoxins (microcystins). Increasing attention is given to other classes, such as neurotoxins (e.g., anatoxin-a) and cytotoxins (e.g., cylindrospermopsin) due to their potency. Most studies examine the relationship between individual toxin variants and environmental factors, such as nutrients, temperature and light. In summer 2015, we collected samples across Europe to investigate the effect of nutrient and temperature gradients on the variability of toxin production at a continental scale. Direct and indirect effects of temperature were the main drivers of the spatial distribution in the toxins produced by the cyanobacterial community, the toxin concentrations and toxin quota. Generalized linear models showed that a Toxin Diversity Index (TDI) increased with latitude, while it decreased with water stability. Increases in TDI were explained through a significant increase in toxin variants such as MC-YR, anatoxin and cylindrospermopsin, accompanied by a decreasing presence of MC-LR. While global warming continues, the direct and indirect effects of increased lake temperatures will drive changes in the distribution of cyanobacterial toxins in Europe, potentially promoting selection of a few highly toxic species or strains.Peer reviewe

Global transpiration data from sap flow measurements : the SAPFLUXNET database

Plant transpiration links physiological responses of vegetation to water supply and demand with hydrological, energy, and carbon budgets at the land-atmosphere interface. However, despite being the main land evaporative flux at the global scale, transpiration and its response to environmental drivers are currently not well constrained by observations. Here we introduce the first global compilation of whole-plant transpiration data from sap flow measurements (SAPFLUXNET, https://sapfluxnet.creaf.cat/, last access: 8 June 2021). We harmonized and quality-controlled individual datasets supplied by contributors worldwide in a semi-automatic data workflow implemented in the R programming language. Datasets include sub-daily time series of sap flow and hydrometeorological drivers for one or more growing seasons, as well as metadata on the stand characteristics, plant attributes, and technical details of the measurements. SAPFLUXNET contains 202 globally distributed datasets with sap flow time series for 2714 plants, mostly trees, of 174 species. SAPFLUXNET has a broad bioclimatic coverage, with woodland/shrubland and temperate forest biomes especially well represented (80 % of the datasets). The measurements cover a wide variety of stand structural characteristics and plant sizes. The datasets encompass the period between 1995 and 2018, with 50 % of the datasets being at least 3 years long. Accompanying radiation and vapour pressure deficit data are available for most of the datasets, while on-site soil water content is available for 56 % of the datasets. Many datasets contain data for species that make up 90 % or more of the total stand basal area, allowing the estimation of stand transpiration in diverse ecological settings. SAPFLUXNET adds to existing plant trait datasets, ecosystem flux networks, and remote sensing products to help increase our understanding of plant water use, plant responses to drought, and ecohydrological processes. SAPFLUXNET version 0.1.5 is freely available from the Zenodo repository (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3971689; Poyatos et al., 2020a). The "sapfluxnetr" R package - designed to access, visualize, and process SAPFLUXNET data - is available from CRAN.Peer reviewe

Optimasi Portofolio Resiko Menggunakan Model Markowitz MVO Dikaitkan dengan Keterbatasan Manusia dalam Memprediksi Masa Depan dalam Perspektif Al-Qur`an

Risk portfolio on modern finance has become increasingly technical, requiring the use of sophisticated mathematical tools in both research and practice. Since companies cannot insure themselves completely against risk, as human incompetence in predicting the future precisely that written in Al-Quran surah Luqman verse 34, they have to manage it to yield an optimal portfolio. The objective here is to minimize the variance among all portfolios, or alternatively, to maximize expected return among all portfolios that has at least a certain expected return. Furthermore, this study focuses on optimizing risk portfolio so called Markowitz MVO (Mean-Variance Optimization). Some theoretical frameworks for analysis are arithmetic mean, geometric mean, variance, covariance, linear programming, and quadratic programming. Moreover, finding a minimum variance portfolio produces a convex quadratic programming, that is minimizing the objective function ðð¥with constraintsð ð 𥠥 ðandð´ð¥ = ð. The outcome of this research is the solution of optimal risk portofolio in some investments that could be finished smoothly using MATLAB R2007b software together with its graphic analysis

Differential cross section measurements for the production of a W boson in association with jets in proton–proton collisions at √s = 7 TeV

Measurements are reported of differential cross sections for the production of a W boson, which decays into a muon and a neutrino, in association with jets, as a function of several variables, including the transverse momenta (pT) and pseudorapidities of the four leading jets, the scalar sum of jet transverse momenta (HT), and the difference in azimuthal angle between the directions of each jet and the muon. The data sample of pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 7 TeV was collected with the CMS detector at the LHC and corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb[superscript −1]. The measured cross sections are compared to predictions from Monte Carlo generators, MadGraph + pythia and sherpa, and to next-to-leading-order calculations from BlackHat + sherpa. The differential cross sections are found to be in agreement with the predictions, apart from the pT distributions of the leading jets at high pT values, the distributions of the HT at high-HT and low jet multiplicity, and the distribution of the difference in azimuthal angle between the leading jet and the muon at low values.United States. Dept. of EnergyNational Science Foundation (U.S.)Alfred P. Sloan Foundatio

Impacts of the Tropical Pacific/Indian Oceans on the Seasonal Cycle of the West African Monsoon

The current consensus is that drought has developed in the Sahel during the second half of the twentieth century as a result of remote effects of oceanic anomalies amplified by local land–atmosphere interactions. This paper focuses on the impacts of oceanic anomalies upon West African climate and specifically aims to identify those from SST anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Oceans during spring and summer seasons, when they were significant. Idealized sensitivity experiments are performed with four atmospheric general circulation models (AGCMs). The prescribed SST patterns used in the AGCMs are based on the leading mode of covariability between SST anomalies over the Pacific/Indian Oceans and summer rainfall over West Africa. The results show that such oceanic anomalies in the Pacific/Indian Ocean lead to a northward shift of an anomalous dry belt from the Gulf of Guinea to the Sahel as the season advances. In the Sahel, the magnitude of rainfall anomalies is comparable to that obtained by other authors using SST anomalies confined to the proximity of the Atlantic Ocean. The mechanism connecting the Pacific/Indian SST anomalies with West African rainfall has a strong seasonal cycle. In spring (May and June), anomalous subsidence develops over both the Maritime Continent and the equatorial Atlantic in response to the enhanced equatorial heating. Precipitation increases over continental West Africa in association with stronger zonal convergence of moisture. In addition, precipitation decreases over the Gulf of Guinea. During the monsoon peak (July and August), the SST anomalies move westward over the equatorial Pacific and the two regions where subsidence occurred earlier in the seasons merge over West Africa. The monsoon weakens and rainfall decreases over the Sahel, especially in August.Peer reviewe