Noncommutative D-Brane in Non-Constant NS-NS B Field Background

We show that when the field strength H of the NS-NS B field does not vanish, the coordinates X and momenta P of an open string endpoints satisfy a set of mixed commutation relations among themselves. Identifying X and P with the coordinates and derivatives of the D-brane world volume, we find a new type of noncommutative spaces which is very different from those associated with a constant B field background.Comment: 11 pages, Latex, minor modification

High expression FUT1 and B3GALT5 is an independent predictor of postoperative recurrence and survival in hepatocellular carcinoma.

Cancer may arise from dedifferentiation of mature cells or maturation-arrested stem cells. Previously we reported that definitive endoderm from which liver was derived, expressed Globo H, SSEA-3 and SSEA-4. In this study, we examined the expression of their biosynthetic enzymes, FUT1, FUT2, B3GALT5 and ST3GAL2, in 135 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues by qRT-PCR. High expression of either FUT1 or B3GALT5 was significantly associated with advanced stages and poor outcome. Kaplan Meier survival analysis showed significantly shorter relapse-free survival (RFS) for those with high expression of either FUT1 or B3GALT5 (P = 0.024 and 0.001, respectively) and shorter overall survival (OS) for those with high expression of B3GALT5 (P = 0.017). Combination of FUT1 and B3GALT5 revealed that high expression of both genes had poorer RFS and OS than the others (P < 0.001). Moreover, multivariable Cox regression analysis identified the combination of B3GALT5 and FUT1 as an independent predictor for RFS (HR: 2.370, 95% CI: 1.505-3.731, P < 0.001) and OS (HR: 2.153, 95% CI: 1.188-3.902, P = 0.012) in HCC. In addition, the presence of Globo H, SSEA-3 and SSEA-4 in some HCC tissues and their absence in normal liver was established by immunohistochemistry staining and mass spectrometric analysis

ポリリジンの抗菌性に及ぼすメイラード反応の影響

東京水産大学食品製造学講座東京水産大学食品製造学講座東京水産大学食品製造学講

Poverty alleviation policies and action in Hong Kong : an analysis of public engagement strategies

published_or_final_versionPolitics and Public AdministrationMasterMaster of Public Administratio

PTEN is involved in modulation of vasculogenesis in early chick embryos

Summary PTEN is a tumor suppressor gene that is mutated and/or deleted in many types of tumor. This gene also plays a very distinct role in the early stages of embryonic development such as cell migration, proliferation and migration. Nevertheless, little is known of the function of PTEN in vasculogenesis during chick embryonic development. In this study, we used in situ hybridization to first demonstrate the expression pattern of PTEN during gastrulation. PTEN was found mainly expressed in the blood islands of area opaca, the neural tube and mesodermal structures. Overexpression of PTEN obstructed the epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) process in the primitive streak. EMT is the first prerequisite required for the emigration of hemangioblasts during vasculogenesis. When PTEN expression was silenced, we observed that it produced an adverse effect on mesodermal cell emigration to the extra-embryonic blood islands. In addition, we also demonstrated that even if the perturbed-PTEN cells did not affect the formation of blood islands, migrant mesodermal cells overexpressing wt PTEN-GFP had difficulties integrating into the blood islands. Instead, these cells were either localized on the periphery of the blood islands or induced to differentiate into endothelial cells if they managed to integrate into blood islands. Development of the intra-embryonic primary vascular plexus was also affected by overexpression of PTEN. We proposed that it was elevated PTEN lipid phosphatase activity that was responsible for the morphogenetic defects induced by PTEN overexpression. In this context, we did not find PTEN affecting VEGF signaling. In sum, our study has provided evidence that PTEN is involved in vasculogenesis during the early stages of chick embryo development

A targeted gene panel that covers coding, non-coding and short tandem repeat regions improves the diagnosis of patients with neurodegenerative diseases

Genetic testing for neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) is highly challenging because of genetic heterogeneity and overlapping manifestations. Targeted-gene panels (TGPs), coupled with next-generation sequencing (NGS), can facilitate the profiling of a large repertoire of ND-related genes. Due to the technical limitations inherent in NGS and TGPs, short tandem repeat (STR) variations are often ignored. However, STR expansions are known to cause such NDs as Huntington\u27s disease and spinocerebellar ataxias type 3 (SCA3). Here, we studied the clinical utility of a custom-made TGP that targets 199 NDs and 311 ND-associated genes on 118 undiagnosed patients. At least one known or likely pathogenic variation was found in 54 patients; 27 patients demonstrated clinical profiles that matched the variants; and 16 patients whose original diagnosis were refined. A high concordance of variant calling were observed when comparing the results from TGP and whole-exome sequencing of four patients. Our in-house STR detection algorithm has reached a specificity of 0.88 and a sensitivity of 0.82 in our SCA3 cohort. This study also uncovered a trove of novel and recurrent variants that may enrich the repertoire of ND-related genetic markers. We propose that a combined comprehensive TGPs-bioinformatics pipeline can improve the clinical diagnosis of NDs

High-performance InSe Transistors with Ohmic Contact Enabled by Nonrectifying-barrier-type Indium Electrodes

The electrical contact to two-dimensional (2D)-semiconductor materials are decisive to the electronic performance of 2D-semiconductor field-effect devices (FEDs). The presence of a Schottky barrier often leads to a large contact resistance, which seriously limits the channel conductance and carrier mobility measured in a two-terminal geometry. In contrast, ohmic contact is desirable and can be achieved by the presence of a nonrectifying or tunneling barrier. Here, we demonstrate that an nonrectifying barrier can be realized by contacting indium (In), a low work function metal, with layered InSe because of a favorable band alignment at the In-InSe interface. The nonrectifying barrier is manifested by ohmic contact behavior at T=2 K and a low barrier height, {\Phi}$_B$=50 meV. This ohmic contact enables demonstration of an ON-current as large as 410 {\mu}A/{\mu}m, which is among the highest values achieved in FEDs based on layered semiconductors. A high electron mobility of 3,700 and 1,000 cm$^2$/Vs is achieved with the two-terminal In-InSe FEDs at T=2 K and room temperature, respectively, which can be attributed to enhanced quality of both conduction channel and the contacts. The improvement in the contact quality is further proven by an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study, which suggests that a reduction effect occurs at the In-InSe interface. The demonstration of high-performance In-InSe FEDs indicates a viable interface engineering method for next-generation, 2D-semiconductor-based electronics

Nocturnal CPAP improves walking capacity in COPD patients with obstructive sleep apnoea

BACKGROUND: Exercise limitation is an important issue in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and it often co-exists with obstructive sleep apnoea (overlap syndrome). This study examined the effects of nocturnal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment on walking capacity in COPD patients with or without obstructive sleep apnoea. METHODS: Forty-four stable moderate-to-severe COPD patients were recruited and completed this study. They all underwent polysomnography, CPAP titration, accommodation, and treatment with adequate pressure. The incremental shuttle walking test was used to measure walking capacity at baseline and after two nights of CPAP treatment. Urinary catecholamine and heart rate variability were measured before and after CPAP treatment. RESULTS: After two nights of CPAP treatment, the apnoea-hypopnoea index and oxygen desaturation index significantly improved in both overlap syndrome and COPD patients, however these changes were significantly greater in the overlap syndrome than in the COPD group. Sleep architecture and autonomic dysfunction significantly improved in the overlap syndrome group but not in the COPD group. CPAP treatment was associated with an increased walking capacity from baseline from 226.4 ± 95.3 m to 288.6 ± 94.6 m (P < 0.05), and decreased urinary catecholamine levels, pre-exercise heart rate, oxygenation, and Borg scale in the overlap syndrome group. An improvement in the apnoea-hypopnoea index was an independent factor associated with the increase in walking distance (r = 0.564). CONCLUSION: Nocturnal CPAP may improve walking capacity in COPD patients with overlap syndrome. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT0091426

miRTarBase update 2014: an information resource for experimentally validated miRNA-target interactions

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNA molecules capable of negatively regulating gene expression to control many cellular mechanisms. The miRTarBase database (http://mirtarbase.mbc.nctu.edu.tw/) provides the most current and comprehensive information of experimentally validated miRNA-target interactions. The database was launched in 2010 with data sources for >100 published studies in the identification of miRNA targets, molecular networks of miRNA targets and systems biology, and the current release (2013, version 4) includes significant expansions and enhancements over the initial release (2010, version 1). This article reports the current status of and recent improvements to the database, including (i) a 14-fold increase to miRNA-target interaction entries, (ii) a miRNA-target network, (iii) expression profile of miRNA and its target gene, (iv) miRNA target-associated diseases and (v) additional utilities including an upgrade reminder and an error reporting/user feedback system