677 research outputs found
Escherichia coli MazF Leads to the Simultaneous Selective Synthesis of Both “Death Proteins” and “Survival Proteins”
The Escherichia coli mazEF module is one of the most thoroughly studied toxin–antitoxin systems. mazF encodes a stable toxin, MazF, and mazE encodes a labile antitoxin, MazE, which prevents the lethal effect of MazF. MazF is an endoribonuclease that leads to the inhibition of protein synthesis by cleaving mRNAs at ACA sequences. Here, using 2D-gels, we show that in E. coli, although MazF induction leads to the inhibition of the synthesis of most proteins, the synthesis of an exclusive group of proteins, mostly smaller than about 20 kDa, is still permitted. We identified some of those small proteins by mass spectrometry. By deleting the genes encoding those proteins from the E. coli chromosome, we showed that they were required for the death of most of the cellular population. Under the same experimental conditions, which induce mazEF-mediated cell death, other such proteins were found to be required for the survival of a small sub-population of cells. Thus, MazF appears to be a regulator that induces downstream pathways leading to death of most of the population and the continued survival of a small sub-population, which will likely become the nucleus of a new population when growth conditions become less stressful
Comparing quality of dying and death perceived by family members and nurses for patients dying in US and Dutch ICUs
BACKGROUND: The Quality of Dying and Death (QODD) questionnaire is used as a selfreported measure to allow families and clinicians to assess patients' quality of dying and death. We evaluated end-of-life (EOL) experiences as measured by the QODD completed by families and nurses in the United States and the Netherlands to explore similarities and differences in these experiences and identify opportunities for improving EOL care. METHODS: Questionnaire data were gathered from family members of patients dying in the ICU and nurses caring for these patients. In The Netherlands, data were gathered in three teaching hospitals, and data was gathered from 12 sites participating in a randomized trial in the United States. The QODD consists of 25 items and has been validated in the United States. RESULTS: Data from 446 patients were analyzed (346 in the United States and 100 in the Netherlands). Dutch patients were older than those in the United States (72 + 10.2 years vs 65 + 16.0 years; P <.0025). The family-assessed overall QODD score was the same in both countries: the Netherlands = median, 9; interquartile range (IQR), 8-10 and the United States = median, 8; IQR, 5-10. US family members rated the quality of two items higher than did the Netherlands families: "time spent with loved ones" and "time spent alone." Nurseassessed QODD ratings varied: the single-item QODD summary score was significantly higher in the Netherlands (the Netherlands: median, 9; IQR, 8-10 vs the United States: median, 7; IQR, 5-8; P <.0025), whereas the QODD total score was higher in the United States (the Netherlands: median, 6.9; IQR, 5.5-7.6 vs the United States: median, 7.1; IQR, 5.88.4; P = .014), although it did not meet our criteria for statistical significance. Of the 22 nurse-assessed items, 10 were significantly different between the Netherlands and the United States, with eight having higher scores in the United States and 2 having higher scores in the Netherlands. CONCLUSIONS: The QODD was rated similarly by family members in the United States and the Netherlands but varied when assessed by nurses. These differences may be due to organizational or cultural differences between the two countries or to expectations of respondents
Emergent Properties of Tumor Microenvironment in a Real-life Model of Multicell Tumor Spheroids
Multicellular tumor spheroids are an important {\it in vitro} model of the
pre-vascular phase of solid tumors, for sizes well below the diagnostic limit:
therefore a biophysical model of spheroids has the ability to shed light on the
internal workings and organization of tumors at a critical phase of their
development. To this end, we have developed a computer program that integrates
the behavior of individual cells and their interactions with other cells and
the surrounding environment. It is based on a quantitative description of
metabolism, growth, proliferation and death of single tumor cells, and on
equations that model biochemical and mechanical cell-cell and cell-environment
interactions. The program reproduces existing experimental data on spheroids,
and yields unique views of their microenvironment. Simulations show complex
internal flows and motions of nutrients, metabolites and cells, that are
otherwise unobservable with current experimental techniques, and give novel
clues on tumor development and strong hints for future therapies.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures. Accepted for publication in PLOS One. The
published version contains links to a supplementary text and three video
file
The Effects of Twitter Sentiment on Stock Price Returns
Social media are increasingly reflecting and influencing behavior of other
complex systems. In this paper we investigate the relations between a well-know
micro-blogging platform Twitter and financial markets. In particular, we
consider, in a period of 15 months, the Twitter volume and sentiment about the
30 stock companies that form the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) index. We
find a relatively low Pearson correlation and Granger causality between the
corresponding time series over the entire time period. However, we find a
significant dependence between the Twitter sentiment and abnormal returns
during the peaks of Twitter volume. This is valid not only for the expected
Twitter volume peaks (e.g., quarterly announcements), but also for peaks
corresponding to less obvious events. We formalize the procedure by adapting
the well-known "event study" from economics and finance to the analysis of
Twitter data. The procedure allows to automatically identify events as Twitter
volume peaks, to compute the prevailing sentiment (positive or negative)
expressed in tweets at these peaks, and finally to apply the "event study"
methodology to relate them to stock returns. We show that sentiment polarity of
Twitter peaks implies the direction of cumulative abnormal returns. The amount
of cumulative abnormal returns is relatively low (about 1-2%), but the
dependence is statistically significant for several days after the events
MDCK Cystogenesis Driven by Cell Stabilization within Computational Analogues
The study of epithelial morphogenesis is fundamental to increasing our
understanding of organ function and disease. Great progress has been made
through study of culture systems such as Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells,
but many aspects of even simple morphogenesis remain unclear. For example, are
specific cell actions tightly coupled to the characteristics of the cell's
environment or are they more often cell state dependent? How does the single
lumen, single cell layer cyst consistently emerge from a variety of cell
actions? To improve insight, we instantiated in silico analogues that used
hypothesized cell behavior mechanisms to mimic MDCK cystogenesis. We tested them
through in vitro experimentation and quantitative validation. We observed novel
growth patterns, including a cell behavior shift that began around day five of
growth. We created agent-oriented analogues that used the cellular Potts model
along with an Iterative Refinement protocol. Following several refinements, we
achieved a degree of validation for two separate mechanisms. Both survived
falsification and achieved prespecified measures of similarity to cell culture
properties. In silico components and mechanisms mapped to in vitro counterparts.
In silico, the axis of cell division significantly affects lumen number without
changing cell number or cyst size. Reducing the amount of in silico luminal cell
death had limited effect on cystogenesis. Simulations provide an observable
theory for cystogenesis based on hypothesized, cell-level operating
principles
A Study of Cosmic Ray Secondaries Induced by the Mir Space Station Using AMS-01
The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS-02) is a high energy particle physics
experiment that will study cosmic rays in the to range and will be installed on the International Space Station
(ISS) for at least 3 years. A first version of AMS-02, AMS-01, flew aboard the
space shuttle \emph{Discovery} from June 2 to June 12, 1998, and collected
cosmic ray triggers. Part of the \emph{Mir} space station was within the
AMS-01 field of view during the four day \emph{Mir} docking phase of this
flight. We have reconstructed an image of this part of the \emph{Mir} space
station using secondary and emissions from primary cosmic rays
interacting with \emph{Mir}. This is the first time this reconstruction was
performed in AMS-01, and it is important for understanding potential
backgrounds during the 3 year AMS-02 mission.Comment: To be submitted to NIM B Added material requested by referee. Minor
stylistic and grammer change
Isotopic Composition of Light Nuclei in Cosmic Rays: Results from AMS-01
The variety of isotopes in cosmic rays allows us to study different aspects
of the processes that cosmic rays undergo between the time they are produced
and the time of their arrival in the heliosphere. In this paper we present
measurements of the isotopic ratios 2H/4He, 3He/4He, 6Li/7Li, 7Be/(9Be+10Be)
and 10B/11B in the range 0.2-1.4 GeV of kinetic energy per nucleon. The
measurements are based on the data collected by the Alpha Magnetic
Spectrometer, AMS-01, during the STS-91 flight in 1998 June.Comment: To appear in ApJ. 12 pages, 11 figures, 6 table
Protons in near earth orbit
The proton spectrum in the kinetic energy range 0.1 to 200 GeV was measured
by the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) during space shuttle flight STS-91 at
an altitude of 380 km. Above the geomagnetic cutoff the observed spectrum is
parameterized by a power law. Below the geomagnetic cutoff a substantial second
spectrum was observed concentrated at equatorial latitudes with a flux ~ 70
m^-2 sec^-1 sr^-1. Most of these second spectrum protons follow a complicated
trajectory and originate from a restricted geographic region.Comment: 19 pages, Latex, 7 .eps figure
Loneliness and Social Internet Use: Pathways to Reconnection in a Digital World?
With the rise of online social networking, social relationships are increasingly developed and maintained in a digital domain. Drawing conclusions about the impact of the digital world on loneliness is difficult because there are contradictory findings, and cross-sectional studies dominate the literature, making causation difficult to establish. In this review, we present our theoretical model and propose that there is a bidirectional and dynamic relationship between loneliness and social Internet use. When the Internet is used as a way station on the route to enhancing existing relationships and forging new social connections, it is a useful tool for reducing loneliness. But when social technologies are used to escape the social world and withdraw from the “social pain” of interaction, feelings of loneliness are increased. We propose that loneliness is also a determinant of how people interact with the digital world. Lonely people express a preference for using the Internet for social interaction and are more likely to use the Internet in a way that displaces time spent in offline social activities. This suggests that lonely people may need support with their social Internet use so that they employ it in a way that enhances existing friendships and/or to forge new ones
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