The effect of age on phosphatidylinositol kinase, phosphatidylinositol phosphate kinase and diacylglycerol kinase activities in rat brain cortex

A previous study, in which a lysed fraction was used with endogenous phospholipids as substrate, revealed age-related changes in PA and PIP2 formation but not in PIP formation (Bothmer et al., Neurochem. Int. 21, 223-228, 1992). To rule out the influence of substrate availability in the present study, the effect of age on PI kinase, PIP kinase and DAG kinase activities was studied with exogenous phospholipids as substrate in the cerebral cortex from 8-month-old, 14-month-old and 26-month-old Brown Norway rats. PI kinase activity was predominantly located in a tight membrane-bound protein fraction, DAG kinase activity in cytosolic and loosely membrane-bound protein fractions, and PIP kinase activity was present in all three protein preparations. The effects of age were limited to a small increase in kinase activity in the tight membrane-bound protein fraction in 14-month-old and 26-month-old rats compared to 8-month-old rats, and a 10% decrease in PIP kinase activity in the cytosolic protein fraction in 14-month-old and 26-month-old rats compared to 8-month-old rats. DAG kinase activity showed no age-related changes. In conclusion, one should take care in comparing rat aging with human aging as PI kinase activity shows an age-related decline in human brain cortex (Jolles et al., J. Neurochem. 58, 2326-2329, 1992). Furthermore, previously reported decreases in PA formation rates in rat brain are probably not due to changes in DAG kinase itself but to changes in DAG availability, although further experimental evidence is needed to confirm this conclusion

Phosphatidylinositol kinase is reduced in Alzheimer's disease

Abstract: Phosphatidylinositol (PI) kinase and PI phosphate (PIP) kinase activities were measured in postmortem samples of brain tissue from patients with Alzheimer's disease and nondemented control subjects. A membrane‐free cytosolic fraction from four neocortical locations, with exogenous inositol lipids as the substrate, was used. Tissue from patients with Alzheimer's disease was characterized by reduced PIP formation; the reduction was 50% in prefrontal cortex, temporal cortex, and parietal cortex and 40% in precentral gyrus. In contrast, no alterations were found in PI bisphosphate formation in these four neocortical locations. The specific changes in PI kinase but not PIP kinase activity suggest that the findings may have functional relevance to the involvement of brain membrane processes in Alzheimer's disease

An analysis of interplanetary solar radio emissions associated with a coronal mass ejection

Coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are large-scale eruptions of magnetized plasma that may cause severe geomagnetic storms if Earth-directed. Here we report a rare instance with comprehensive in situ and remote sensing observa- tions of a CME combining white-light, radio, and plasma measurements from four different vantage points. For the first time, we have successfully applied a radio direction-finding technique to an interplanetary type II burst detected by two identical widely separated radio receivers. The derived locations of the type II and type III bursts are in general agreement with the white light CME recon- struction. We find that the radio emission arises from the flanks of the CME, and are most likely associated with the CME-driven shock. Our work demon- strates the complementarity between radio triangulation and 3D reconstruction techniques for space weather applications

Genome Symbols in the Triticeae (Poaceae)

A system for the application of nuclear genome symbols in the tribe Triticeae is proposed. It is based mainly on prevailing symbols. In agreement with this, the system uses individual upper case letters as symbols in the first place. Since the number of basic nuclear genomes in the Triticeae exceeds the number of single letters in the Roman alphabet, some basic genomes are designated with an upper case letter followed by a lower case letter, e.g. Ns for the genome of Psathyrostachys. Superscripts in small letters are used when modified versions of a basic genome are referred to, e.g. HP for the genome found in Hordeum pusillum. Unknown or equivocally identified genomes are designated by X followed by a lower case letter, e.g. Xu for Hordeum murinum. Underline of the relevant genome symbol can be used to indicate the origin of the cytoplasm

Galactic Abundances: Report of Working Group 3

We summarize the various methods and their limitations and strengths to derive galactic abundances from in-situ and remote-sensing measurements, both from ground-based observations and from instruments in space. Because galactic abundances evolve in time and space it is important to obtain information with a variety of different methods covering different regions from the Very Local Insterstellar Medium (VLISM) to the distant galaxy, and different times throughout the evolution of the galaxy. We discuss the study of the present-day VLISM with neutral gas, pickup ions, and Anomalous Cosmic Rays, the study of the local interstellar medium (ISM) at distances <1.5 kpc utilizing absorption line measurements in H I clouds, and the study of galactic cosmic rays, sampling contemporary (~15 Myr) sources in the local ISM within a few kiloparsec of the solar system. Solar system abundances, derived from solar abundances and meteorite studies are discussed in several other chapters of this volume. They provide samples of matter from the ISM from the time of solar system format ion, about 4.5 Gyr ago. The evolution of galactic abundances on longer time scales is discussed in the context of nuclear synthesis in the various contributing stellar objects

Partially-erupting prominences: a comparison between observations and model-predicted observables

&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Aims:&lt;/b&gt; We investigate several partially-erupting prominences to study their relationship with other CME-associated phenomena and compare these observations with observables predicted by a model of partially-expelled-flux-ropes (Gibson &#38; Fan 2006a, ApJ, 637, L65; 2006b, J. Geophys. Res., 111, 12103).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Methods:&lt;/b&gt; We studied 6 selected events with partially-erupting prominences using multi-wavelength observations recorded by the Extreme-ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT), Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE), Mauna Loa Solar Observatory (MLSO), Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO), and Soft X-ray Telescope (SXT). The observational features associated with partially-erupting prominences were then compared with the predicted observables from the model.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Results:&lt;/b&gt; The partially-expelled-flux-rope (PEFR) model can explain the partial eruption of these prominences, and in addition predicts a variety of other CME-related observables that provide evidence of internal reconnection during eruption. We find that all of the partially-erupting prominences studied in this paper exhibit indirect evidence of internal reconnection. Moreover, all cases showed evidence of at least one observable unique to the PEFR model, e.g., dimmings external to the source region and/or a soft X-ray cusp overlying a reformed sigmoid.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/b&gt; The PEFR model provides a plausible mechanism to explain the observed evolution of partially-erupting-prominence-associated CMEs in our study.&lt;/p&gt