Distinct Steps of Neural Induction Revealed by Asterix, Obelix and TrkC, Genes Induced by Different Signals from the Organizer

The amniote organizer (Hensen's node) can induce a complete nervous system when grafted into a peripheral region of a host embryo. Although BMP inhibition has been implicated in neural induction, non-neural cells cannot respond to BMP antagonists unless previously exposed to a node graft for at least 5 hours before BMP inhibitors. To define signals and responses during the first 5 hours of node signals, a differential screen was conducted. Here we describe three early response genes: two of them, Asterix and Obelix, encode previously undescribed proteins of unknown function but Obelix appears to be a nuclear RNA-binding protein. The third is TrkC, a neurotrophin receptor. All three genes are induced by a node graft within 4–5 hours but they differ in the extent to which they are inducible by FGF: FGF is both necessary and sufficient to induce Asterix, sufficient but not necessary to induce Obelix and neither sufficient nor necessary for induction of TrkC. These genes are also not induced by retinoic acid, Noggin, Chordin, Dkk1, Cerberus, HGF/SF, Somatostatin or ionomycin-mediated Calcium entry. Comparison of the expression and regulation of these genes with other early neural markers reveals three distinct “epochs”, or temporal waves, of gene expression accompanying neural induction by a grafted organizer, which are mirrored by specific stages of normal neural plate development. The results are consistent with neural induction being a cascade of responses elicited by different signals, culminating in the formation of a patterned nervous system

Patterns of antimicrobial resistance in a surgical intensive care unit of a university hospital in Turkey

BACKGROUND: Several studies have reported higher rates of antimicrobial resistance among isolates from intensive care units than among isolates from general patient-care areas. The aims of this study were to review the pathogens associated with nosocomial infections in a surgical intensive care unit of a university hospital in Turkey and to summarize rates of antimicrobial resistance in the most common pathogens. The survey was conducted over a period of twelve months in a tertiary-care teaching hospital located in the south-eastern part of Turkey, Gaziantep. A total of 871 clinical specimens from 615 adult patients were collected. From 871 clinical specimens 771 bacterial and fungal isolates were identified. RESULTS: Most commonly isolated microorganisms were: Pseudomonas aeruginosa (20.3%), Candida species (15%) and Staphylococcus aureus (12.9%). Among the Gram-negative microorganisms P. aeruginosa were mostly resistant to third-generation cephalosporins (71.3–98.1%), while Acinetobacter baumannii were resistant in all cases to piperacillin, ceftazidime and ceftriaxone. Isolates of S. aureus were mostly resistant to penicillin, ampicillin, and methicillin (82–95%), whereas coagulase-negative staphylococci were 98.6% resistant to methicillin and in all cases resistant to ampicillin and tetracycline. CONCLUSION: In order to reduce the emergence and spread of antimicrobial-resistant pathogens in ICUs, monitoring and optimization of antimicrobial use in hospitals are strictly recommended. Therefore local resistance surveillance programs are of most value in developing appropriate therapeutic guidelines for specific infections and patient types

Reversible Integration of Microfluidic Devices with Microelectrode Arrays for Neurobiological Applications

The majority of current state-of-the-art microfluidic devices are fabricated via replica molding of the fluidic channels into PDMS elastomer and then permanently bonding it to a Pyrex surface using plasma oxidation. This method presents a number of problems associated with the bond strengths, versatility, applicability to alternative substrates, and practicality. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate a more practical method of integrating microfluidics which is superior in terms of bond strengths, reversible, and applicable to a larger variety of substrates, including microfabricated devices. To achieve the above aims, a modular microfluidic system, capable of reversible microfluidic device integration, simultaneous surface patterning and multichannel fluidic perfusion, was built. To demonstrate the system’s potential, the ability to control the distribution of A549 cells inside a microfluidic channel was tested. Then, the system was integrated with a chemically patterned microelectrode array, and used it to culture primary, rat embryo spinal cord neurons in a dynamic fluidic environment. The results of this study showed that this system has the potential to be a cost effective and importantly, a practical means of integrating microfluidics. The system’s robustness and the ability to withstand extensive manual handling have the additional benefit of reducing the workload. It also has the potential to be easily integrated with alternative substrates such as stainless steel or gold without extensive chemical modifications. The results of this study are of significant relevance to research involving neurobiological applications, where primary cell cultures on microelectrode arrays require this type of flexible integrated solution

Field realistic doses of pesticide imidacloprid reduce bumblebee pollen foraging efficiency

Bumblebees and other pollinators provide a vital ecosystem service for the agricultural sector. Recent studies however have suggested that exposure to systemic neonicotinoid insecticides in flowering crops has sub-lethal effects on the bumblebee workforce, and hence in reducing queen production. The mechanism behind reduced nest performance, however, remains unclear. Here we use Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to test whether exposure to a low, field realistic dose (0.7 ppb in sugar water and 6 ppb in pollen) of the neonicotinoid imidacloprid, reduces worker foraging efficiency. Whilst the nectar foraging efficiency of bees treated with imidacloprid was not significantly different than that of control bees, treated bees brought back pollen less often than control bees (40 % of trips vs 63 % trips, respectively) and, where pollen was collected, treated bees brought back 31 % less pollen per hour than controls. This study demonstrates that field-realistic doses of these pesticides substantially impacts on foraging ability of bumblebee workers when collecting pollen, and we suggest that this provides a causal mechanism behind reduced queen production in imidacloprid exposed colonies

CD36-mediated activation of endothelial cell apoptosis by an N-terminal recombinant fragment of thrombospondin-2 inhibits breast cancer growth and metastasis in vivo

Thus far the clinical benefits seen in breast cancer patients treated with drugs targeting the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway are only modest. Consequently, additional antiangiogenic approaches for treatment of breast cancer need to be investigated. Thrombospondin-2 (TSP-2) has been shown to inhibit tumor growth and angiogenesis with a greater potency than the related molecule TSP-1. The systemic effects of TSP-2 on tumor metastasis and the underlying molecular mechanisms of the antiangiogenic activity of TSP-2 have remained poorly understood. We generated a recombinant fusion protein consisting of the N-terminal region of TSP-2 and the IgG-Fc1 fragment (N-TSP2-Fc) and could demonstrate that the antiangiogenic activity of N-TSP2-Fc is dependent on the CD36 receptor. We found that N-TSP2-Fc inhibited VEGF-induced tube formation of human dermal microvascular endothelial cells (HDMEC) on matrigel in vitro and that concurrent incubation of anti-CD36 antibody with N-TSP2-Fc resulted in tube formation that was comparable to untreated control. N-TSP2-Fc potently induced apoptosis of HDMEC in vitro in a CD36-dependent manner. Moreover, we could demonstrate a CD36 receptor-mediated loss of mitochondrial membrane potential and activation of caspase-3 in HDMEC in vitro. Daily intraperitoneal injections of N-TSP2-Fc resulted in a significant inhibition of the growth of human MDA-MB-435 and MDA-MB-231 tumor cells grown in the mammary gland of immunodeficient nude mice and in reduced tumor vascularization. Finally, increased serum concentrations of N-TSP2-Fc significantly inhibited regional metastasis to lymph nodes and distant metastasis to lung as shown by quantitative real-time alu PCR. These results identify N-TSP2-Fc as a potent systemic inhibitor of tumor metastasis and provide strong evidence for an important role of the CD36 receptor in mediating the antiangiogenic activity of TSP-2

Pesan Moral Islami Dalam Film Le Grand Voyage Karya Ismael Ferroukhi: Sebuah Tinjauan Struktural

Kata kunci : Film, sastra, struktural, pesan moral, Islam.Film merupakan produk budaya yang tidak hanya menjadi hiburan di masyarakat, tetapi juga sebagai sarana penyampaian pesan moral yang mengarifkan. Salah satufilm Perancis yang dianggap menginspirasi adalah film berjudul Le grand voyageyang ditulis dan disutradarai oleh Ismaël Ferroukhi. Film ini bercerita tentang perjalanan seorang muslim keturunan Maroko dan anaknya yang bernama Reda.Mereka menempuh jarak ribuan mil dari Perancis menuju ke kota Makah untukmelaksanakan haji hanya dengan mengendarai sebuah mobil tua. Penelitian inibertujuan untuk mengetahui pesan moral islami apa saja yang terkandung dalamfilm Le grand voyage dan bagaimana pesan tersebut dimunculkan dalam film.Penelitian ini menggunakan teori Struktural untuk menjawab rumusan masalah.Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif dengan menggunakan teknik studipustaka serta dokumentasi sebagai metode pengumpulan data, dan teknikdeskriptif dalam proses analisis data.Berdasarkan hasil penelitian ini, terdapat 13 pesan moral islami yang terkandungdalam film Le grand voyage. Semua pesan moral tersebut mengacu pada sebuahproses perbaikan moral dan spiritual antara manusia dengan manusia dan alam,serta antara manusia dengan TuhanPenulis menyarankan pada penelitian selanjutnya untuk meneliti film Le grandvoyage menggunakan pendekatan sosiologi sastra yang nantinya dapat mengupashal apa saja yang melatarbelakangi pembuatan film ini dan tujuan sebenarnyayang ingin dicapai oleh pembuat film Le grand voyage