2,647 research outputs found

    3D garment digitisation for virtual wardrobe using a commodity depth sensor

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    5-Aminovaleric acid (5AVA) is an important five-carbon platform chemical that can be used for the synthesis of polymers and other chemicals of industrial interest. Enzymatic conversion of L-lysine to 5AVA has been achieved by employing lysine 2-monooxygenase encoded by the davB gene and 5-aminovaleramidase encoded by the davA gene. Additionally, a recombinant Escherichia coli strain expressing the davB and davA genes has been developed for bioconversion of L-lysine to 5AVA. To use glucose and xylose derived from lignocellulosic biomass as substrates, rather than L-lysine as a substrate, we previously examined direct fermentative production of 5AVA from glucose by metabolically engineered E. coli strains. However, the yield and productivity of 5AVA achieved by recombinant E. coli strains remain very low. Thus, Corynebacterium glutamicum, a highly efficient L-lysine producing microorganism, should be useful in the development of direct fermentative production of 5AVA using L-lysine as a precursor for 5AVA. Here, we report the development of metabolically engineered C. glutamicum strains for enhanced fermentative production of 5AVA from glucose.Various expression vectors containing different promoters and origins of replication were examined for optimal expression of Pseudomonas putida davB and davA genes encoding lysine 2-monooxygenase and delta-aminovaleramidase, respectively. Among them, expression of the C. glutamicum codon-optimized davA gene fused with His-Tag at its N-Terminal and the davB gene as an operon under a strong synthetic H promoter (plasmid p36davAB3) in C. glutamicum enabled the most efficient production of 5AVA. Flask culture and fed-batch culture of this strain produced 6.9 and 19.7\ua0g/L (together with 11.9\ua0g/L glutaric acid as major byproduct) of 5AVA, respectively. Homology modeling suggested that endogenous gamma-aminobutyrate aminotransferase encoded by the gabT gene might be responsible for the conversion of 5AVA to glutaric acid in recombinant C. glutamicum. Fed-batch culture of a C. glutamicum gabT mutant-harboring p36davAB3 produced 33.1\ua0g/L 5AVA with much reduced (2.0\ua0g/L) production of glutaric acid.Corynebacterium glutamicum was successfully engineered to produce 5AVA from glucose by optimizing the expression of two key enzymes, lysine 2-monooxygenase and delta-aminovaleramidase. In addition, production of glutaric acid, a major byproduct, was significantly reduced by employing C. glutamicum gabT mutant as a host strain. The metabolically engineered C. glutamicum strains developed in this study should be useful for enhanced fermentative production of the novel C5 platform chemical 5AVA from renewable resources

    Value of Manganese-Enhanced T1- and T2-Weighted MR Cholangiography for Differentiating Cystic Parenchymal Lesions from Cystic Abnormalities which Communicate with Bile Ducts

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    We present a case report to show how manganese-enhanced T1- and T2-weighted MR cholangiography could differentiate cystic parenchymal lesions from cystic abnormalities which communicate with the bile ducts

    Exophytic combined hepatocellular carcinoma and cholangiocarcinoma

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    Accidental ingestion of E-cigarette liquid nicotine in a 15-month-old child: an infant mortality case of nicotine intoxication

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    Electronic cigarettes are novel tobacco products that are frequently used these days. The cartridge contains liquid nicotine and accidental poisoning, even with a small oral dose, endangers children. We present here a mortality case of a 15-month-old child who ingested liquid nicotine mistaking it for cold medicine. When the emergency medical technicians arrived, she was found to have pulseless electrical activity. Spontaneous circulation was restored after approximately 40 minutes of cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The cotinine level in her urine was 1,716 ng/mL. Despite intensive supportive care, severe anoxic brain injury was found on computed tomography and the child ultimately died. This fatality highlights the need for public health efforts to minimize such accidents

    Incidentally Detected Situs Ambiguous in Adults

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    Situs ambiguous is rare congenital anomaly in adults. In 2 adult patients who admitted for different cardiac problems, situs ambiguous with polysplenia was detected. A 42-year-old male admitted for radio frequent catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation, and he had left-sided inferior vena cava (IVC), hepatic segment of IVC interruption with hemiazygos continuation, multiple spleens and intestinal malrotation. And in a 52-year-old female case who was hospitalized due to infective endocarditis after implanting pacemaker for sick sinus syndrome, multiple spleens, left-sided stomach, bilateral liver with midline gallbladder, and left-sided IVC were found. Those findings were consistent with situs ambiguous with polysplenia, but their features were distinctive

    Phenotypic and Functional Changes of Peripheral Ly6C(+) T Regulatory Cells Driven by Conventional Effector T Cells

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    A relatively high affinity/avidity of T cell receptor (TCR) recognition for self-peptide bound to major histocompatibility complex II (self-pMHC) ligands is a distinctive feature of CD4 T regulatory (Treg) cells, including their development in the thymus and maintenance of their suppressive functions in the periphery. Despite such high self-reactivity, however, all thymic-derived peripheral Treg populations are neither homogenous in their phenotype nor uniformly immune-suppressive in their function under steady state condition. We show here that based on the previously defined heterogeneity in the phenotype of peripheral Treg populations, Ly6C expression on Treg marks a lower degree of activation, proliferation, and differentiation status as well as functional incompetence. We also demonstrate that Ly6C expression on Treg in a steady state is either up-or downregulated depending on relative amounts of tonic TCR signals derived from its contacts with self-ligands. Interestingly, peripheral appearance and maintenance of these Ly6C-expressing Treg cells largely differed in an age-dependent manner, with their proportion being continuously increased from perinatal to young adult period but then being gradually declined with age. The reduction of Ly6C(+) Treg in the aged mice was not due to their augmented cell death but rather resulted from downregulation of Ly6C expression. The Ly6C down-regulation was accompanied by proliferation of Ly6C(+) Treg cells and subsequent change into Ly6C-effector Treg with concomitant restoration of immune-suppressive activity. Importantly, we found that this phenotypic and functional change of Ly6C(+) Treg is largely driven by conventional effector T cell population. Collectively, these findings suggest a potential cross-talk between peripheral Treg subsets and effector T cells and provides better understanding for Treg homeostasis and function on maintaining self-tolerance.110Ysciescopu
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