Passenger Name Records and data protection issues: busting some myths

In her third post examining the overlap between data protection issues and border control (see her first and second posts) Diana Dimitrova from KU Leuven looks at the proposal for a Passenger Name Record, revived after the Charlie Hebdo attacks, from a privacy and data protection angle

Internet regulation and counter-terrorism: the dangerous clash in Pakistan’s regulatory regime

Sadaf Khan, an LSE alumna who has been associated with media and the media development sector in Pakistan since 2002 and who is now Director of Programs for the non-profit Media Matters for Democracy, looks at Pakistan’s draft legislation on cybercrime and the threats it poses

A genetic screening identifies a component of the SWI/SNF complex, Arid1b as a senescence regulator

Senescence is an important tumour suppressor mechanism, which prevents the proliferation of stressed or damaged cells. The use of RNA interference to identify genes with a role in senescence is an important tool in the discovery of novel cancer genes. In this work, a protocol was established for conducting bypass of senescence screenings, using shRNA libraries together with next-generation sequencing. Using this approach, the SWI/SNF subunit Arid1b was identified as a regulator of cellular lifespan in MEFs. SWI/SNF is a large multi-subunit complex that remodels chromatin. Mutations in SWI/SNF proteins are frequently associated with cancer, suggesting that SWI/SNF components are tumour suppressors. Here the role of ARID1B during senescence was investigated. Depletion of ARID1B extends the proliferative capacity of primary mouse and human fibroblasts. Furthermore, in cells expressing mutant RASG12V and PIK3CAH1047R, ARID1B is necessary for the maintenance of oncogene-induced senescence (OIS). Knockdown of ARID1B during OIS results in reduced expression of the CKIs p21Cip1 and p16INK4a. Many SWI/SNF proteins are post-transcriptionally induced during both replicative senescence and OIS, suggesting a broader role for the SWI/SNF complex in senescence. Ectopic expression of components of the SWI/SNF complex induced premature senescence associated with an increase in p21Cip1 and p16INK4a protein levels. SILAC analysis of global changes in protein levels identified enrichment of mitochondrial proteins and depletion of mitotic proteins upon ARID1B expression. Mitochondrial dysfunction and ROS production are important in ARID1B expressing cells as growth arrest was rescued using antioxidant N-acetyl-cysteine. Finally, analysis of cancer genome sequencing data has identified ARID1B as a mutational-driver gene in some cancers. In these tumours, ARID1B mutations are often associated with mutations in TP53 and PTEN. Altogether the present evidence suggests that regulation of senescence by different mechanisms contributes to explain the tumour suppressive properties of the SWI/SNF complex.Open Acces

Greek media in disarray

Maria Kyriakidou, lecturer at the University of East Anglia and researcher on the Euro Crisis in the Press project, discusses a new report on Media Policy and Independent Journalism in Greece and explains the current challenges for Greek media

Antibiotics in acute necrotizing pancreatitis: Perspective of a developing country

Prophylactic antibiotics in acute necrotizing pancreatitis is controversial. The mortality of acute necrotizing pancreatitis is 8-25% in the western world. In view of the limited resources available for managing the complications of infected pancreatitis in developing countries, the use of prophylactic antibiotics may be recommended in selected cases. Various antibiotics show good penetration into the pancreatic tissue; imipenem and quinolones have better penetration. Clinical trials on the use of prophylactic antibiotics in necrotizing pancreatitis have been reviewed. Prophylactic antibiotics have been considered if greater than 30% pancreatic necrosis as documented by CT scan. Imipenem can be given for a duration of 10 to 14 days if no systemic complications are present. In a developing country where the cost of managing complications of pancreatitis can be a limiting factor for patients, the use of prophylactic antibiotics early on in the disease in selected cases can be beneficial

\u3ci\u3eArabidopsis thaliana GH3.9\u3c/i\u3e influences primary root growth

Auxins regulate a complex signal transduction network to direct plant development. Auxin-responsive genes fit into three major classes: the so-called auxin/indole- 3-acetic acid (Aux/IAA), the GH3, and the small auxin-up RNA (SAUR) gene families. The 20-member Arabidopsis thaliana GH3 gene family has been subdivided into three groups. In vitro studies have shown that most Group II members function as IAA–amido synthetases to conjugate amino acids to the plant hormone auxin. Here we report the role of a previously uncharacterized GH3 gene family member, GH3.9, in root growth. Unlike most other Group II family members, GH3.9 expression was repressed by low concentrations of exogenous IAA in seedlings. Transgenic plants harboring a GH3.9 promoter::reporter gene construct indicate that GH3.9 is expressed in the root-hypocotyl junction, leaves and the shoot apical meristem of young seedlings, in mature embryos, and in the root vascular tissue. Expression was also observed in lateral root tips when seedlings were treated with exogenous IAA. Inverse PCR was used to identify an activation tagged T-DNA insertion in chromosome 2 near the 5′UTR region of At2g47750 (GH3.9). Plants homozygous for the T-DNA insertion (gh3.9-1 mutants) had reduced GH3.9 expression, no obvious effects on apical dominance or leaf morphology, greater primary root length, and increased sensitivity to indole- 3-acetic acid (IAA)-mediated root growth inhibition. Additional T-DNA insertion alleles and transgenic plants with reduced GH3.9 transcript levels due to RNA-interference (RNAi) also showed these same phenotypes. Our results provide new information on the function of GH3.9 in roots where it is likely to control auxin activity through amino acid conjugation

Reticulocyte Count and Platelet Count as Predictors of Morphological Remission/Hemopoitic Recovery in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) after Induction Chemotherapy

Objectives: To determine the predictive values of reticulocyte and platelet count for remission in cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia after induction therapy.   Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional observational study was conducted in the department of hematology, MTI Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar. All cases of ALL referred to the department for remission after taking induction therapy, irrespective of age and gender were included. Relevant information wascollected on a predesigned proforma prepared in accordance with the objectives of the study.   Results: A total of 84 cases referred for remission were included, 56(66.7%) were males and 28 (33.3%) were females. 50(59.5%) cases were in the age range of 5-18 years. The mean with a standard deviation of the age of patients was 15+ 4 years. 75(89.3%) of the cases were classified into ALL-1) by FAB classification. 50(59.5%) of the referred cases had achieved morphological remission by bone marrow aspiration. There was a statistically significant rise in Platelet count of the remission vs non-remission cases (p-0.001). Again there was a statistically significant difference in the retic count of the cases with remission (p-0.05). We observed a statically significant downhill moderate correlation ofretic count with remission (in termsof blast count of BM aspiration) (p-0.04, r:-0.32). Platelet count also had an inverse significant correlation with remission ( p-0.01, r:-0.37). The diagnostic roles of the peripheral platelet count and retic yielded an area under curves of (0.768 and 0.648 respectively) to predict remission.We observed that the retic count and platelet count havebeen shown to have strong predictive valuesfor remission in ALL with interaction values of (R= 0.28**, ΔR²=0.02, p=0.08). Similarly, an increase in platelet also has a strong predictive value for remission in ALL cases with interaction values of (R= 0.41**, ΔR²=0.16, p=0.001)   Conclusion: In ALL cases of post-induction therapy, The peripheral blood reading for an increase in Retic and platelet count predictsremission with 95% confidence. These values if strictly observed can reduce the frequency of invasive procedures like bone marrow aspiration.   Keywords: ALL, Remission, Reticulocyte count, Platelet count

Reticulocyte Count and Platelet Count as Predictors of Morphological Remission/Hemopoitic Recovery in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) after Induction Chemotherapy

Objectives: To determine the predictive values of reticulocyte and platelet count for remission in cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia after induction therapy.   Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional observational study was conducted in the department of hematology, MTI Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar. All cases of ALL referred to the department for remission after taking induction therapy, irrespective of age and gender were included. Relevant information wascollected on a predesigned proforma prepared in accordance with the objectives of the study.   Results: A total of 84 cases referred for remission were included, 56(66.7%) were males and 28 (33.3%) were females. 50(59.5%) cases were in the age range of 5-18 years. The mean with a standard deviation of the age of patients was 15+ 4 years. 75(89.3%) of the cases were classified into ALL-1) by FAB classification. 50(59.5%) of the referred cases had achieved morphological remission by bone marrow aspiration. There was a statistically significant rise in Platelet count of the remission vs non-remission cases (p-0.001). Again there was a statistically significant difference in the retic count of the cases with remission (p-0.05). We observed a statically significant downhill moderate correlation ofretic count with remission (in termsof blast count of BM aspiration) (p-0.04, r:-0.32). Platelet count also had an inverse significant correlation with remission ( p-0.01, r:-0.37). The diagnostic roles of the peripheral platelet count and retic yielded an area under curves of (0.768 and 0.648 respectively) to predict remission.We observed that the retic count and platelet count havebeen shown to have strong predictive valuesfor remission in ALL with interaction values of (R= 0.28**, ΔR²=0.02, p=0.08). Similarly, an increase in platelet also has a strong predictive value for remission in ALL cases with interaction values of (R= 0.41**, ΔR²=0.16, p=0.001)   Conclusion: In ALL cases of post-induction therapy, The peripheral blood reading for an increase in Retic and platelet count predictsremission with 95% confidence. These values if strictly observed can reduce the frequency of invasive procedures like bone marrow aspiration.   Keywords: ALL, Remission, Reticulocyte count, Platelet count