Making progress in genetic kin recognition among vertebrates

A recent study in BMC Evolutionary Biology has shown that genetically similar individual ring-tailed lemurs are also more similar in their scent composition, suggesting a possible mechanism of kin recognition. Theoretical and experimental studies reveal challenges ahead in achieving a true systems-level understanding of this process and its outcomes

Large-scale and significant expression from pseudogenes in Sodalis glossinidius – a facultative bacterial endosymbiont

The majority of bacterial genomes have high coding efficiencies, but there are some genomes of intracellular bacteria that have low gene density. The genome of the endosymbiont Sodalis glossinidius contains almost 50 % pseudogenes containing mutations that putatively silence them at the genomic level. We have applied multiple ‘omic’ strategies, combining Illumina and Pacific Biosciences Single-Molecule Real-Time DNA sequencing and annotation, stranded RNA sequencing and proteome analysis to better understand the transcriptional and translational landscape of Sodalis pseudogenes, and potential mechanisms for their control. Between 53 and 74 % of the Sodalis transcriptome remains active in cell-free culture. The mean sense transcription from coding domain sequences (CDSs) is four times greater than that from pseudogenes. Comparative genomic analysis of six Illumina-sequenced Sodalis isolates from different host Glossina species shows pseudogenes make up ~40 % of the 2729 genes in the core genome, suggesting that they are stable and/or that Sodalis is a recent introduction across the genus Glossina as a facultative symbiont. These data shed further light on the importance of transcriptional and translational control in deciphering host–microbe interactions. The combination of genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics gives a multidimensional perspective for studying prokaryotic genomes with a view to elucidating evolutionary adaptation to novel environmental niches

Spatial dissection of the Arabidopsis thaliana transcriptional response to downy mildew using fluorescence activated cell sorting

Changes in gene expression form a crucial part of the plant response to infection. In the last decade, whole-leaf expression profiling has played a valuable role in identifying genes and processes that contribute to the interactions between the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and a diverse range of pathogens. However, with some pathogens such as downy mildew caused by the biotrophic oomycete pathogen Hyaloperonospora arabidopsidis (Hpa), whole-leaf profiling may fail to capture the complete Arabidopsis response encompassing responses of non-infected as well as infected cells within the leaf. Highly localized expression changes that occur in infected cells may be diluted by the comparative abundance of non-infected cells. Furthermore, local and systemic Hpa responses of a differing nature may become conflated. To address this we applied the technique of Fluorescence Activated Cell Sorting (FACS), typically used for analyzing plant abiotic responses, to the study of plant-pathogen interactions. We isolated haustoriated (Hpa-proximal) and non-haustoriated (Hpa-distal) cells from infected seedling samples using FACS, and measured global gene expression. When compared with an uninfected control, 278 transcripts were identified as significantly differentially expressed, the vast majority of which were differentially expressed specifically in Hpa-proximal cells. By comparing our data to previous, whole organ studies, we discovered many highly locally regulated genes that can be implicated as novel in the Hpa response, and that were uncovered for the first time using our sensitive FACS technique

Examining the existence of double jeopardy and negative double jeopardy within Twitter

Purpose: The theory of Double Jeopardy (DJ) is shown to hold across broad ranging geographies and physical product categories. However, there is very little research appertaining to the subject within an online environment. In particular, studies that investigate the presence of DJ and the contrasting view point to DJ, namely that of Negative Double Jeopardy (NDJ), are lacking. This study contributes to this identified research gap, and examines the presence of DJ and NDJ within a product category, utilising data from Twitter. Design/methodology/approach: 354,676 tweets are scraped from Twitter and their sentiment analysed and allocated into positive, negative and no-opinion clusters using fuzzy c-means clustering. The sentiment is then compared to the market share of brands within the beer product category to establish whether a DJ or NDJ effect is present. Findings: The data reveals an NDJ effect with regards to original tweets (i.e. tweets which have not been retweeted). That is, when analysing tweets relating to brands within a defined beer category, we find that larger brands suffer by having an increased negativity amongst the larger proportion of tweets associated with them. Research limitations/implications: The clustering approach to analyse sentiment in Twitter data brings a new direction to analysis of such sentiment. Future consideration of different numbers of clusters may further the insights this form of analysis can bring to the DJ/NDJ phenomenon. Managerial implications discuss the uncovered practitioner’s paradox of NDJ and strategies for dealing with DJ and NDJ effects. Originality/value: This study is the first to explore the presence of DJ and NDJ through the utilisation of sentiment analysis derived data and fuzzy clustering. DJ and NDJ are under-explored constructs in the online environment. Typically, past research examines DJ and NDJ in separate and detached fashions. Thus, the study is of theoretical value because it outlines boundaries to the DJ and NDJ conditions. Second, this research is the first study to analyse the sentiment of consumer-authored tweets to explore DJ and NDJ effects. This study also highlights the need to separate original tweets from retweets because our data shows that jeopardy dynamics differ in these different domains. Finally, the current study offers valuable insight into the DJ and NDJ effects for practicing marketing managers. Examining the existence of double jeopardy and negative double jeopardy within Twitter. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313056508_Examining_the_existence_of_double_jeopardy_and_negative_double_jeopardy_within_Twitter [accessed May 2, 2017]

The male sex pheromone darcin stimulates hippocampal neurogenesis and cell proliferation in the subventricular zone in female mice

The integration of newly generated neurons persists throughout life in the mammalian olfactory bulb and hippocampus, regions involved in olfactory and spatial learning. Social cues can be potent stimuli for increasing adult neurogenesis; for example, odors from dominant but not subordinate male mice increase neurogenesis in both brain regions of adult females. However, little is known about the role of neurogenesis in social recognition or the assessment of potential mates. Dominant male mice scent-mark territories using urine that contains a number of pheromones including darcin (MUP20), a male-specific major urinary protein that stimulates rapid learned attraction to the spatial location and individual odor signature of the scent owner. Here we investigate whether exposure to darcin stimulates neurogenesis in the female brain. Hippocampal neurons and cellular proliferation in the lateral ventricles that supply neurons to the olfactory bulbs increased in females exposed for 7 days to male urine containing at least 0.5 μg/μl darcin. Darcin was effective whether presented alone or in the context of male urine, but other information in male urine appeared to modulate the proliferative response. When exposed to urine from wild male mice, hippocampal proliferation increased only if urine was from the same individual over 7 days, suggesting that consistency of individual scent signatures is important. While 7 days exposure to male scent initiated the first stages of increased neurogenesis, this caused no immediate increase in female attraction to the scent or in the strength or robustness of spatial learning in short-term conditioned place preference tests. The reliable and consistent stimulation of neurogenesis by a pheromone important in rapid social learning suggests that this may provide an excellent model to explore the relationship between the integration of new neurons and plasticity in spatial and olfactory learning in a socially-relevant context

Effectiveness of interventions to increase hepatitis C testing uptake among high-risk groups: a systematic review

Background: People who inject drugs are at the greatest risk of acquiring hepatitis C virus infection in many high-income countries, including those in Europe. Our review examined the effectiveness of interventions aimed at increasing hepatitis C virus testing uptake. Methods: We undertook a systematic review of controlled studies. Searches of 13 databases were supplemented with citation searching, and manual searches of reference lists and websites. Studies of interventions that aimed to increase testing uptake among high-risk groups were included. Testing uptake was our primary outcome measure of interest and secondary outcomes were engagement in follow-up services and treatment. A narrative synthesis was undertaken. Results: Eight controlled studies were included. Three studies examined interventions in primary care; one examined dried blood spot testing as an alternative method of testing, and two examined outreach provision. Two further studies examined interventions to improve hepatitis C management. Targeted case finding in primary care, support and training for primary care practitioners, offering alternative testing and provision of outreach testing all increased uptake of testing; however, intervention effects were variable. Conclusions: Evidence from the available studies suggests that increases in testing uptake can be achieved. Careful attention needs to be paid to the resource implications associated with implementation of interventions in primary care settings and also of the potential for interventions to improve outcomes once a positive diagnosis has been made. Further research on the cost-effectiveness of the intervention approaches examined in this review is required

Protein processing characterized by a gel-free proteomics approach

We describe a method for the specific isolation of representative N-terminal peptides of proteins and their proteolytic fragments. Their isolation is based on a gel-free, peptidecentric proteomics approach using the principle of diagonal chromatography. We will indicate that the introduction of an altered chemical property to internal peptides holding a free α-N-terminus results in altered column retention of these peptides, thereby enabling the isolation and further characterization by mass spectrometry of N-terminal peptides. Besides pointing to changes in protein expression levels when performing such proteome surveys in a differential modus, protease specificity and substrate repertoires can be allocated since both are specified by neo-N-termini generated after a protease cleavage event. As such, our gel-free proteomics technology is widely applicable and amenable for a variety of proteome-driven protease degradomics research

Suited for Success? : Suits, Status, and Hybrid Masculinity

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version. The final, definitive version of this paper has been published in Men and Masculinities, March 2017, doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184X17696193, published by SAGE Publishing, All rights reserved.This article analyzes the sartorial biographies of four Canadian men to explore how the suit is understood and embodied in everyday life. Each of these men varied in their subject positions—body shape, ethnicity, age, and gender identity—which allowed us to look at the influence of men’s intersectional identities on their relationship with their suits. The men in our research all understood the suit according to its most common representation in popular culture: a symbol of hegemonic masculinity. While they wore the suit to embody hegemonic masculine configurations of practice—power, status, and rationality—most of these men were simultaneously marginalized by the gender hierarchy. We explain this disjuncture by using the concept of hybrid masculinity and illustrate that changes in the style of hegemonic masculinity leave its substance intact. Our findings expand thinking about hybrid masculinity by revealing the ways subordinated masculinities appropriate and reinforce hegemonic masculinity.Peer reviewe

What influences withdrawal because of rejection of telehealth - the whole systems demonstrator evaluation

Purpose: The widespread deployment of telehealth (TH) has been conducted in the absence of any clear understanding of how acceptable these devices are to patients. One potential limitation of the widespread deployment of TH is that patients may refuse. Moreover an understanding of the reasons for refusing to use TH devices will provide an understanding of the barriers. Design/methodology/approach: This investigation from the Whole Systems Demonstrator (WSD) programme, a pragmatic cluster randomised controlled trial into the effectiveness of TH, examined reasons for patients in the intervention cohort of the trial refusing TH, and the potential barriers to its deployment. Findings: Active rejection of the TH intervention was the most frequent reason for withdrawal. After examination of trial-related, health, socio-demographic, cognitive, emotional and behavioural factors, patients diagnosed with diabetes, as opposed to heart failure or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and patients' beliefs about the acceptability of the intervention predicted whether or not they withdrew from the trial because of the intervention. Originality/value: Beliefs that the TH intervention resulted in increased accessibility to care, satisfaction with equipment and fewer concerns about the privacy, safety and discomfort associated with using TH equipment predicted continued participation in the WSD trial. Findings suggest that potentially modifiable beliefs about TH predict those more likely to reject the intervention. These findings have important implications for understanding individual differences in the acceptance of TH and subsequent success in mainstreaming TH in healthcare services. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited

The Genetic Basis of Individual-Recognition Signals in the Mouse

SummaryThe major histocompatibility complex (MHC) is widely assumed to be a primary determinant of individual-recognition scents in many vertebrates [1–6], but there has been no functional test of this in animals with normal levels of genetic variation. Mice have evolved another polygenic and highly polymorphic set of proteins for scent communication, the major urinary proteins (MUPs) [7–12], which may provide a more reliable identity signature ([13, 14] and A.L. Sherborne, M.D.T., S. Paterson, F.J., W.E.R.O., P. Stockley, R.J.B., and J.L.H., unpublished data). We used female preference for males that countermark competitor male scents [15–17] to test the ability of wild-derived mice to recognize individual males differing in MHC or MUP type on a variable genetic background. Differences in MHC type were not used for individual recognition. Instead, recognition depended on a difference in MUP type, regardless of other genetic differences between individuals. Recognition also required scent contact, consistent with detection of involatile components through the vomeronasal system [6, 18]. Other differences in individual scent stimulated investigation but did not result in individual recognition. Contrary to untested assumptions of a vertebrate-wide mechanism based largely on MHC variation, mice use a species-specific [12] individual identity signature that can be recognized reliably despite the complex internal and external factors that influence scents [2]. Specific signals for genetic identity recognition in other species now need to be investigated