Aberrant methylation of Polo-like kinase CpG islands in Plk4 heterozygous mice

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most common cancers world-wide occurs twice as often in men compared to women. Predisposing conditions such as alcoholism, chronic viral hepatitis, aflatoxin B1 ingestion, and cirrhosis all contribute to the development of HCC.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We used a combination of methylation specific PCR and bisulfite sequencing, qReal-Time PCR (qPCR), and Western blot analysis to examine epigenetic changes for the <it>Polo-like kinases </it>(<it>Plks</it>) during the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in <it>Plk4 </it>heterozygous mice and murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here we report that the promoter methylation of <it>Plk4 </it>CpG islands increases with age, was more prevalent in males and that <it>Plk4 </it>epigenetic modification and subsequent downregulation of expression was associated with the development of HCC in <it>Plk4 </it>mutant mice. Interestingly, the opposite occurs with another Plk family member, <it>Plk1 </it>which was typically hypermethylated in normal liver tissue but became hypomethylated and upregulated in liver tumours. Furthermore, upon alcohol exposure murine embryonic fibroblasts exhibited increased <it>Plk4 </it>hypermethylation and downregulation along with increased centrosome numbers and multinucleation.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results suggest that aberrant <it>Plk </it>methylation is correlated with the development of HCC in mice.</p

A922 Sequential measurement of 1 hour creatinine clearance (1-CRCL) in critically ill patients at risk of acute kidney injury (AKI)

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Analysis of glycosaminoglycans induced in newly formed calcium oxalate crystals using an undiluted urine system

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of sodium pentosan polysulfate (SPP) in an undiluted urine system and to study its relative affinity to calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals in the presence or absence of heparan sulfate (HS). CaOx crystals were induced with an overload of oxalate above the metastable limit in spun and filtered urine (SF) and ultrafiltered urine (UF). Then, the crystals were dissolved with EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid), electrodialysed and lyophilized. The polyanions, HS or SPP were added to the UF prior to the addition of oxalate. Polyanions in crystal matrices were examined by cellulose acetate electrophoresis. Crystal volume and size were suppressed according to the increase of the concentration of SPP when compared with those of the UF. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed marked aggregation of the crystals in the UF and no aggregation in the presence of SPP. HS was the only polyanion found in CaOx crystals formed after overload of oxalate in SF. Crystals formed in UF did not contain any polyanions. When SPP was added to UF, SPP appeared in the crystal matrix in accordance with its concentration. Once HS in physiological concentration was added to the UF containing SPP, HS and SPP obtained from crystals were strongly stained with Alcian blue in electrophoretic study, where SPP is stained stronger than HS. These results suggest that SPP strongly binds to CaOx crystals as well as HS and that HS and SPP competitively bind to the crystal, then, as a result, they are incorporated into the crystals. The fact that SPP suppressed the aggregation of CaOx crystals in undiluted urine showed the possibility that SPP might be one of the useful drugs for preventing CaOx urolithiasis.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol and 2-AG decreases neurite outgrowth and differentially affects ERK1/2 and Akt signaling in hiPSC-derived cortical neurons

Endocannabinoids regulate different aspects of neurodevelopment. In utero exposure to the exogenous psychoactive cannabinoid &#x394;9-tetrahydrocannabinol (&#x394;9-THC), has been linked with abnormal cortical development in animal models. However, much less is known about the actions of endocannabinoids in human neurons. Here we investigated the effect of the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoyl glycerol (2AG) and &#x394;9-THC on the development of neuronal morphology and activation of signaling kinases, in cortical neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). Our data indicate that the cannabinoid type 1 receptor (CB1R), but not the cannabinoid 2 receptor (CB2R), GPR55 or TRPV1 receptors, is expressed in young, immature hiPSC-derived cortical neurons. Consistent with previous reports, 2AG and &#x394;9-THC negatively regulated neurite outgrowth. Interestingly, acute exposure to both 2AG and &#x394;9-THC inhibited phosphorylation of serine/threonine kinase extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases (ERK1/2), whereas &#x394;9-THC also reduced phosphorylation of Akt (aka PKB). Moreover, the CB1R inverse agonist SR 141716A attenuated the decrease in neurite outgrowth and ERK1/2 phosphorylation induced by 2AG and &#x394;9-THC. Taken together, our data suggest that hiPSC-derived cortical neurons express CB1Rs and are responsive to exogenous cannabinoids. Thus, hiPSC-neurons may represent a good cellular model for investigating the role of the endocannabinoid system in regulating cellular processes in developing human neurons

Constructing bayesian network graphs from labeled arguments

Bayesian networks (BNs) are powerful tools that are well-suited for reasoning about the uncertain consequences that can be inferred from evidence. Domain experts, however, typically do not have the expertise to construct BNs and instead resort to using other tools such as argument diagrams and mind maps. Recently, a structured approach was proposed to construct a BN graph from arguments annotated with causality information. As argumentative inferences may not be causal, we generalize this approach to include other types of inferences in this paper. Moreover, we prove a number of formal properties of the generalized approach and identify assumptions under which the construction of an initial BN graph can be fully automated

The impact of unemployment and economic risk perceptions on attitudes towards anthropogenic climate change

This study uses public opinion data from 2006 to 2014 to examine the effect of unemployment and partisan identity on attitudes towards anthropogenic climate change. Results show that while Republican partisanship and conservative ideology are strongly associated with lower reported belief in anthropogenic climate change, these attitudes are also shaped by subjective perceptions of economic risk and increased local unemployment rates. I find that exposure to economic risk increases the likelihood of climate change denial among both Democrats and Republicans. These findings help explain trends in environmental public opinion over the past decade, in particular the increase in reported denial or skepticism about climate change after the 2008 economic recession