A Comprehensive In Silico Analysis of the Functional and Structural Impact of SNPs in the IGF1R Gene

Insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF1R) acts as a critical mediator of cell proliferation and survival. Many single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) found in the IGF1R gene have been associated with various diseases, including both breast and prostate cancer. The genetics of these diseases could be better understood by knowing the functions of these SNPs. In this study, we performed a comprehensive analysis of the functional and structural impact of all known SNPs in this gene using publicly available computational prediction tools. Out of a total of 2412 SNPs in IGF1R retrieved from dbSNP, we found 32 nsSNPs, 58 sSNPs, 83 mRNA 3′ UTR SNPs, and 2225 intronic SNPs. Among the nsSNPs, a total of six missense nsSNPs were found to be damaging by both a sequence homology-based tool (SIFT) and a structural homology-based method (PolyPhen), and one nonsense nsSNP was found. Further, we modeled mutant proteins and compared the total energy values with the native IGF1R protein, and showed that a mutation from arginine to cysteine at position 1216 (rs61740868) on the surface of the protein caused the greatest impact on stability. Also, the FASTSNP tool suggested that 31 sSNPs and 3 intronic SNPs might affect splicing regulation. Based on our investigation, we report potential candidate SNPs for future studies on IGF1R mutations

Murcha-de-Phytomonas do coqueiro: uma ameaça à cultura no Amazonas.

Ocorrência. Sintomas. Disseminação. Controle. Controle dos insetos vetores.bitstream/item/122321/1/Folder-murcha-de-phytomonas.pd

Produção integrada de frutas.

Elaborado com a colaboração da equipe técnica de Produção Integrada de Frutas da Embrapa Semi-Árido: Flávia Rabelo Barbosa, Joston Simão de Assis, Paulo Roberto Coelho Lopes, Selma Cavalcanti Cruz de Holanda Tavares

A Comment on Quantum Distribution Functions and the OSV Conjecture

Using the attractor mechanism and the relation between the quantization of $H^{3}(M)$ and topological strings on a Calabi Yau threefold $M$ we define a map from BPS black holes into coherent states. This map allows us to represent the Bekenstein-Hawking-Wald entropy as a quantum distribution function on the phase space $H^{3}(M)$. This distribution function is a mixed Husimi/anti-Husimi distribution corresponding to the different normal ordering prescriptions for the string coupling and deviations of the complex structure moduli. From the integral representation of this distribution function in terms of the Wigner distribution we recover the Ooguri-Strominger-Vafa (OSV) conjecture in the region "at infinity" of the complex structure moduli space. The physical meaning of the OSV corrections are briefly discussed in this limit.Comment: 27 pages. v2:reference and footnote adde

The variability behavior of CoRoT M-giant Stars

For 6 years the Convection, Rotation, and Planetary Transits (CoRoT) space mission has acquired photometric data from more than one hundred thousand point sources towards and directly opposite from the inner and outer regions of the Galaxy. The high temporal resolution of the CoRoT data combined with the wide time span of the observations has enabled the study of short and long time variations in unprecedented detail. From the initial sample of 2534 stars classified as M-giants in the CoRoT databasis, we selected 1428 targets that exhibit well defined variability, using visual inspection. The variability period and amplitude of C1 stars (stars having Teff < 4200 K) were computed using Lomb-Scargle and harmonic fit methods. The trends found in the V-I vs J-K color-color diagram are in agreement with standard empirical calibrations for M-giants. The sources located towards the inner regions of the Galaxy are distributed throughout the diagram while the majority of the stars towards the outer regions of the Galaxy are spread between the calibrations of M-giants and the predicted position for Carbon stars. The stars classified as supergiants follow a different sequence from the one found for giant stars. We also performed a KS test of the period and amplitude of stars towards the inner and outer regions of the Galaxy. We obtained a low probability that the two samples come from the same parent distribution. The observed behavior of the period-amplitude and period-Teff diagrams are, in general, in agreement with those found for Kepler sources and ground based photometry, with pulsation being the dominant cause responsible for the observed modulation. We also conclude that short-time variations on M-Giant stars do not exist orare very rare and the few cases we found are possibly related to biases or background stars.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure

Efeito da aplicação de herbicidas no teor de carotenóides em milho verde.

Na cultura do milho, o uso de herbicidas é prática de elevada importância para a obtenção de altos rendimentos de grãos, porém, alguns grupos recomendados inibem a biossíntese de carotenóides, trazendo preocupações para programas de melhoramento que visam a obtenção de genótipos de milho com maiores teores desses compostos, cujas propriedades biológicas como precursores de pró-vitamina A e antioxidantes são importantes para a saúde humana. Portanto, o objetivo do presente trabalho foi avaliar a influência da aplicação de herbicidas no teor de carotenóides em grãos de milho verde. O plantio foi conduzido em campo experimental do Centro Nacional de Pesquisa de Milho e Sorgo da Embrapa, localizado em Sete Lagoas, MG, no ano agrícola de 2007, utilizando-se o híbrido simples BRS 1030. As aplicações químicas foram feitas com herbicidas pós-emergentes totalizando 5 tratamentos: sem aplicação; foramsulfuron + iodosulfuron-metyl-sodium (40 g/ha-1); nicosulfuron (20 g/ha-1) ; mesotrione (120 g/ha-1) e tembotrione (100 g/ha-1). Todos os tratamentos herbicidas constituíram mistura com atrazine a 1000 g/ha-1 Os grãos verdes foram avaliados quanto aos teores a-caroteno, ß-caroteno, luteína, zeaxantina e ß-criptoxantina através de cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência (CLAE). A partir dos resultados foram calculados os teores de carotenóides totais (CT), total de carotenóides pró-vitamina A (Pro-VA) e o percentual dos carotenóides em relação a CT. O delineamento utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado com cinco tratamentos e duas repetições. A aplicação dos herbicidas em pós-emergência nas doses do estudo não resultaram em reduções nos teores de carotenóides, embora tenham sido detectadas diferenças na composição dos grãos verdes entre os tratamentos para luteína, ß-caroteno e a-caroteno. Os resultados permitem concluir que os herbicidas mesotrione, tembotrione, foramsulfuron + iodosulfurom-metyl-sodium e nicosulfuron, recomendados para a cultura do milho, não afetam negativamente a composição de carotenóides em grãos de milho verde