RT-PCR Analysis of TOPBP1 Gene Expression in Hereditary Breast Cancer

Hereditary predisposition to breast cancer determined in large part by loss of function mutations in one of two genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. Besides BRCA1 and BRCA2 other genes are also likely to be involved in hereditary predisposition to breast cancer. TopBP1 protein is involved in DNA replication, DNA damage checkpoint response and transcriptional regulation. Expression of TopBP1 gene at the mRNA level was analyzed by semiquantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 94 samples of hereditary breast cancer. Analysis of TopBP1 mRNA level showed that expression of TopBP1 is significantly downregulated in poorly differentiated breast cancer (grade III according Bloom-Richardson system (P<0.05)

Duftende Texte. Über die Spuren des Olfaktorischen in literarischen Texten

Fragrant Texts. On Traces of Olfactory Sensations in Literary Texts by the Example of ”Perfume: The Story of a Murderer’’ by Patrick Süskind Perfume: The Story of a Murderer“ by Patrick Süskind constitutes a perfect example of a literary text which, in its verbal layer, makes use of a variety of linguistic means aiming to reflect, as accurately as possible, the core notion of the world created in this text, namely scent. A linguistic description of olfactory sensations is an extremely difficult task,  as they are highly individualized and they always remain in a close relation with the recipient, drawing from his/her experiences and memories. The language that the author of ”Perfume: The Story of a Murderer“ employs enchants with the abundance of similes and metaphors, which turns dealing with this literary text into a special kind of experience. The article constitutes a linguistic analysis of ”Perfume: The Story of a Murderer“, whose focal point is the literary title itself and the way it is realized in the novel. The manner of creating the particular fragrances is analyzed  through the description of linguistic structures and stylistic forms that contribute to the coherent picture of olfactory impressionsDas Parfum von Patrick Süskind gilt als ein literarischer Text, dessen lexikalische Ebene einen großen Reichtum an sprachlich-stilistischen Mitteln aufweist, die gebraucht werden, um das zu wiederspiegeln, was der im Roman kreierten Textwelt zugrunde liegt, und zwar den Duft. Olfaktorische Eindrücke mit Hilfe von Worten zu beschreiben, scheint besonders kompliziert zu sein, weil diese Eindrücke höchstindividuell sind und durch persönliche Erlebnisse jedes einzelnen Rezipienten beeinflusst sind, weil sie aus seinem Vorwissen ihre Kraft schöpfen. Die Sprache, die der Autor des Romans Das Parfum gebraucht, beeindruckt durch den Reichtum von Vergleichen und Metaphern, die dazu beitragen, dass der Umgang mit diesem literarischen Text zum Erlebnis wird. Der Beitrag setzt sich zum Ziel, Das Parfum zum Objekt einer linguistischen Analyse zu machen, in deren Zentrum sich der literarische Titel und seine Realisierung im Ko-Text befinden. Die Antwort auf die Frage danach, wie die einzelnen Düfte und Gerüche kreiert werden, ist dank der Beschreibung von sprachlichen Strukturen und stilistischen Mitteln möglich, die dem kohärenten und konsequent gemalten Bild von olfaktorischen Eindrücken zugrunde liegen

Visuelle Narration. Zum journalistischen Storytelling aus der Sicht der Medienlinguistik

From among many narrative forms used in the media, storytelling starts to occupy a more and more important place. Its essence constitutes the telling of a story which must be well understandable as well as easy to remember and retell. Storytelling is one of the best methods of awakening interest and focusing the recipient' attention. Owing to the adequate manner of tell-ing a story as well as its appropriate structuring particular needs are evoked in recipients. The mystery of effective usage of storytelling consists in the fact that it is essential to appeal to emotions and to tell a given story that will carry some message with it in a consistent way and will also inspire one to engage in communication activities. That makes storytelling an interesting subject of media-linguistic research whose effects – as illustrated by the history of a plane crash of the Germanwings lines told in the form of an online reportage – will be presented in this article

Media construction of political reality. On the image of women in power as illustrated by the example of the Prime Minister of Poland – Ewa Kopacz

Den im Band präsentierten Beiträgen liegt sowohl theoretisch als auch empirisch eine medienlinguistische Perspektive in der Betrachtung gegenwärtiger gesellschaftspolitischer Ereignisse in Deutschland und Polen, die in letzter Zeit viele kontroverse Debatten hervorgerufen haben, zugrunde. Die gezeigten unterschiedlichen Möglichkeiten der Vernetzung linguistischer und medienorientierter Forschungen resultieren deshalb aus der Überzeugung, dass die Medien die Welt der Politik auf ihre Art interpretieren, und zwar mit verschiedenen sprachlichen und visuellen Mitteln. Nicht nur in der theoretisch-empirischen Reflexion über die neusten Verschränkungen der Politik, Medien und Sprache sind aber die Vorteile dieser Arbeit zu sehen, sie betreffen auch text- und diskursanalytische Vorschläge der Interpretation solcher Vernetzungen, die besonders für Studierende, Doktoranden der linguistischen und journalistischen Studienrichtungen sowie andere Interessierte inspirierend sein können.Die Analyse der Medienlandschaft zeigt eindeutig, dass der Anteil sprachlich-bildlicher Verflechtungen in allen Bereichen der Kommunikation wesentlich zunimmt. Das betrifft auch den politischen Diskurs, der sowohl unter Politikern als auch in journalistischen Beiträgen, die politische Fragen thematisieren, geführt wird. Moderne Politik ist dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass sie nicht nur in Sprache, sondern auch in Bildern ausgehandelt wird. Gerade die Materialität von medial vermittelten Botschaften zum Thema Politik steht im vorliegenden Beitrag im Zentrum der linguistischen Analyse. Zum Forschungsgegenstand werden dabei sprachlich-bildliche Verflechtungen, mittels deren Machtfrauen medial präsentiert werden. Der besondere Fokus wird auf die polnische Ministerpräsidentin Ewa Kopacz gelegt. Es wird danach gefragt, welches Bild von Ewa Kopacz diejenigen bekommen, die als Internetbenutzer Einstiegsseiten polnischer Nachrichtenportale (wie z.B. www.wpolityce.pl, www.tvn24.pl, www.natemat.pl) besuchen und dort mittels verschiedener Verweiselemente (sog. Teaser) über journalistische Beiträge, die politische Tätigkeit der polnischen Ministerpräsidentin thematisieren, informiert werden.The analysis of media market shows unambiguously that, indeed, in all areas of communication the share of combinations of linguistic and pictorial elements is on the increase. It also pertains to political discourse which is conducted both among politicians as well as in publications undertaking political subject matter. Contemporary policy is characterized by the fact that it is practised not only using speech, but also owing to images. In the article presented below it is precisely the materiality of the media delivered political information that constitutes the centre of linguistic analysis. The subject of research are such linguistic-pictorial combinations that are reached out for in the case of the media presentation of women in power. Special attention was devoted to the Polish Prime Minister Ewa Kopacz. In the article sought is the answer to the question what kind of image of Ewa Kopacz have all those who, as Internet users, visit start pages of Polish information portals (as, for instance, www.wpolityce.pl, www. tvn24.pl, www.natemat.pl) and who are informed about articles devoted to the political activity of the Prime Minister of the Polish government with the use of various indicating elements (so-called teasers).Die vorliegende Publikation ist durch die Philologische Fakultät der Universität Łódź und den Verband Stowarzyszenie Nauczycieli Akademickich na rzecz Krzewienia Kultury Języków Europejskich finanziell gefördert worden

Im multimodalen Dialog. Zum Zusammenspiel von Text und Bild auf den Einbänden von Kinderbüchern

Zum Thema des Beitrages werden Sprache-Bild-Texte, die auf bebilderten Kinderbucheinbänden auftauchen, bei denen der literarische Titel in seine visuelle Umgebung so eingebettet wird, dass er zu ihrem integralen Teil wird. Die Beziehungen, in denen der literarische Titel und seine visuelle Umgebung zueinander stehen, scheinen der Grund dafür zu sein, bebilderte Kinderbucheinbände als komplexe Sehflächen zu betrachten. Mit zahlreichen Abbildungen wird im Beitrag exemplifiziert, wie sich der literarische Titel und seine graphische Umgebung gegenseitig ergänzen, indem sie in Partnerschaft und Symbiose zueinander stehen. Der Beitrag gibt auch eine Antwort auf die Frage, wie Kinderbucheinbände als Sehflächen gestaltet werden sollten, um die Aufmerksamkeit der Kinder zu lenken, ihr Interesse am Buch zu erwecken und ihre sprachlichen Kompetenzen zu fördern.The subject of the paper concerns verbaliconic texts, analyzed on the example of the illustrated covers of fairy tales for children where the literary title is inscribed in its visual surroundings, simultaneously constituting its integral part. The relations in which the title of the fairy tale and its visual surroundings remain with the reference to one another, are a basis for treating covers of fairy tales for children as complex visual surfaces. The paper presents numerous examples of how the title of a given fairy tale and the graphic environment mutually complement each other, remaining in the relation of partnership and symbiosis. The article also constitutes an attempt at answering the question in what way to shape such visual surfaces on covers of fairy tales so as to, owing to them, focus a child’s attention and make them interested in reading a particular fairy tale as well as simultaneously support their linguistic competence.Tematem artykułu są teksty werbalnoikoniczne, analizowane na przykładzie ilustrowanych okładek bajek dla dzieci, gdzie tytuł literacki wpisany jest w swoje wizualne otoczenie, stanowiąc jego integralną część. Relacje, w jakich pozostają wobec siebie tytuł bajki i jego wizualne otoczenie, są podstawą do tego, by okładki bajek dla dzieci traktować jako kompleksowe powierzchnie wizualne. W artykule prezentowane są liczne przykłady tego, jak tytuł bajki i środowisko graficzne wzajemnie się uzupełniają, pozostając w relacji partnerstwa i symbiozy. Artykuł stanowi także próbę odpowiedzi na pytanie, w jaki sposób kształtować takie powierzchnie wizualne na okładkach bajek, by dzięki nim skupić uwagę dziecka i zainteresować je lekturą bajki oraz równocześnie wspierać jego kompetencję językową

Suplementacja witamin i składników mineralnych podczas ciąży

Kwas foliowy, DHA, witaminy D3, A, E, jod, magnez, żelazo i wapń to podstawowe składniki odżywcze niezbędnedo prawidłowego przebiegu ciąży i rozwoju płodu. Suplementacja witamin i składników odżywczych wśród kobietciężarnych jest niezbędna do pokrycia zwiększonego zapotrzebowania organizmu w okresie ciąży. Ma ona znaczeniepopulacyjne — zmniejsza ryzyko wystąpienia wad wrodzonych, patologii w przebiegu ciąży oraz rozwoju choróbprzewlekłych w wieku dorosłym

The Dimerization Domain in DapE Enzymes Is Required for Catalysis

The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains underscores the importance of identifying new drug targets and developing new antimicrobial compounds. Lysine and meso-diaminopimelic acid are essential for protein production and bacterial peptidoglycan cell wall remodeling and are synthesized in bacteria by enzymes encoded within dap operon. Therefore dap enzymes may serve as excellent targets for developing a new class of antimicrobial agents. The dapE-encoded N-succinyl-L,L-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase (DapE) converts N-succinyl-L,L-diaminopimelic acid to L,Ldiaminopimelic acid and succinate. The enzyme is composed of catalytic and dimerization domains, and belongs to the M20 peptidase family. To understand the specific role of each domain of the enzyme we engineered dimerization domain deletion mutants of DapEs from Haemophilus influenzae and Vibrio cholerae, and characterized these proteins structurally and biochemically. No activity was observed for all deletion mutants. Structural comparisons of wild-type, inactive monomeric DapE enzymes with other M20 peptidases suggest that the dimerization domain is essential for DapE enzymatic activity. Structural analysis and molecular dynamics simulations indicate that removal of the dimerization domain increased the flexibility of a conserved active site loop that may provide critical interactions with the substrate

Metallothionein 2A genetic polymorphisms and risk of ductal breast cancer

Metallothioneins (MTs) are a family of metal binding proteins that play an important role in cellular processes such as proliferation and apoptosis. Metallothionein 2A is the most expressed MT isoform in the breast cells. A number of studies have demonstrated increased MT2A expression in various human tumors, including breast cancer. We carried out an association study to examine whether MT2A gene polymorphisms are associated with risk of breast cancer. Information on lifestyle risk factors was collected via a self-administered questionnaire. Genotyping was conducted using polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism technique. Three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) rs28366003, rs1610216 and rs10636 were genotyped in 534 breast cancer cases and 556 population controls. One SNP in MT2A (rs28366003) showed a positive association with breast cancer. Compared with homozygous common allele carriers, heterozygous for the G variant [odds ratio (OR) = 1.92, 95 % confidence interval (CI):1.28–2.81, p trend <0.01; the OR assuming a dominant model 1.93 (95 % CI: 1.29–2.89, p dominant <0.02) after adjustment for age, family history, smoking status, BMI, menarche, parity, menopausal status and use of contraceptive and menopausal hormones] had a significantly increased risk of breast cancer in Polish population, as well as women with haplotypes, including variant allele of rs28366003 SNP (OR = 1.58, CI: 0.41–6.33, p global = 0.03). Our data suggest that the rs28366003 SNP in MT2A is associated with risk of breast cancer in Polish population.This work was supported, in part, by the statutory fund for the Department of Cytobiochemistry, University of Łód

Evaluation of the Influence of a Thioether Substituent on the Solid State and Solution Properties of N\u3csub\u3e3\u3c/sub\u3eS-ligated Copper(II) Complexes

Admixture of a N3S(thioether) ligand having two internal hydrogen bond donors (pbnpa: N-2-(phenylthio)ethyl-N,N-bis-((6-neopentylamino-2-pyridyl)methyl)amine; ebnpa: N-2-(ethylthio)ethyl-N,N-bis-((6-neopentylamino-2-pyridyl)methyl)amine) with equimolar amounts of Cu(ClO4)2·6H2O and NaX (X = Cl−, NCO−, or N3−) in CH3OH/H2O yielded the mononuclear Cu(II) derivatives [(pbnpa)Cu–Cl]ClO4 (1), [(ebnpa)Cu–Cl]ClO4 (2), [(pbnpa)Cu–NCO]ClO4 (3), [(ebnpa)Cu–NCO]ClO4 (4), [(pbnpa)Cu–N3]ClO4 (5), and [(ebnpa)Cu–N3]ClO4 (6). Each complex was characterized by FTIR, UV-VIS, EPR, and elemental analysis. Complexes 1, 2, 3 and 6 were characterized by X-ray crystallography. The structural studies revealed that [(pbnpa)Cu–X]ClO4 derivatives (1, 3) exhibit a distorted square pyramidal type geometry, whereas [(ebnpa)Cu–X]ClO4 complexes (2, 6) may be classified as distorted trigonal bipyramidal. EPR studies in CH3OH/CH3CN solution revealed that 1–6 exhibit an axial type spectrum with g∥ \u3e g⊥ \u3e 2.0 and A∥ = 15–17 mT, consistent with a square pyramidal based geometry for the Cu(II) center in each complex. A second species detected in the EPR spectra of 2 and 6 has a smaller A∥ value, consistent with greater spin delocalization on to sulfur, and likely results from geometric distortion of the [(ebnpa)Cu(II)–X]+ ions present in 2 and 6

Inhibition of the \u3cem\u3edapE\u3c/em\u3e-Encoded \u3cem\u3eN\u3c/em\u3e-Succinyl- ʟ, ʟ-diaminopimelic Acid Desuccinylase from \u3cem\u3eNeisseria meningitidis\u3c/em\u3e by ʟ-Captopril

Binding of the competitive inhibitor ʟ-captopril to the dapE-encoded N-succinyl-ʟ, ʟ-diaminopimelic acid desuccinylase from Neisseria meningitidis (NmDapE) was examined by kinetic, spectroscopic, and crystallographic methods. ʟ-Captopril, an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, was previously shown to be a potent inhibitor of the DapE from Haemophilus influenzae (HiDapE) with an IC50 of 3.3 μM and a measured Ki of 1.8 μM and displayed a dose-responsive antibiotic activity toward Escherichia coli. ʟ-Captopril is also a competitive inhibitor of NmDapE with a Ki of 2.8 μM. To examine the nature of the interaction of ʟ-captopril with the dinuclear active site of DapE, we have obtained electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) data for the enzymatically hyperactive Co(II)-substituted forms of both HiDapE and NmDapE. EPR and MCD data indicate that the two Co(II) ions in DapE are antiferromagnetically coupled, yielding an S = 0 ground state, and suggest a thiolate bridge between the two metal ions. Verification of a thiolate-bridged dinuclear complex was obtained by determining the three-dimensional X-ray crystal structure of NmDapE in complex with ʟ-captopril at 1.8 Å resolution. Combination of these data provides new insights into binding of ʟ-captopril to the active site of DapE enzymes as well as important inhibitor–active site residue interaction’s. Such information is critical for the design of new, potent inhibitors of DapE enzymes