Topics, presuppositions, and theticity: An empirical study of verb-subject clauses in Albanian, Greek, and Serbo-Croat

LoC Class: PG9522, LoC Subject Headings: Albanian language--Clauses, Greek language/Modern--Clauses, Serbo-Croatian language--Clause

Focus feature percolation: Evidence from Tundra Nenets and Tundra Yukaghir

Two Siberian languages, Tundra Nenets and Tundra Yukaghir, do not obey strong island constraints in questioning: any sub-constituent of a relative or adverbial clause can be questioned. We argue that this has to do with how focusing works in these languages. The focused sub-constituent remains in situ, but there is abundant morphosyntactic evidence that the focus feature is passed up to the head of the clause. The result is the formation of a complex focus structure in which both the head and non head daughter are overtly marked as focus, and they are interpreted as a pairwise list such that the focus background is applicable to this list, but not to other alternative list

On the influence of the "donor"/"acceptor" presence on the excitation states in molecular chains: non-adiabatic polaron approach

In the paper, we considered a molecular structure that consists of a molecular chain and an additional molecule ("donor"/"acceptor") that can inject (or remove) single excitation (vibron, electron, e.t.c.) onto the molecular chain. We assumed that the excitation forms a self-trapped state due to the interaction with mechanical oscillations of chain structure elements. We analyzed the energy spectra of the excitation and showed that its state (when it migrates to the molecular chain) has the properties of the non-adiabatic polaron state. The conditions under which the excitation can migrate from one subsystem to another were considered. It was shown that the presence of a "donor" molecule cannot significantly change the properties of the excitation located on the molecular chain. At the same time, the molecular chain can affect the position of the energy level of the excitation localized on the "donor" subsystem. Indirectly, this can influence the process of excitation migration from one subsystem to another one. The influence of basic energy parameters of the system and the environment temperature on this process are discussed. The entire system was assumed to be in thermal equilibrium with the environment

A role for TSPO in mitochondrial Ca2+ homeostasis and redox stress signaling

The 18 kDa translocator protein TSPO localizes on the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM). Systematically overexpressed at sites of neuroinflammation it is adopted as a biomarker of brain conditions. TSPO inhibits the autophagic removal of mitochondria by limiting PARK2-mediated mitochondrial ubiquitination via a peri-organelle accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Here we describe that TSPO deregulates mitochondrial Ca2+ signaling leading to a parallel increase in the cytosolic Ca2+ pools that activate the Ca2+-dependent NADPH oxidase (NOX) thereby increasing ROS. The inhibition of mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake by TSPO is a consequence of the phosphorylation of the voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC1) by the protein kinase A (PKA), which is recruited to the mitochondria, in complex with the Acyl-CoA binding domain containing 3 (ACBD3). Notably, the neurotransmitter glutamate, which contributes neuronal toxicity in age-dependent conditions, triggers this TSPO-dependent mechanism of cell signaling leading to cellular demise. TSPO is therefore proposed as a novel OMM-based pathway to control intracellular Ca2+ dynamics and redox transients in neuronal cytotoxicity

Redox status, DNA and HSA binding study of naturally occurring naphthoquinone derivatives

In the present work we modified the procedure for isolation of naphthoquinones α-methylbutyrylshikon (1), acetylshikonin (2) and β-hydroxyisovalerylshikonin (3) from Onosma visianii Clem. We also investigated possible mechanisms of 1, 2 and 3 as antitumor agents. Accordingly, we estimated concentrations of superoxide anion radical (O2.-), nitrite (NO2 -) and glutathione in HCT-116 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. Compounds 1 and 3 expressed significant prooxidative activity, while all tested compounds exhibited significant increase in nitrite levels. Also, all examined compounds significantly increased the concentration of oxidized glutathione (GSSG), suggesting significant prooxidative disbalance. The levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) were also elevated as a part of antioxidative cell response. The data indicate that induced oxidative imbalance could be one of the triggers for previously recorded decreased viability of HCT-116 and MDA-MB-231 cells exposed to tested naphthoquinone derivatives. Moreover, we examined interactions mode of compounds 1, 2 and 3 with CT-DNA as one of the crucial targets of many molecules that express cytotoxic activity. The results obtained by UV-visible, fluorescence and molecular docking study revealed that 1, 2 and 3 bound to CT-DNA through minor groove binding. Furthermore, the interactions between HSA and 1, 2 and 3 were examined employing the same methods as for the CT-DNA interaction study. Based on the obtained results, it can be concluded that naphthoquinones 1, 2 and 3 could be effectively transported by human serum albumin. As a conclusion, this study provides further insight of antitumor activity of selected naphthoquinones

Neural superposition and oscillations in the eye of the blowfly

Neural superposition in the eye of the blowfly Calliphora erythrocephala was investigated by stimulating single photoreceptors using corneal neutralization through water immersion. Responses in Large Monopolar Cells (LMCs) in the lamina were measured, while stimulating one or more of the six photoreceptors connected to the LMC. Responses to flashes of low light intensity on individual photoreceptors add approximately linearly at the LMC. Higher intensity light flashes produce a maximum LMC response to illumination of single photoreceptors which is about half the maximum response to simultaneous illumination of the six connecting photoreceptors. This observation indicates that a saturation can occur at a stage of synaptic transmission which precedes the change in the post-synaptic membrane potential. Stimulation of single photoreceptors yields high frequency oscillations (about 200 Hz) in the LMC potential, much larger in amplitude than produced by simultaneous stimulation of the six photoreceptors connected to the LMC. It is discussed that these oscillations also arise from a mechanism that precedes the change in the postsynaptic membrane potential.