Drawing lines in the sand: even skipped et al. and parasegment boundaries.

The pair-rule segmentation gene even skipped (eve) is required to activate engrailed stripes and to organize odd-numbered parasegments (PSs). The protein product Eve has been shown to be an active repressor of transcription, and recent models for Eve function suggest that activation of engrailed is indirect, but these models have not been fully tested. Here we identify the forkhead domain transcription factor Sloppy-paired as the key intermediate in the initial activation of engrailed by Eve in odd-numbered parasegments. We also analyze the roles of the transcription factors Runt and Odd-skipped in this process. Detailed analysis of engrailed and pair-rule gene expression in various mutant combinations shows how eve activates engrailed by repressing these engrailed repressors, and further indicates that mutual repression among pair-rule genes plays an important role in establishing parasegment boundaries. We present a new model of pair-rule gene function that explains the response of these boundaries to the relative levels of Eve and Fushi Tarazu

Regulation of a duplicated locus: Drosophila sloppy paired is replete with functionally overlapping enhancers.

In order to investigate regulation and redundancy within the sloppy paired (slp) locus, we analyzed 30 kilobases of DNA encompassing the tandem, coordinately regulated slp1 and slp2 transcription units. We found a remarkable array of stripe enhancers with overlapping activities surrounding the slp1 transcription unit, and, unexpectedly, glial cell enhancers surrounding slp2. The slp stripe regulatory region generates 7 stripes at blastoderm, and later 14 stripes that persist throughout embryogenesis. Phylogenetic analysis among drosophilids suggests that the multiplicity of stripe enhancers did not evolve through recent duplication. Most of the direct integration among cis-regulatory modules appears to be simply additive, with one notable exception. Despite the apparent redundancy among stripe enhancers, transgenic rescue suggests that most are required for full function, to maintain wingless expression and parasegment boundaries throughout embryogenesis. Transgenic rescue also reveals indirect positive autoregulation by the 7 early stripes, without which alternate stripes within the 14-stripe pattern are lost, leading to embryos with a pair-rule phenotype

Homogeneous comparison of planet candidates imaged directly until 2008

We present a compilation of the planet candidates currently known from direct imaging. We have gathered available data from the literature and derive the luminosity of all candidates in a homogeneous way using a bolometric correction, the distances and the K band magnitudes of the objects. In a final step we find the masses of the candidates from a comparison of the luminosity or, if not available, an absolute brightness and several well known hot-start evolutionary models.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, Proceedings of the 2nd Subaru International Conference on Exoplanets and Disks: Their Formation and Diversity, Keauhou - Hawaii - USA, 9-12 March 2009; 2nd version: Several typos correcte

The Drosophila eve Insulator Homie Promotes eve Expression and Protects the Adjacent Gene from Repression by Polycomb Spreading.

Insulators can block the action of enhancers on promoters and the spreading of repressive chromatin, as well as facilitating specific enhancer-promoter interactions. However, recent studies have called into question whether the activities ascribed to insulators in model transgene assays actually reflect their functions in the genome. The Drosophila even skipped (eve) gene is a Polycomb (Pc) domain with a Pc-group response element (PRE) at one end, flanked by an insulator, an arrangement also seen in other genes. Here, we show that this insulator has three major functions. It blocks the spreading of the eve Pc domain, preventing repression of the adjacent gene, TER94. It prevents activation of TER94 by eve regulatory DNA. It also facilitates normal eve expression. When Homie is deleted in the context of a large transgene that mimics both eve and TER94 regulation, TER94 is repressed. This repression depends on the eve PRE. Ubiquitous TER94 expression is replaced by expression in an eve pattern when Homie is deleted, and this effect is reversed when the PRE is also removed. Repression of TER94 is attributable to spreading of the eve Pc domain into the TER94 locus, accompanied by an increase in histone H3 trimethylation at lysine 27. Other PREs can functionally replace the eve PRE, and other insulators can block PRE-dependent repression in this context. The full activity of the eve promoter is also dependent on Homie, and other insulators can promote normal eve enhancer-promoter communication. Our data suggest that this is not due to preventing promoter competition, but is likely the result of the insulator organizing a chromosomal conformation favorable to normal enhancer-promoter interactions. Thus, insulator activities in a native context include enhancer blocking and enhancer-promoter facilitation, as well as preventing the spread of repressive chromatin

Picosecond timing of Microwave Cherenkov Impulses from High-Energy Particle Showers Using Dielectric-loaded Waveguides

We report on the first measurements of coherent microwave impulses from high-energy particle-induced electromagnetic showers generated via the Askaryan effect in a dielectric-loaded waveguide. Bunches of 12.16 GeV electrons with total bunch energy of $\sim 10^3-10^4$ GeV were pre-showered in tungsten, and then measured with WR-51 rectangular (12.6 mm by 6.3 mm) waveguide elements loaded with solid alumina ($Al_2 O_3$) bars. In the 5-8 GHz $TE_{10}$ single-mode band determined by the presence of the dielectric in the waveguide, we observed band-limited microwave impulses with amplitude proportional to bunch energy. Signals in different waveguide elements measuring the same shower were used to estimate relative time differences with 2.3 picosecond precision. These measurements establish a basis for using arrays of alumina-loaded waveguide elements, with exceptional radiation hardness, as very high precision timing planes for high-energy physics detectors.Comment: 16 pages, 15 figure

Refleksi Kekerasan Dalam Novel Penyair Merah Putih Karya Mardhiyan Novita Mz

The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the reflection of violence contained in the Penyair Merah Putih works Mardhiyan Novita MZ. The findings of this study include three related to the reflection of violence, namely: (1) the forms of violence against prominent reflection in the form of: (a) physical violence, beating, kicking and slapping, (b) psychological abuse, harass, threaten, and humiliate contained in the Penyair Merah Putih works Mardhiyan Novita MZ, (2) the causes of violence reflect misunderstanding main character and additional characters, (3) due to the onset of violence against the victim's reflection in the form of physical injuries and mental disabilities are perceived by the figures contained in the novel Penyair Merah Putih works Mardhiyan Novita MZ

Aromatic ring cleavage of a β-biphenyl ether dimer catalyzed by lignin peroxidase of phanerochaete chrysosporium

AbstractUnder aerobic conditions homogeneous lignin peroxidase catalyzed the oxidation of 1-(4'-methoxyphenyl)-2-(2″,5′-dimethoxy-4″-phenylphenoxy)-1,3-dihydroxypropane (I) to yield four products: 1-(4'-methoxy-phenyl)-1,2,3-trihydroxypropane (X), 4-[α-hydroxy-α-(4'-methoxyphenyl)-methyl]-1,3-dioxolane-2-one (V), 4-(4'-methoxyphenyl)-5-hydroxymethyl-1,3-dioxolane-2-one (VI) and 5-hydroxy-5-carbomethoxy-4-phenyl-oxol-3-en-2-one (VIII). V, VI and VIII are all products of ring opening reactions. When the reaction was conducted under anaerobic conditions, the substrate was oxidized but no ring-cleaved products were detected. During the oxidation of I, 4 atoms of 18O from 18O2 were incorporated into the lactol product VIII

Annihilation poles of a Smirnov-type integral formula for solutions to quantum Knizhnik--Zamolodchikov equation

We consider the recently obtained integral representation of quantum Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov equation of level 0. We obtain the condition for the integral kernel such that these solutions satisfy three axioms for form factor \'{a} la Smirnov. We discuss the relation between this integral representation and the form factor of XXZ spin chain.Comment: 14 pages, latex, no figures