Dual fluorescent molecular substrates selectively report the activation, sustainability and reversibility of cellular PKB/Akt activity

Using a newly developed near-infrared (NIR) dye that fluoresces at two different wavelengths (dichromic fluorescence, DCF), we discovered a new fluorescent substrate for Akt, also known as protein kinase B, and a method to quantitatively report this enzyme\u27s activity in real time. Upon insulin activation of cellular Akt, the enzyme multi-phosphorylated a single serine residue of a diserine DCF substrate in a time-dependent manner, culminating in monophospho- to triphospho-serine products. The NIR DCF probe was highly selective for the Akt1 isoform, which was demonstrated using Akt1 knockout cells derived from MMTV-ErbB2 transgenic mice. The DCF mechanism provides unparalleled potential to assess the stimulation, sustainability, and reversibility of Akt activation longitudinally. Importantly, NIR fluorescence provides a pathway to translate findings from cells to living organisms, a condition that could eventually facilitate the use of these probes in humans

Transcriptome profiling in rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum tissues during the developmental transition of pre-ruminant to the ruminant in yaks

The development of the four stomachs of yak is closely related to its health and performance, however the underlying molecular mechanisms are largely unknown. Here, we systematically analyzed mRNAs of four stomachs in five growth time points [0 day, 20 days, 60 days, 15 months and 3 years (adult)] of yaks. Overall, the expression patterns of DEmRNAs were unique at 0 d, similar at 20 d and 60 d, and similar at 15 m and adult in four stomachs. The expression pattern in abomasum was markedly different from that in rumen, reticulum and omasum. Short Time-series Expression Miner (STEM) analysis demonstrated that multi-model spectra are drastically enriched over time in four stomachs. All the identified mRNAs in rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum were classified into 6, 4, 7, and 5 cluster profiles, respectively. Modules 9, 38, and 41 were the most significant three colored modules. By weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), a total of 5,486 genes were categorized into 10 modules. CCKBR, KCNQ1, FER1L6, and A4GNT were the hub genes of the turquoise module, and PAK6, TRIM29, ADGRF4, TGM1, and TMEM79 were the hub genes of the blue module. Furthermore, functional KEGG enrichment analysis suggested that the turquoise module was involved in gastric acid secretion, sphingolipid metabolism, ether lipid metabolism, etc., and the blue module was enriched in pancreatic secretion, pantothenate and CoA biosynthesis, and starch and sucrose metabolism, etc. Our study aims to lay a molecular basis for the study of the physiological functions of rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum in yaks. It can further elucidate the important roles of these mRNAs in regulation of growth, development and metabolism in yaks, and to provide a theoretical basis for age-appropriate weaning and supplementary feeding in yaks

The 5p15.33 Locus Is Associated with Risk of Lung Adenocarcinoma in Never-Smoking Females in Asia

Genome-wide association studies of lung cancer reported in populations of European background have identified three regions on chromosomes 5p15.33, 6p21.33, and 15q25 that have achieved genome-wide significance with p-values of 10−7 or lower. These studies have been performed primarily in cigarette smokers, raising the possibility that the observed associations could be related to tobacco use, lung carcinogenesis, or both. Since most women in Asia do not smoke, we conducted a genome-wide association study of lung adenocarcinoma in never-smoking females (584 cases, 585 controls) among Han Chinese in Taiwan and found that the most significant association was for rs2736100 on chromosome 5p15.33 (p = 1.30×10−11). This finding was independently replicated in seven studies from East Asia totaling 1,164 lung adenocarcinomas and 1,736 controls (p = 5.38×10−11). A pooled analysis achieved genome-wide significance for rs2736100. This SNP marker localizes to the CLPTM1L-TERT locus on chromosome 5p15.33 (p = 2.60×10−20, allelic risk = 1.54, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.41–1.68). Risks for heterozygote and homozygote carriers of the minor allele were 1.62 (95% CI; 1.40–1.87), and 2.35 (95% CI: 1.95–2.83), respectively. In summary, our results show that genetic variation in the CLPTM1L-TERT locus of chromosome 5p15.33 is directly associated with the risk of lung cancer, most notably adenocarcinoma

Exposure to Nanoplastic Particles Enhances Acinetobacter Survival, Biofilm Formation, and Serum Resistance

The interaction between nanoplastics and bacteria remains still largely unclear. In this study, we determined the effect of nanopolystyrene particle (NP) on a bacterial pathogen of Acinetobacter johnsonii AC15. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis indicated the aggregation of NPs from 10 μg/L to 100 μg/L on surface of A. johnsonii AC15, suggesting that A. johnsonii AC15 acted as the vector for NPs. Exposure to 100–1000 μg/L NPs increased the growth and colony-forming unit (CFU) of A. johnsonii AC15. In addition, exposure to 100–1000 μg/L NPs enhanced the amount of formed biofilm of A. johnsonii AC15. Alterations in expressions of 3 survival-related (zigA, basD, and zur), 5 biofilm formation-related (ompA, bap, adeG, csuC, and csuD), and 3 serum resistance-related virulence genes (lpxC, lpxL, and pbpG) were observed after exposure to 1000 μg/L NPs. Moreover, both CFU and survival rate of A. johnsonii AC15 in normal human serum (NHS) were significantly increased by 1–1000 μg/L NPs, suggesting the enhancement in serum resistance of Acinetobacter pathogen by NPs. In the NHS, expressions of 3 survival-related (zigA, basD, and zur), 9 biofilm formation-related (ompA, bap, adeF, adeG, csuA/B, csuC, csuD, csuE, and hlyD), and 3 serum resistance-related virulence genes (lpxC, lpxL, and pbpG) were affected by 1000 μg/L NPs. Expressions of 1 survival-related (zigA), 5 biofilm formation-related (bap, adeG, csuC, csuD, and csuE), and 3 serum resistance-related virulence genes (lpxC, lpxL, and pbpG) were also altered by 10 μg/L NPs after the addition of NHS. Therefore, exposure to NPs in the range of μg/L has the potential to enhance bacterial virulence by increasing their growth, biofilm formation, and serum resistance

Technology business incubators in China and in India: a comparative analysis.

This is the first part of our three part comparative study of Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) in China and India. For this we employ the integrative framework developed by Mian (1997) and its adaptation to analyzing the performance of TBI, which uses three sets of variables for analysis: management and operational policies, services, and performance outcomes of TBI. The determinants we introduce into Mians‟s model highlight the financial, networking and organizational aspects of the incubation system. We present an overview comparison of TBIs in China and India which provides an overall understanding of TBI environment in these two emerging economies. We mainly focus on: objectives, structure and governance of incubators, selection of tenants/incubatees, funding for incubators and tenants, services provided by incubators, performance and outcomes. By analyzing the contexts for their emergence in both countries, we identify similarities and differences between the two systems and explore the reasons for performance differences. This paper prepares the ground for the next stages of the research which involves national surveys of TBIs and tenants to explore the strength and weaknesses of the TBIs in these two countries and compare the success or failures of incubatees/ tenants of incubators in China and India which will help to identify policy learning for both countries in particular and also for other developing countries in general. The contribution of our paper is twofold: first, the adaptation of the integrative framework developed by Mian (1997) and the second, the comparative study of two major emerging economies which fills an important gap in the TBI literature

Insight into government managed technology business incubators in the west of China: a comparative analysis

We present a comparative analysis of government managed Technology Business Incubators (TBI) in the west of China. 2 TBI in Chongqing and 2 TBI in Chengdu are chosen to make case studies. Our paper aims to find out whether government fully financed TBI is more expansion oriented than self financing TBI and whether the former performs better than the latter. Our contribution consists in adding some new variables in Mian's (1997) integrative assessment framework of TBI, filling a literature blank in missing the analysis of government governed TBI in the west of China, and providing insight into management and operational policies, services and performance outcomes of the four sampled TBI. We find that government fully financed TBI are more expansion oriented in terms of incubation surface and the diversification of incubation parks, and perform better in pooling funds, fostering ventures, generating total income and cluster effect than self financing TBI. Self financing TBI is better in human resources performance (measured by the ratio of incubator management personnel to total ventures) and service income than government fully financed ones

Technology business incubators in China and India: a comparative case study.

We present a comparative case study of Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) in two major emerging economies in Asia - China and India. We employ an integrative analytical framework that combines three broad categories of indicators (originally developed by developed by Mian, 1997): Management policies and practices; Services and their impacts; and Performance outcomes; with the national system of innovation (NSI) concept. At the micro (TBI) level, we mainly focus on: objectives, structure and governance of incubators, selection of tenants, funding for incubators and tenants, services provided by incubators, and performance outcomes. We attempt to identify similarities and differences between the two systems, explore the reasons for performance differences, and draw policy implications. Our study shows that the differences between the TBIs in China and India are mainly due the differences between the NSIs of China and India, as major components of NSI such as macroeconomic conditions, national S&T policy framework, industrial structure and the nature of financial institutions have played significant role in shaping the nature and rate of TBIs development in both countries. This suggests that building and strengthening the NSI is imperative to achieve positive and high outcomes in the growth and performance of TBIs; and specific and strong measures to develop TBIs alone may fail to produce desired outcomes, if the NSI is weak

Preliminary Investigation on Degradation Behavior and Cytocompatibility of Ca-P-Sr Coated Pure Zinc

Zinc and its alloys show a good application prospect as a new biodegradable material. However, one of the drawbacks is that Zn and its alloys would induce the release of more Zn ions, which are reported to be cytotoxic to cells. In this study, a Ca-P-Sr bioactive coating was prepared on the surface of pure zinc by the hydrothermal method to address this issue. The morphology, thickness, and composition were characterized, and the effects of the coating on the degradation, cell viability, and ALP staining were investigated. The results demonstrated that the degradation rate of pure zinc was reduced, while the cytocompatibility was significantly improved after pure zinc was treated with Ca-P-Sr coating. It is considered that the Ca-P-Sr bioactive coating prepared by the hydrothermal method has promising application in the clinic

The impact of entrepreneurial overconfidence on incubator effectiveness

The low utilization of incubator resources has been subject to much academic attention within entrepreneurship research. This study explores how entrepreneurs’ overconfidence impacts the utilization of incubator resources and influences incubation performance. Based on interviews with 8 incubators and questionnaires from 184 entrepreneurs, the findings show a negative relationship between entrepreneurs’ overconfidence and the incubation performance of start-ups. This finding emerges in the context of incubation management through the fully mediating role of entrepreneurial learning. As a moderator, the contract control of the incubator weakens the negative relationship between entrepreneurs’ overconfidence and entrepreneurial learning. The microcosm of the incubator context allows the researchers to examine the internal agent interaction. This paper explores the related literature, presents the research study, discusses the findings and provides avenues for future scholarly research on this topic