Interpersonal Relationships among University Safety Professionals: The Impact of a Safety Departmentf

PresentationForming strong interpersonal relationships enables an organization or individual to achieve more favorable outcomes. The objectives of this study were to examine the frequency of interpersonal interactions among safety professionals (SPs) employed at Taiwanese universities and the factors that affected this frequency. To accomplish these objectives, we mailed questionnaires to a simple random sampling of 200 university SPs. Moreover, an interpersonal relationship scale was developed in this study; exploratory factor and internal consistency analyses revealed that the scale was valid and reliable. Results derived from the questionnaire revealed that in SP interpersonal relationships, general affairs department personnel, laboratory or internship unit supervisors, and teaching staff ranked highest in frequency of interactions. Multivariate analysis of variance results showed that establishing a safety department exerted a statistically significant effect on SP interpersonal relationships. SPs employed by universities with safety departments interacted more frequently with both internal and external relationships. Therefore, we suggest that universities without a safety department establish such a department to strengthen the labor safety and health structure, thereby benefitting SPs in fulfilling responsibilities to promote safety and health management

Fucosyltransferase 1 and 2 play pivotal roles in breast cancer cells.

FUT1 and FUT2 encode alpha 1, 2-fucosyltransferases which catalyze the addition of alpha 1, 2-linked fucose to glycans. Glycan products of FUT1 and FUT2, such as Globo H and Lewis Y, are highly expressed on malignant tissues, including breast cancer. Herein, we investigated the roles of FUT1 and FUT2 in breast cancer. Silencing of FUT1 or FUT2 by shRNAs inhibited cell proliferation in vitro and tumorigenicity in mice. This was associated with diminished properties of cancer stem cell (CSC), including mammosphere formation and CSC marker both in vitro and in xenografts. Silencing of FUT2, but not FUT1, significantly changed the cuboidal morphology to dense clusters of small and round cells with reduced adhesion to polystyrene and extracellular matrix, including laminin, fibronectin and collagen. Silencing of FUT1 or FUT2 suppressed cell migration in wound healing assay, whereas FUT1 and FUT2 overexpression increased cell migration and invasion in vitro and metastasis of breast cancer in vivo. A decrease in mesenchymal like markers such as fibronectin, vimentin, and twist, along with increased epithelial like marker, E-cadherin, was observed upon FUT1/2 knockdown, while the opposite was noted by overexpression of FUT1 or FUT2. As expected, FUT1 or FUT2 knockdown reduced Globo H, whereas FUT1 or FUT2 overexpression showed contrary effects. Exogenous addition of Globo H-ceramide reversed the suppression of cell migration by FUT1 knockdown but not the inhibition of cell adhesion by FUT2 silencing, suggesting that at least part of the effects of FUT1/2 knockdown were mediated by Globo H. Our results imply that FUT1 and FUT2 play important roles in regulating growth, adhesion, migration and CSC properties of breast cancer, and may serve as therapeutic targets for breast cancer

Sialylation of vasorin by ST3Gal1 facilitates TGF-β1-mediated tumor angiogenesis and progression.

ST3Gal1 is a key sialyltransferase which adds α2,3-linked sialic acid to substrates and generates core 1 O-glycan structure. Upregulation of ST3Gal1 has been associated with worse prognosis of breast cancer patients. However, the protein substrates of ST3Gal1 implicated in tumor progression remain elusive. In our study, we demonstrated that ST3GAL1-silencing significantly reduced tumor growth along with a notable decrease in vascularity of MCF7 xenograft tumors. We identified vasorin (VASN) which was shown to bind TGF-β1, as a potential candidate that links ST3Gal1 to angiogenesis. LC-MS/MS analysis of VASN secreted from MCF7, revealed that more than 80% of its O-glycans are sialyl-3T and disialyl-T. ST3GAL1-silencing or desialylation of VASN by neuraminidase enhanced its binding to TGF-β1 by 2- to 3-fold and thereby dampening TGF-β1 signaling and angiogenesis, as indicated by impaired tube formation of HUVECs, suppressed angiogenesis gene expression and reduced activation of Smad2 and Smad3 in HUVEC cells. Examination of 114 fresh primary breast cancer and their adjacent normal tissues showed that the expression levels of ST3Gal1 and TGFB1 were high in tumor part and the expression of two genes was positively correlated. Kaplan Meier survival analysis showed a significantly shorter relapse-free survival for those with lower expression VASN, notably, the combination of low VASN with high ST3GAL1 yielded even higher risk of recurrence (p = 0.025, HR = 2.967, 95% CI = 1.14-7.67). Since TGF-β1 is known to transcriptionally activate ST3Gal1, our findings illustrated a feedback regulatory loop in which TGF-β1 upregulates ST3Gal1 to circumvent the negative impact of VASN

High Prevalence of Mutations in Quinolone-resistance-determining Regions and mtrR Loci in Polyclonal Neisseria gonorrhoeae Isolates at a Tertiary Hospital in Southern Taiwan

Background/PurposeThe emergence of multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae is a great challenge in controlling gonorrhea. This study was conducted to survey the prevalence of molecular mechanisms of antimicrobial resistance among 45 clinical isolates of N. gonorrhoeae collected at a university hospital in Southern Taiwan during 1999-2004.MethodsMutations in mtrR loci and quinolone-resistance-determining regions (QRDRs) were examined by gene sequencing. Polymerase chain reactions with specific primers were performed to detect ermA, ermB, ermC, and ermF. Serogroups and serovars were determined by commercial kits.ResultsThe percentage of multidrug resistance, that is, resistance to penicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, and ciprofloxacin, among the 45 isolates was 40%. Ceftriaxone and spectinomycin were active against all isolates in vitro. The frequency of mutations in the QRDR and mtrR promoter was 82.2% and 93.3%, respectively. Eighty-two percent of the isolates carried mutations both in the QRDR and mtrR loci. Of nine mutation profiles with QRDR mutations (n =37), gyrA-Ser91Phe/gyrA-Asp95Gly/parC-Ser87Arg was the most common type (56.8%). Acquired genes for rRNA methylase were detected in 11 isolates (10 ermB and 1 ermA). Twenty-seven serovars were identified and all belonged to serogroup B, which suggested that multiple clones of N. gonorrhoeae were circulating in the community in the Tainan area.ConclusionThe high prevalence of multidrug resistance caused by varied resistance mechanisms in N. gonorrhoeae limits the drug choice. Ongoing surveillance of antimicrobial resistance and discovery of new effective antibiotic therapy are warranted in endemic areas

The Volcanic Earthquake Swarm of October 20, 2009 in the Tatun Area of Northern Taiwan

On October 20, 2009, a series of felt earthquakes with local magnitudes ranging from 2.8 - 3.2 occurred in the Tatun volcanic area off the northern tip of Taiwan. Although there was no damage caused by those earthquakes, many residents in the Taipei metropolitan area, particularly for people who live near the Yangminshan National Park, felt strong ground shaking. In order to know what the possible mechanisms were that generated those earthquakes, we carefully examined seismic data recorded by a dense seismic array in the Tatun volcanic area. During the period between October 18 and 22, 2009 we detected at least 202 micro-earthquakes. Most of the earthquakes were relocated using the double-difference method and were clustered in the shallow crust beneath the Dayoukeng area, which is the strongest fumarole in the Tatun volcanic area. Among these earthquakes, 72 focal mechanisms were determined by polarizing the first P-wave motion. Most earthquakes belonged to normal faulting. An extremely high b-value of 2.17 was obtained from those earthquakes. Based on the seismic variations in both the temporary and spatial distribution as well as an extremely high b-value, we conclude that the earthquake sequence on October 20, 2009 was a typically seismic swarm associated with possible active volcanism in the Tatun volcanic area

Color-tunable mixed photoluminescence emission from Alq3 organic layer in metal-Alq3-metal surface plasmon structure

This work reports the color-tunable mixed photoluminescence (PL) emission from an Alq(3) organic layer in an Au-Alq(3)-Au plasmonic structure through the combination of organic fluorescence emission and another form of emission that is enabled by the surface plasmons in the plasmonic structure. The emission wavelength of the latter depends on the Alq(3) thickness and can be tuned within the Alq(3) fluorescent spectra. Therefore, a two-color broadband, color-tunable mixed PL structure was obtained. Obvious changes in the Commission Internationale d’Eclairage (CIE) coordinates and the corresponding emission colors of Au-Alq(3)-Au samples clearly varied with the Alq(3) thickness (90, 130, and 156 nm)

Crystal Structures of a Piscine Betanodavirus: Mechanisms of Capsid Assembly and Viral Infection

Betanodaviruses cause massive mortality in marine fish species with viral nervous necrosis. The structure of a T = 3 Grouper nervous necrosis virus-like particle (GNNV-LP) is determined by the ab initio method with non-crystallographic symmetry averaging at 3.6 Å resolution. Each capsid protein (CP) shows three major domains: (i) the N-terminal arm, an inter-subunit extension at the inner surface; (ii) the shell domain (S-domain), a jelly-roll structure; and (iii) the protrusion domain (P-domain) formed by three-fold trimeric protrusions. In addition, we have determined structures of the T = 1 subviral particles (SVPs) of (i) the delta-P-domain mutant (residues 35−217) at 3.1 Å resolution; and (ii) the N-ARM deletion mutant (residues 35−338) at 7 Å resolution; and (iii) the structure of the individual P-domain (residues 214−338) at 1.2 Å resolution. The P-domain reveals a novel DxD motif asymmetrically coordinating two Ca2+ ions, and seems to play a prominent role in the calcium-mediated trimerization of the GNNV CPs during the initial capsid assembly process. The flexible N-ARM (N-terminal arginine-rich motif) appears to serve as a molecular switch for T = 1 or T = 3 assembly. Finally, we find that polyethylene glycol, which is incorporated into the P-domain during the crystallization process, enhances GNNV infection. The present structural studies together with the biological assays enhance our understanding of the role of the P-domain of GNNV in the capsid assembly and viral infection by this betanodavirus