The Role of Overexpressed HER2 in Transformation

The HER family of receptors has an important role in the network of cell signals controlling cell growth and differentiation. Although the activity of the HER receptor is strictly controlled in normal cells, HER2 receptor overexpression plays a pivotal role in transformation and tumorigenesis. HER2 gene amplification and/or overexpression of the receptor has been detected in subsets of a wide range of human cancers including breast cancer, and is an indicator of poor prognosis. It is proposed that overexpressed HER2 in combination with HER3 causes high activity of cell-signaling networks, thereby resulting in tumor cell proliferation. Thus, the HER2 receptor is an attractive target for new anti-cancer treatments. Mono-clonal antibodies directed against the receptor are the most promising of these, and the humanized anti-HER2 monoclonal antibody trastuzumab (Herceptin) has shown significant clinical efficacy in clinical trials. The anti-tumor mechanisms of anti-HER2 monoclonal antibodies are not completely understood. However, some tumor types are not sensitive to trastuzumab, suggesting that the response of a tumor to trastuzumab may not only be dependent on overexpressed HER2, but may also be influenced by other members of the HER receptor family expressed in the tumor cel

Continuous synthesis of Zn2Al-CO3 layered double hydroxides: A comparison of bench, pilot and industrial scale syntheses

© 2019 The Royal Society of Chemistry. Zn2Al-CO3 was produced continuously at bench (g h-1), pilot (100s g h-1) and industrial scale (10s kg h-1). Crystal domain length and BET surface area were similar at all three scales although there was a small increase at pilot scale. Platelet size increased from 120 nm at bench to 177 nm and 165 nm at pilot scale and industrial scale, respectively. Overall this paper shows that the increase in scale by almost 2000× does not impact on the overall product quality which is an excellent indicator that continuous hydrothermal synthesis is a route for nanomaterials synthesis

Phages of non-dairy lactococci: isolation and characterization of ΦL47, a phage infecting the grass isolate Lactococcus lactis ssp. cremoris DPC6860

peer reviewedLactococci isolated from non-dairy sources have been found to possess enhanced metabolic activity when compared to dairy strains. These capabilities may be harnessed through the use of these strains as starter or adjunct cultures to produce more diverse flavor profiles in cheese and other dairy products. To understand the interactions between these organisms and the phages that infect them, a number of phages were isolated against lactococcal strains of non-dairy origin. One such phage, ΦL47, was isolated from a sewage sample using the grass isolate L. lactis ssp. cremoris DPC6860 as a host. Visualization of phage virions by transmission electron microscopy established that this phage belongs to the family Siphoviridae and possesses a long tail fiber, previously unseen in dairy lactococcal phages. Determination of the lytic spectrum revealed a broader than expected host range, with ΦL47 capable of infecting 4 industrial dairy strains, including ML8, HP and 310, and 3 additional non-dairy isolates. Whole genome sequencing of ΦL47 revealed a dsDNA genome of 128, 546 bp, making it the largest sequenced lactococcal phage to date. In total, 190 open reading frames (ORFs) were identified, and comparative analysis revealed that the predicted products of 117 of these ORFs shared greater than 50% amino acid identity with those of L. lactis phage Φ949, a phage isolated from cheese whey. Despite their different ecological niches, the genomic content and organization of ΦL47 and Φ949 are quite similar, with both containing 4 gene clusters oriented in different transcriptional directions. Other features that distinguish ΦL47 from Φ949 and other lactococcal phages, in addition to the presence of the tail fiber and the genome length, include a low GC content (32.5%) and a high number of predicted tRNA genes (8). Comparative genome analysis supports the conclusion that ΦL47 is a new member of the 949 lactococcal phage group which currently includes the dairy Φ949

Herbicide-resistant weeds : from research and knowledge to future needs

Synthetic herbicides have been used globally to control weeds in major field crops. This has imposed a strong selection for any trait that enables plant populations to survive and reproduce in the presence of the herbicide. Herbicide resistance in weeds must be minimized because it is a major limiting factor to food security in global agriculture. This represents a huge challenge that will require great research efforts to develop control strategies as alternatives to the dominant and almost exclusive practice of weed control by herbicides. Weed scientists, plant ecologists and evolutionary biologists should join forces and work towards an improved and more integrated understanding of resistance across all scales. This approach will likely facilitate the design of innovative solutions to the global herbicide resistance challenge

A theoretical study of the structural phases of Group 5B - 6B metals and their transport properties

In order to predict the stable and metastable phases of the bcc metals in the block of the Periodic Table defined by groups 5B to 6B and periods 4 to 6, as well as the structure dependence of their transport properties, we have performed full potential computations of the total energies per unit cell as a function of the c/a ratio at constant experimental volume. In all cases, a metastable body centered tetragonal (bct) phase was predicted from the calculations. The total energy differences between the calculated stable and metastable phases ranged from 0.09 eV/cell (vanadium) to 0.39 eV/cell (tungsten). The trends in resistivity as a function of structure and atomic number are discussed in terms of a model of electron transport in metals. Theoretical calculations of the electrical resistivity and other transport properties show that bct phases derived from group 5B elements are more conductive than the corresponding bcc phases, while bct phases formed from group 6B elements are less conductive than the corresponding bcc phases. Special attention is paid to the phases of tantalum where we show that the frequently observed beta phase is not a simple tetragonal distortion of bcc tantalum

Individual differences in loss aversion: conscientiousness predicts how life satisfaction responds to losses versus gains in income

Loss aversion is considered a general pervasive bias occurring regardless of context or person making the decision. We hypothesized that conscientiousness would predict an aversion to losses in the financial domain. We index loss aversion by the relative impact of income losses and gains on life satisfaction. In a representative German sample (N¬ = 105,558: replicated in a British sample, N = 33,848), with conscientiousness measured at baseline, those high on conscientiousness have the strongest reactions to income losses, suggesting a pronounced loss aversion effect, whilst for those moderately un-conscientious there is no loss aversion effect. Our research; (a) provides the first evidence of personality moderation of any loss aversion phenomena; (b) supports contextual perspectives that both personality and situational factors need to be examined in combination; (c) shows that the small but robust relationship with life satisfaction is primarily driven by a subset of people experiencing highly impactful losses