Cigarette Smoking and Adolescent Health: A Survey of Selected Senior Secondary Schools in Ekpoma

The objective of this study was to investigate the knowledge and practice of cigarette smoking among in-school adolescents in Ekpoma. A sample of 353 senior secondary students drawn from selected schools in the area was studied in a cross-sectional design using self-administered questionnaires. Respondents’ knowledge was  assessed with questions that bother on aspects of smoking with public health implications. Mean age of respondents was 16.6   years and a near-equal gender distribution. The results showed a smoking prevalence of 11.6% while the percentage attempts to quit was 26.8%. Percentage awareness about the harmful effects of smoking was 86.1% while comprehensive knowledge of important aspects of smoking was good in 60.3% of respondents. There was a  significant relationship between smoking and self-reported academic performance (X2 = 5.002; p=0.025; OR = 0.47; CI (95%) = 0.22 – 0.96). Conclusively, the prevalence of smoking was high among in-school adolescents in the study area. We recommend special programmes and services aimed at reducing smoking among adolescents in a learning environment.Keywords: Cigarette, Smoking, Adolescents, Secondary schools, Ekpoma

PENGARUH ETIKA KERJA DAN LOYALITAS KERJA TERHADAP KINERJA PEGAWAI PADA BADAN KEPEGAWAIAN DAN PENGEMBANGAN SUMBER DAYA MANUSIA KOTA BANDUNG

ABSTRAK Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh etika kerja (X1) dan loyalitas kerja (X2) terhadap Kinerja Pegawai (Y) baik secara simultan maupun parsial pada Badan Kepegawaian dan Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia Kota Bandung, pada Etika Kerja (X1) dan Loyalitas Kerja (X2) sedangkan untuk variabel terikat meliputi Kinerja Pegawai (Y). Metode Penelitian yang digunakan yaitu metode deskriptif dan verifikatif dengan jumlah sampel sebanyak 82 responden. Sedangkan untuk teknik pengumpulan data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini yaitu observasi, wawancara dan penyebaran kuisioner. Dan untuk metode analisis yang digunakan meliputi regresi linier berganda, korelasi berganda dan koefisien determinasi. Hasil dari penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa terdapat pengaruh positif dan signifikan secara simultan maupun secara parsial. Secara simultan pengaruh Etika Kerja (X1) dan Loyalitas Kerja (X2) terhadap Kinerja Pegawai (Y) sebesar 58,6% Sedangkan secara parsial Etika Kerja berpengaruh terhadap Kinerja Pegawai memberikan pengaruh sebesar 23,8% dan Loyalitas Kerja berpengaruh terhadap Kinerja Pegawai memberikan pengaruh sebesar 34,8% Dapat disimpulkan bahwa Etika Kerja dan Loyalitas Kerja memiliki pengaruh yang signifikan terhadap Kinerja Pegawai di Badan Kepegawaian dan Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia Kota Bandu

Collaborative Action of Brca1 and CtIP in Elimination of Covalent Modifications from Double-Strand Breaks to Facilitate Subsequent Break Repair

Topoisomerase inhibitors such as camptothecin and etoposide are used as anti-cancer drugs and induce double-strand breaks (DSBs) in genomic DNA in cycling cells. These DSBs are often covalently bound with polypeptides at the 3′ and 5′ ends. Such modifications must be eliminated before DSB repair can take place, but it remains elusive which nucleases are involved in this process. Previous studies show that CtIP plays a critical role in the generation of 3′ single-strand overhang at “clean” DSBs, thus initiating homologous recombination (HR)–dependent DSB repair. To analyze the function of CtIP in detail, we conditionally disrupted the CtIP gene in the chicken DT40 cell line. We found that CtIP is essential for cellular proliferation as well as for the formation of 3′ single-strand overhang, similar to what is observed in DT40 cells deficient in the Mre11/Rad50/Nbs1 complex. We also generated DT40 cell line harboring CtIP with an alanine substitution at residue Ser332, which is required for interaction with BRCA1. Although the resulting CtIPS332A/−/− cells exhibited accumulation of RPA and Rad51 upon DNA damage, and were proficient in HR, they showed a marked hypersensitivity to camptothecin and etoposide in comparison with CtIP+/−/− cells. Finally, CtIPS332A/−/−BRCA1−/− and CtIP+/−/−BRCA1−/− showed similar sensitivities to these reagents. Taken together, our data indicate that, in addition to its function in HR, CtIP plays a role in cellular tolerance to topoisomerase inhibitors. We propose that the BRCA1-CtIP complex plays a role in the nuclease-mediated elimination of oligonucleotides covalently bound to polypeptides from DSBs, thereby facilitating subsequent DSB repair

Annual and seasonal movements of migrating short-tailed shearwaters reflect environmental variation in sub-Arctic and Arctic waters

The marine ecosystems of the Bering Sea and adjacent southern Chukchi Sea are experiencing rapid changes due to recent reductions in sea ice. Short-tailed shearwaters Puffinus tenuirostris visit this region in huge numbers between the boreal summer and autumn during non-breeding season, and represent one of the dominant top predators. To understand the implications for this species of ongoing environmental change in the Pacific sub-Arctic and Arctic seas, we tracked the migratory movements of 19 and 24 birds in 2010 and 2011, respectively, using light-level geolocators. In both years, tracked birds occupied the western (Okhotsk Sea and Kuril Islands) and eastern (southeast Bering Sea) North Pacific from May to July. In August–September of 2010, but not 2011, a substantial proportion (68 % of the tracked individuals in 2010 compared to 38 % in 2011) moved through the Bering Strait to feed in the Chukchi Sea. Based on the correlation with oceanographic variables, the probability of shearwater occurrence was highest in waters with sea surface temperatures (SSTs) of 8–10 °C over shallow depths. Furthermore, shearwaters spent more time flying when SST was warmer than 9 °C, suggesting increased search effort for prey. We hypothesized that the northward shift in the distribution of shearwaters may have been related to temperature-driven changes in the abundance of their dominant prey, krill (Euphausiacea), as the timing of krill spawning coincides with the seasonal increase in water temperature. Our results indicate a flexible response of foraging birds to ongoing changes in the sub-Arctic and Arctic ecosystems

TRAIP promotes DNA damage response during genome replication and is mutated in primordial dwarfism.

DNA lesions encountered by replicative polymerases threaten genome stability and cell cycle progression. Here we report the identification of mutations in TRAIP, encoding an E3 RING ubiquitin ligase, in patients with microcephalic primordial dwarfism. We establish that TRAIP relocalizes to sites of DNA damage, where it is required for optimal phosphorylation of H2AX and RPA2 during S-phase in response to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, as well as fork progression through UV-induced DNA lesions. TRAIP is necessary for efficient cell cycle progression and mutations in TRAIP therefore limit cellular proliferation, providing a potential mechanism for microcephaly and dwarfism phenotypes. Human genetics thus identifies TRAIP as a component of the DNA damage response to replication-blocking DNA lesions.This work was supported by funding from the Medical Research Council and the European Research Council (ERC, 281847) (A.P.J.), the Lister Institute for Preventative Medicine (A.P.J. and G.S.S.), Medical Research Scotland (L.S.B.), German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, 01GM1404) and E-RARE network EuroMicro (B.W), Wellcome Trust (M. Hurles), CMMC (P.N.), Cancer Research UK (C17183/A13030) (G.S.S. and M.R.H), Swiss National Science Foundation (P2ZHP3_158709) (O.M.), AIRC (12710) and ERC/EU FP7 (CIG_303806) (S.S.), Cancer Research UK (C6/A11224) and ERC/EU FP7 (HEALTH-F2- 2010-259893) (A.N.B. and S.P.J.).This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from NPG via http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ng.345

A comprehensive overview of radioguided surgery using gamma detection probe technology

The concept of radioguided surgery, which was first developed some 60 years ago, involves the use of a radiation detection probe system for the intraoperative detection of radionuclides. The use of gamma detection probe technology in radioguided surgery has tremendously expanded and has evolved into what is now considered an established discipline within the practice of surgery, revolutionizing the surgical management of many malignancies, including breast cancer, melanoma, and colorectal cancer, as well as the surgical management of parathyroid disease. The impact of radioguided surgery on the surgical management of cancer patients includes providing vital and real-time information to the surgeon regarding the location and extent of disease, as well as regarding the assessment of surgical resection margins. Additionally, it has allowed the surgeon to minimize the surgical invasiveness of many diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, while still maintaining maximum benefit to the cancer patient. In the current review, we have attempted to comprehensively evaluate the history, technical aspects, and clinical applications of radioguided surgery using gamma detection probe technology

PENGARUH KUALITAS PELAYANAN DAN SUASANA TOKO TERHADAP KEPUASAN KONSUMEN (Survei Pada Konsumen Kafe Ganesha Mocktail Bandung)

ABSTRAK Penelitian ini berjudul pengaruh kualitas pelayanan dan suasana toko terhadap kepuasan konsumen (survei pada konsumen kafe Ganesha Mocktail). Berdasarkan penelitian pendahuluan, masalah yang terjadi yaitu mengenai kepuasan konsumen yang masih rendah, hal ini dipengaruhi oleh kualitas pelayanan dan suasana toko yang diberikan oleh kafe Ganesha Mocktail. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis pengaruh yang timbul dari Kualitas Pelayanan dan Suasana Toko (Store Atmosphere) terhadap Kepuasan Konsumen pada konsumen kafe Ganesha Mocktail. Variabel yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini yaitu Kualitas Pelayanan dan Suasana Toko (Store Atmosphere) sebagai variable independen, kemudian Kepuasan Konsumen sebagai variabel dependen. Metode penelitian yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah deskriptif dan verifikatif. Teknik pengambilan sampel yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini menggunakan nonprobability sampling. Penelitian ini menggunakan sampel sebanyak 98 orang konsumen kafe Ganesha Mocktail. Analisis data dalam penelitian ini menggunakan teknik regresi linier berganda dengan alat uji SPSS 22. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa secara parsial variabel kualitas pelayanan berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap kepuasan konsumen, variabel suasana toko berpengaruh signifikan terhadap kepuasan konsumen. Secara simultan kualitas pelayanan dan suasana toko secara bersama-sama berpengaruh terhadap kepuasan konsumen. Variabel independen dalam penlitian ini memberikan pengaruh sebesar 80,1% terhadap kepuasan konsumen dan sisanya dipengaruhi oleh variabel lain. Kata Kunci : Kualitas Pelayanan, Suasana Toko dan Kepuasa

The Dbf4-Cdc7 kinase promotes S phase by alleviating an inhibitory activity in Mcm4

Eukaryotic DNA replication uses kinase regulatory pathways to facilitate coordination with other processes during cell division cycles and response to environmental cues. At least two cell cycle-regulated protein kinase systems, the S-phase-specific cyclin-dependent protein kinases (S-CDKs) and the Dbf4–Cdc7 kinase (DDK, Dbf4-dependent protein kinase) are essential activators for initiation of DNA replication1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Although the essential mechanism of CDK activation of DNA replication in Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been established6, 7, exactly how DDK acts has been unclear. Here we show that the amino terminal serine/threonine-rich domain (NSD) of Mcm4 has both inhibitory and facilitating roles in DNA replication control and that the sole essential function of DDK is to relieve an inhibitory activity residing within the NSD. By combining an mcm4 mutant lacking the inhibitory activity with mutations that bypass the requirement for CDKs for initiation of DNA replication, we show that DNA synthesis can occur in G1 phase when CDKs and DDK are limited. However, DDK is still required for efficient S phase progression. In the absence of DDK, CDK phosphorylation at the distal part of the Mcm4 NSD becomes crucial. Moreover, DDK-null cells fail to activate the intra-S-phase checkpoint in the presence of hydroxyurea-induced DNA damage and are unable to survive this challenge. Our studies establish that the eukaryote-specific NSD of Mcm4 has evolved to integrate several protein kinase regulatory signals for progression through S phase