Integrin Trafficking and Tumor Progression

Integrins are major mediators of cancer cell adhesion to extracellular matrix. Through this interaction, integrins play critical roles in cell migration, invasion, metastasis, and resistance to apoptosis during tumor progression. Recent studies highlight the importance of integrin trafficking, endocytosis and recycling, for the functions of integrins in cancer cells. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of integrin trafficking is pivotal for understanding tumor progression and for the development of anticancer drugs

Interlocked chiral/polar domain walls and large optical rotation in Ni3TeO6

Chirality, i.e., handedness, pervades much of modern science from elementary particles, DNA-based biology to molecular chemistry; however, most of the chirality-relevant materials have been based on complex molecules. Here, we report inorganic single-crystalline Ni3TeO6, forming in a corundum-related R3 structure with both chirality and polarity. These chiral Ni3TeO6 single crystals exhibit a large optical specific rotation (alpha)-1355 degrees dm(-1) cm(3) g(-1). We demonstrate, for the first time, that in Ni3TeO6, chiral and polar domains form an intriguing domain pattern, resembling a radiation warning sign, which stems from interlocked chiral and polar domain walls through lowering of the wall energy. (C) 2015 Author(s)open0

Red supergiant stars in IC 1613 and metallicity-dependent mixing length in the evolutionary model

We report a spectroscopic study on red supergiant stars (RSGs) in the irregular dwarf galaxy IC 1613 in the Local Group. We derive the effective temperatures ($T_\mathrm{eff}$) and metallicities of 14 RSGs by synthetic spectral fitting to the spectra observed with the MMIRS instrument on the MMT telescope for a wavelength range from 1.16 $\mu$m to 1.23 $\mu$m. A weak bimodal distribution of the RSG metallicity centered on the [Fe/H]=$-0.65$ is found, which is slightly lower than or comparable to that of the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). There is no evidence for spatial segregation between the metal rich ([Fe/H]$>-0.65$) and poor ([Fe/H]$<-0.65$) RSGs throughout the galaxy. The mean effective temperature of our RSG sample in IC 1613 is higher by about 250 K than that of the SMC. However, no correlation between $T_\mathrm{eff}$ and metallicity within our RSG sample is found. We calibrate the convective mixing length ($\alpha_{\mathrm{MLT}}$) by comparing stellar evolutionary tracks with the RSG positions on the HR diagram, finding that models with $\alpha_{\mathrm{MLT}}=2.2-2.4 H_P$ can best reproduce the effective temperatures of the RSGs in IC 1613 for both Schwarzschild and Ledoux convection criteria. This result supports our previous study that a metallicity dependent mixing length is needed to explain the RSG temperatures observed in the Local Group, but we find that this dependency becomes relatively weak for RSGs having a metallicity equal to or less than the SMC metallicity.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures, accepted in Ap

The Impact of Overactive Bladder on Health-Related Quality of Life, Sexual Life and Psychological Health in Korea

Purpose We aimed to estimate the prevalence of overactive bladder (OAB) in Korea, to assess the variation in prevalence by sex and age, and to measure the impact of OAB on quality of life. Methods A population-based, cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted between April and June 2010 with a questionnaire regarding the prevalence of OAB, demographics, and the impact of OAB on quality of life. A geographically stratified random sample of men and women aged ≥30 years was selected. Results The overall prevalence of OAB was 22.9% (male, 19%; female, 26.8%). Of a total of 458 participants with OAB, 37.6% and 19.9% reported moderate or severe impact on their daily life and sexual life (5.6% and 3.5%, respectively, in participants without OAB). Anxiety and depression were reported by 22.7% and 39.3% of participants with OAB, respectively (9.7% and 22.8%, respectively, in participants without OAB). Only 19.7% of participants with OAB had consulted a doctor for their voiding symptoms, but 50.7% of respondents with OAB were willing to visit a hospital for the management of their OAB symptoms. Conclusions This study confirmed that OAB symptoms are highly prevalent in Korea, and many sufferers appear to have actively sought medical help. OAB has severe effects on daily and sexual life as well as psychological health

Bisphosphonate use and gastrointestinal tract cancer risk: Meta-analysis of observational studies

AIM: To perform a meta-analysis of observational studies to further elucidate the relationship between oral bisphosphonate use and gastrointestinal cancer risk.METHODS: Systematic literature search was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library to identify studies through January 2011. Search terms wereOAIID:oai:osos.snu.ac.kr:snu2012-01/102/0000052039/11SEQ:11PERF_CD:SNU2012-01EVAL_ITEM_CD:102USER_ID:0000052039ADJUST_YN:YEMP_ID:A077862DEPT_CD:801CITE_RATE:2.471FILENAME:63_Bisphosphonate use and gastrointestinal tract.pdfDEPT_NM:의학과EMAIL:[email protected]_YN:YCONFIRM:

Glycogen synthase kinase-3 is an endogenous inhibitor of Snail transcription: implications for the epithelial-mesenchymal transition

We report that the activity of glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) is necessary for the maintenance of the epithelial architecture. Pharmacological inhibition of its activity or reducing its expression using small interfering RNAs in normal breast and skin epithelial cells results in a reduction of E-cadherin expression and a more mesenchymal morphology, both of which are features associated with an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Importantly, GSK-3 inhibition also stimulates the transcription of Snail, a repressor of E-cadherin and an inducer of the EMT. We identify NFkappaB as a transcription factor inhibited by GSK-3 in epithelial cells that is relevant for Snail expression. These findings indicate that epithelial cells must sustain activation of a specific kinase to impede a mesenchymal transition

The direct observation of ferromagnetic domain of single crystal CrSiTe3

Layered van der Waals interacting system that can be exfoliated to few layers are promising for exploring fundamental physics with rich electronic and optical properties. Combining the emerging phenomenon with long-range magnetic orders could lead to novel potential ultra-compact spintronics. Recently, CrXTe3 (X= Ge, Si) were reported that can persist magnetism after being exfoliated to few layers, however the magnetic domain structure in layered or bulk single crystal has remained unexplored. Here we choose CrSiTe3 single crystal as a model system, combining low-temperature magnetic force microscope, to demonstrate the magnetic domain structure, as well as the domain evolution in the presence of magnetic field, which is consistent with the magnetic behaviors measured by Magnetic Properties Measurement System (MPMS). Our result gives a simple portray of the magnetic properties of single crystal CrSiTe3, which provides a basis for the future research on magnetic layered van der Waals interacting system in potential application at 2-dimensional limit