Chromatin remodeller Chd7 is developmentally regulated in the neural crest by tissue-specific transcription factors

Neurocristopathies such as CHARGE syndrome result from aberrant neural crest development. A large proportion of CHARGE cases are attributed to pathogenic variants in the gene encoding CHD7, chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 7, which remodels chromatin. While the role for CHD7 in neural crest development is well documented, how this factor is specifically up-regulated in neural crest cells is not understood. Here, we use epigenomic profiling of chick and human neural crest to identify a cohort of enhancers regulating Chd7 expression in neural crest cells and other tissues. We functionally validate upstream transcription factor binding at candidate enhancers, revealing novel epistatic relationships between neural crest master regulators and Chd7, showing tissue-specific regulation of a globally acting chromatin remodeller. Furthermore, we find conserved enhancer features in human embryonic epigenomic data and validate the activity of the human equivalent CHD7 enhancers in the chick embryo. Our findings embed Chd7 in the neural crest gene regulatory network and offer potentially clinically relevant elements for interpreting CHARGE syndrome cases without causative allocation

Internet addiction, fatigue, and sleep problems among adolescent students: a large-scale study

Aim: The aim of the present study was to examine the association between Internet Addiction (IA), fatigue, and sleep problems among university students. Methods: A total of 3,000 Turkish students aged 18 to 25 years were approached and 2,350 students (78.3%) participated in this cross-sectional study from April 2017 to September 2017 in public and private universities in Istanbul. Data were collected via a structured questionnaire including socio-demographic details, lifestyle and dietary habits, Internet Addiction Test (IAT), Fatigue Scale, and Epworth Sleepiness Scale [ESS]. Descriptive statistics, multivariate and factorial analyses were performed. Results: The overall prevalence of IA among the studied population was 17.7%. There were significant differences between gender, family income, father’s occupation, school performance, frequency and duration of watching television, physical activity, internet use duration, and sleep duration (all p<0.001). Significant differences were also found between participants with IA and those without IA in having headaches, blurred vision, double vision, hurting eyes, hearing problems, and eating fast food frequently (all p<0.001). Using multivariate regression analysis, the duration of internet use, physical and mental symptoms, headache, hurting eyes, tired eyes, hearing problems and ESS scores were significantly associated with (and primary predictors of) IA. Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that IA was associated with poor dietary habits, sleep problems, and fatigue symptoms

Economic Crisis and Investor Behaviour

This study investigates the effects of crises on domestic and foreign investors’ behaviours by utilizing a nonlinear approach. Considering the nonlinearity inherent in many financial variables, this study proposes an appropriate econometric modelling for analysing the investors’ behaviour, particularly during turbulent times. Specifically, STAR-STGARCH family models and generalized impulse response function analysis (GIRF) are employed to understand the different reactions of foreign and domestic investors at the Malaysian Stock Exchange market during the 1997 Asian crisis. The results of the model and the GIRF analysis have shown that foreign investors exhibited a herding behavior during the crisis and responded the shock more quickly than the domestic investors. When the same analysis is applied to understand the effects of the 2008 Subprime Mortgage Crisis in the Malaysian market, the behaviors of foreign and domestic investors are found to be very similar

Microcosm studies on the air–soil exchange of hexachlorobenzene and polychlorinated biphenyls.

Soils have an important role to play in supplying and receiving contaminants from the atmosphere, and in the global cycling of certain persistent organic pollutants (POPs). A microcosm study was conducted, in which some aspects of air–soil exchange likely to be important for the global cycling of POPs were simulated. HCB and PCBs were introduced into a sealed chamber, which contained soils of varying organic matter content, and in which soil mixing was a variable. Uptake of these compounds on to the soils was monitored over time. Subsequently, the primary chemical source was removed and further changes in the residues retained on the soils were monitored. The rates of uptake onto the different soil treatments are compared and the influence of the soil organic matter content and mixing evaluated. The implications for the global cycling of POPs are discussed

Electrical and Dielectric Properties of a n-Si Schottky Barrier Diode with Bismuth Titanate Interlayer: Effect of Temperature

YILDIRIM, Mert/0000-0002-8526-1802WOS: 000394212600056An Au/Bi4Ti3O12/n-Si Schottky barrier diode (SBD) was fabricated with a 51 nm Bi4Ti3O12 interfacial layer. Admittance measurements of the fabricated SBD were carried out in the bias voltage (V) range of -4 V and 6 V. Capacitance (C) and conductance (G/omega) measurements were carried out in a wide temperature range of 120-380 K so that temperature effects on electrical and dielectric properties of the SBD were investigated. Main electrical parameters were extracted from reverse bias C (-2)-V plots. It was found that variance of electrical and dielectric parameters of the SBD with temperature is basically different for low and high temperature regions. A fair number (similar to 10(12) eV(-1) cm(-2)) was obtained for surface states (N (ss)); however, N (ss) first decreased then increased with temperature. This result was associated with increased defects with temperature and higher activation energy in the high temperature region. Dielectric parameters of the SBD were also extracted and the dielectric constant of SBD was found as similar to 10 at room temperature. Application of modulus formalism to the admittance data revealed temperature-activated dielectric relaxation at 340 K. Results showed that the temperature has considerable effects on electrical and dielectric properties of Au/Bi4Ti3O12/n-Si SBD

Chiral organochlorine pesticide signatures in global background soils.

Chiral pesticides frequently undergo enantioselective degradation in soils. Prior studies to characterize chiral signatures have focused on treated agricultural soils, rather than background (untreated) soils, and tracking signatures in the atmosphere for source apportionment purposes. In this study, we investigated the chiral signatures in 65 background soils collected from different locations across the world. The soils were taken from different ecosystems (e.g., grasslands, forests), and the enantiomeric fractions (EFs) of chiral chlordanes, α-hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH), and o,p‘-DDT were determined. Chlordanes in most of the soils showed the usual pattern of enantioselective degradation seen in agricultural soils, depletion of (+)-trans-chlordane (TC) and (−)-cis-chlordane (CC). However, some samples showed opposite enantiomer degradation patterns for TC, CC, and chlordane compound MC5. Correlations were tested between the deviation of EFs from racemic (DEVrac = absolute value of 0.500 − EF), the percent soil organic matter (% SOM), annual mean temperature, and the ratio of TC to the more stable compound trans-nonachlor (TN). Significant positive correlations were found between DEVrac and % SOM for TC and CC (p = 0.0022 and 0.0031), but not for the other OCPs. No significant correlations were found between DEVrac and annual mean temperature for any of the OCPs. DEVrac for TC was negatively correlated with the TC/TN ratio, but the regression was driven by two points with high ratios of TC/CC. Removing these two points resulted in a nonsignificant regression. The range of EFs for TC, CC, and α-HCH in soils was greater than in ambient air, providing evidence of in situ degradation after atmospheric deposition in some cases. Variable EFs in soil suggest that caution is needed when considering the enantiomer signatures in air as a marker of volatilization of weathered soil-derived organochlorines

Hypoglycemic activity of a dietary mushroom Pleurotus florida on alloxan induced diabetic rats

Species of Pleurotus possess various medicinal properties including hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic activities. The feeding effect of the mushroom Pleurotus florida in powdered form was evaluated on growth, blood glucose and cholesterol level in alloxan-induced diabetic albino rats against control. The starch was estimated in dry mushroom and found to be 0.28% (dry weight). The result indicated no significant difference in respect of gaining body weights between Bengal gram-fed and mushroom-fed groups. For studying antidiabetic effect, the control group and half of alloxan-induced (100 mg/kg i.p) experimental groups were fed on normal diet with Bengal gram whereas the other half of alloxan-induced group was fed on same diet but with additional mushroom powder. Blood samples were analysed for glucose, serum cholesterol, triglycerides and uric acid levels on 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th days of alloxan treatment. Body weights and mortality were noted during the period of study. The diabetic group administered with mushroom diet showed significantly decreased level of blood glucose and cholesterol compared to the counterpart. Estimation of lipid profile revealed much lower LDL cholesterol in mushroom fed diabetic group than in non- mushroom fed diabetic control group. The study, thus, points out the prominent effect of feeding dried mushroom (P. florida) on growth of albino rat and positive effect of P. florida on lowering blood glucose and cholesterol level in diabetic rats thereby suggesting its hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic effect.Species of Pleurotus possess various medicinal properties including hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic activities. The feeding effect of the mushroom Pleurotus florida in powdered form was evaluated on growth, blood glucose and cholesterol level in alloxan-induced diabetic albino rats against control. The starch was estimated in dry mushroom and found to be 0.28% (dry weight). The result indicated no significant difference in respect of gaining body weights between Bengal gram-fed and mushroom-fed groups. For studying antidiabetic effect, the control group and half of alloxan-induced (100 mg/kg i.p) experimental groups were fed on normal diet with Bengal gram whereas the other half of alloxan-induced group was fed on same diet but with additional mushroom powder. Blood samples were analysed for glucose, serum cholesterol, triglycerides and uric acid levels on 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th days of alloxan treatment. Body weights and mortality were noted during the period of study. The diabetic group administered with mushroom diet showed significantly decreased level of blood glucose and cholesterol compared to the counterpart. Estimation of lipid profile revealed much lower LDL cholesterol in mushroom fed diabetic group than in non- mushroom fed diabetic control group. The study, thus, points out the prominent effect of feeding dried mushroom (P. florida) on growth of albino rat and positive effect of P. florida on lowering blood glucose and cholesterol level in diabetic rats thereby suggesting its hypoglycemic and hypocholesterolemic effect