Expression of FAM171B Protein in Mouse Brain Tissue

Polyglutamine (polyQ) diseases are inherited fatal neurodegenerative disorders caused by expansion of trinucleotide cytosine-adenine-guanine (CAG) repeats, encoding abnormally long glutamine tracts in respective disease proteins. Currently, there are nine polyQ diseases- including Huntington’s disease and a number of Spinocerebellar ataxias. Interestingly, expanded polyQ proteins are prone to aggregate, and this aggregation may underlie neurodegeneration. In this study, we investigate the expression and localization of FAM171B (a novel polyQ protein) in the brain. Western blotting reveals that FAM171B protein is indeed expressed in the developing and adult mouse brain. Furthermore, immunohistochemical analyses suggests widespread localization of FAM171B to many brain regions - with pronounced expression in the hippocampus, cerebellar Purkinje cells, and cerebral cortex. As a novel polyQ protein that is expressed in the brain, our observations suggest that FAM171B can be considered a candidate gene for as yet molecularly uncharacterized neurodegenerative diseases

A Study of Chief Executive Officer Turnover in Vietnam: The Link between Firm Performance and CEO Turnover

In general, CEO turnover has been researched widely following numerous studies in developed countries. Nevertheless, the determinants of CEO turnover are still unclear in transition countries of which the legal and regulatory framework are weak and financial systems and corporate govemance are underdeveloped. Therefore, examining determinants of CEO turnover in Vietnam, a transition country, helps to provide more evidence on the efficiency and effectiveness of corporate governance in transition countries. Furthermore, the examination helps to define weaknesses, and it, therefore, could provide guidance to improve corporate governance in Vietnamese enterprises

Cutoff for the Glauber-Exclusion process in the full high-temperature regime: an information percolation approach

The Glauber-Exclusion process is a superposition of a Glauber dynamics and the Symmetric Simple Exclusion Process (SSEP) on the lattice. The model was shown to admit a reaction-diffusion equation as the hydrodynamic limit. In this article, we define a notion of temperature regimes via the reaction function in the equation and prove cutoff in the full high-temperature regime for the attractive model in dimensions $1$ and $2$ with periodic boundary condition. Our results show that the equation in the hydrodynamic limit reflects the mixing behavior of the large but finite system. Besides, cutoff is proved under the lack of reversibility and an explicit formula for the invariant measure. We also provide the spectral gap and prove pre-cutoff in all dimensions. Our proof involves a new interpretation of attractiveness, the information percolation framework introduced by Lubetzky and Sly, anti-concentration of simple random walk on the lattice, and a coupling inspired by excursion theory. We hope that this approach can find new applications in the future.Comment: 68 + 3 pages, 5 figures, comments welcome

Nonlinear Stochastic Systems And Controls: Lotka-Volterra Type Models, Permanence And Extinction, Optimal Harvesting Strategies, And Numerical Methods For Systems Under Partial Observations

This dissertation focuses on a class of stochastic models formulated using stochastic differential equations with regime switching represented by a continuous-time Markov chain, which also known as hybrid switching diffusion processes. Our motivations for studying such processes in this dissertation stem from emerging and existing applications in biological systems, ecosystems, financial engineering, modeling, analysis, and control and optimization of stochastic systems under the influence of random environments, with complete observations or partial observations. The first part is concerned with Lotka-Volterra models with white noise and regime switching represented by a continuous-time Markov chain. Different from the existing literature, the Markov chain is hidden and canonly be observed in a Gaussian white noise in our work. We use a Wonham filter to estimate the Markov chain from the observable evolution of the given process, and convert the original system to a completely observable one. We then establish the regularity, positivity, stochastic boundedness, and sample path continuity of the solution. Moreover, stochastic permanence and extinction using feedback controls are investigated. The second part develops optimal harvest strategies for Lotka-Volterra systems so as to establish economically, ecologically, and environmentally reasonable strategies for populations subject to the risk of extinction. The underlying systems are controlled regime-switching diffusions that belong to the class of singular control problems. We construct upper bounds for the value functions, prove the finiteness of the harvesting value, and derive properties of the value functions. Then we construct explicit chattering harvesting strategies and the corresponding lower bounds for the value functions by using the idea of harvesting only one species at a time. We further show that this is a reasonable candidate for the best lower bound that one can expect. In the last part, we study optimal harvesting problems for a general systems in the case that the Markov chain is hidden and can only be observed in a Gaussian white noise. The Wonham filter is employed to convert the original problem to a completely observable one. Then we treat the resulting optimal control problem. Because the problem is virtually impossible to solve in closed form, our main effort is devoted to developing numerical approximation algorithms. To approximate the value function and optimal strategies, Markov chain approximation methods are used to construct a discrete-time controlled Markov chain. Convergence of the algorithm is proved by weak convergence method and suitable scaling

A statistical approach to medium optimization for growth and toxin production by the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology in Biotechnology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

Bacillus thuringiensis is a Gram positive spore-forming bacterium. Knowledge of its pathogenicity against the larval stages of certain lepidopterous insects has been known for over 70 years. Ishiwata (1902) was the first to isolate it from dying silkworm larvae. Later Berliner (1915) isolated it from sick larvae of Anagasta kuhniella. He noted the existence of a parasporal body or "Rostkorper" in sporulated cells. These observations were confirmed by Mattes (1927), but it was not until 1953 that Hannay (1953) characterized the parasporal body as a crystal. The crystal has since been known to play a key role in the pathogenicity towards the most susceptible lepidopterous larvae. In recent years a considerable degree of interest has been aroused on the use of biological methods for insect control as against the use of chemical insecticides. Among many biological products considered as insect control agents, the crystal produced in the bacterium B. thuringiensis is one of the most hopeful. Industrial organisations in several countries are presently engaged in fundamental research and commercial scale production of insecticidal preparations based on this bacterium (Falcon, 1971; Pendleton, 1969). Apart from the crystal, which might be considered as an enterotoxin, a number of exotoxins are also known or postulated to be produced by B. thuringiensis. Heimpel (1967a) suggested the following nomenclature: δ -endotoxin, or the proteinaceous crystal; α-exotoxin, a lecithinase C or phospholipase C; β -exotoxin, a thermostable exotoxin or "fly factor"; γ -exotoxin (an enzyme that clears egg yolk agar, not yet identified). The toxicity for insects of the β -exotoxin and the δ -endotoxin has been substantiated, but the efficiency of the so-called γ -exotoxin has not been proved. Quite recently Krieg (1971) suggested that the α -exotoxin is not identical with lecithinase C. He concluded that the α -exotoxin is a thermosensitive exotoxin of proteinaceous character which is produced during growth phase by strains of B. thuringiensis and of B. cereus. Krieg (1970) also isolated a relative heat stable bacteriocin produced by B. thuringiensis which he called Thuricin. He suggested that this is a polypeptide and can cause inhibition of growth of Gram positive bacteria and antagonism between several strains of B. thuringiensis.[FROM INTRO

Synthesis And Characterization Of Novel Metal-Ti3sic2 Based Multilayered Composites

In this thesis, the design and development of novel multilayered MAX reinforced metal (MRMs) composites is reported. In literature, different studies have focused on MAX Reinforced Metals (MRMs) composites, however no research on MRMs have been on multilayered composites. In this thesis, two different types of composites were designed, (a) Type I, and (b) Type II multilayered composites. In type I composites, MRMs layers were interleaved between metal layers to create a multilayered composite. Similarly, in Type II composites - MRMs were interleaved with two different types of metal layers. In the Chapter II, synthesis of the Ni-Ti3SiC2 multilayered Type I and II composites, and their mechanical and tribological behavior have been reported. In Chapter III, a commercial AlSi alloy was substituted with pure Ni as the metal matrix to design Type I composites. The detailed microstructure, mechanical, and tribological behavior will be reported in this thesis