Actin filament assembly by bacterial factors VopL/F: Which end is up?

Competing models have been proposed for actin filament nucleation by the bacterial proteins VopL/F. In this issue, Burke et al. (2017. J. Cell Biol. https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201608104) use direct observation to demonstrate that VopL/F bind the barbed and pointed ends of actin filaments but only nucleate new filaments from the pointed end

Do Environmentally Friendly Companies Outperform Environmentally Unfriendly Companies in Financial Markets? An Analysis of Financial Performance & Corporate Social Responsibility

Over the last century, the ideology regarding the relationship between humans and the natural world has shifted from a period of major exploitation to a time of conservation and appreciation. Recent catastrophic events such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, a result of sea level rise and wetland degradation, have really opened the public\u27s eyes to the negative impacts that humans have on the environment, and what will come if we do not change our ways. Implementing sustainability practices has become a norm, if not a necessity, in the corporate world if companies wish to prosper. Using cross-sectional data from Newsweek\u27s 2015 Green Rankings List and a variety of online financial sources, this study examines the relationship between corporate sustainability efforts, specifically green efforts as reported by Newsweek, and performance in financial markets. Companies may strive for sustainability for its own sake, but they may also hope that their efforts will be rewarded by better financial performance and recognition by the consuming and investing public. To get at the former, this study examines the relationship between Newsweek\u27s Green Ranking and a variety of financial indicators. To address the public perception, using a survey conducted within the Union College community, this study will evaluate how well recognized Newsweek\u27s 2015 Green Rankings environmentally friendly companies are among people with various demographic backgrounds, particularly the millennial age group. The survey will also evaluate how people perceive a company compared to its actual efforts as measured by Newsweek. If there is a relationship between sustainability efforts and financial performance, or public perception, then companies should incorporate environmentally friendly practices into day-to-day operations and learn to market these developments in a way that connects with consumers

Can the care of the patient with a cup arthroplasty of the hip be used as a core experience for the student of nursing in orthopedics and how effective a teaching plan for students in orthopedics can be built about the care of one type patient, namely the patient with a cup arthroplasty of the hip?

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston University N.B.:Page 13 is misnumbered. No content is missing

Spire stimulates nucleation by Cappuccino and binds both ends of actin filaments.

The actin nucleators Spire and Cappuccino synergize to promote actin assembly, but the mechanism of their synergy is controversial. Together these proteins promote the formation of actin meshes, which are conserved structures that regulate the establishment of oocyte polarity. Direct interaction between Spire and Cappuccino is required for oogenesis and for in vitro synergistic actin assembly. This synergy is proposed to be driven by elongation and the formation of a ternary complex at filament barbed ends, or by nucleation and interaction at filament pointed ends. To mimic the geometry of Spire and Cappuccino in vivo, we immobilized Spire on beads and added Cappuccino and actin. Barbed ends, protected by Cappuccino, grow away from the beads while pointed ends are retained, as expected for nucleation-driven synergy. We found that Spire is sufficient to bind barbed ends and retain pointed ends of actin filaments near beads and we identified Spire's barbed-end binding domain. Loss of barbed-end binding increases nucleation by Spire and synergy with Cappuccino in bulk pyrene assays and on beads. Importantly, genetic rescue by the loss-of-function mutant indicates that barbed-end binding is not necessary for oogenesis. Thus, increased nucleation is a critical element of synergy both in vitro and in vivo

The impact of circadian rhythms on medical imaging and radiotherapy regimes for the paediatric patient

Daily rhythmic changes are found in cellular events in cell cycle, DNA repair, apoptosis and angiogenesis in both normal and tumour tissue, as well as in enzymatic activity and drug metabolism. In this paper, we hypothesize that circadian rhythms need to be considered in radiation protection and optimization in personalized medicine, especially for paediatric care. The sensitivity of the eye lens to ionizing radiation makes the case for limiting damage to the lens epithelium by planning medical radio-imaging procedures for the afternoon, rather than the morning. Equally, the tumour and normal tissue response to radiotherapy is also subject to diurnal variation enabling optimization of time of treatment

Regulation of the formin cappuccino is critical for polarity of Drosophilao ocytes

The Drosophila formin Cappuccino (Capu) creates an actin mesh‐like structure that traverses the oocyte during midoogenesis. This mesh is thought to prevent premature onset of fast cytoplasmic streaming which normally happens during late‐oogenesis. Proper cytoskeletal organization and cytoplasmic streaming are crucial for localization of polarity determinants such as osk, grk, bcd, and nanos mRNAs. Capu mutants disrupt these events, leading to female sterility. Capu is regulated by another nucleator, Spire, as well as by autoinhibition in vitro. Studies in vivo confirm that Spire modulates Capu's function in oocytes; however, how autoinhibition contributes is still unclear. To study the role of autoinhibition in flies, we expressed a Capu construct that is missing the Capu Inhibitory Domain, CapuΔN. Consistent with a gain of activity due to loss of autoinhibition, the actin mesh was denser in CapuΔN oocytes. Further, cytoplasmic streaming was delayed and fertility levels decreased. Localization of osk mRNA in early stages, and bcd and nanos in late stages, were disrupted in CapuΔN‐expressing oocytes. Finally, evidence that these phenotypes were due to a loss of autoinhibition comes from coexpression of the N‐terminal half of Capu with CapuΔN, which suppressed the defects in actin, cytoplasmic streaming and fertility. From these results, we conclude that Capu can be autoinhibited during Drosophila oocyte development