A Suborbital Payload for Soft X-ray Spectroscopy of Extended Sources

We present a suborbital rocket payload capable of performing soft X-ray spectroscopy on extended sources. The payload can reach resolutions of ~100(lambda/dlambda) over sources as large as 3.25 degrees in diameter in the 17-107 angstrom bandpass. This permits analysis of the overall energy balance of nearby supernova remnants and the detailed nature of the diffuse soft X-ray background. The main components of the instrument are: wire grid collimators, off-plane grating arrays and gaseous electron multiplier detectors. This payload is adaptable to longer duration orbital rockets given its comparatively simple pointing and telemetry requirements and an abundance of potential science targets.Comment: Accepted to Experimental Astronomy, 12 pages plus 1 table and 17 figure

Is social stress in the first half of life detrimental to later physical and mental health in both men and women?

This study examined gender differences in the associations between affection- and status-related stressors encountered in the first half of life and physical and mental health problems later on. Based on the theory of Social Production Functions (SPF) two hypotheses have been formulated, which were tested in a representative sample of 446 men and 514 women (aged 40–79). Main outcome measures were number of chronic somatic diseases and level of psychological distress. As expected, regression analyses showed no gender differences in the associations between affection-related stressors and physical and mental health problems later on. In contrast, but as also expected, status-related stressors encountered in the first half of life were associated with later physical and mental health for men only. It is concluded that the gender differences in the associations between earlier social stressors and later health problems may be more complex than the common assumption that men are only affected by status stress and women only by affection stress. This study contributes to the knowledge on gender differences concerning the link between social stress and health, and it indicates that social experiences encountered earlier in life are of importance for being healthy and happy in later life

PrognoScan: a new database for meta-analysis of the prognostic value of genes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In cancer research, the association between a gene and clinical outcome suggests the underlying etiology of the disease and consequently can motivate further studies. The recent availability of published cancer microarray datasets with clinical annotation provides the opportunity for linking gene expression to prognosis. However, the data are not easy to access and analyze without an effective analysis platform.</p> <p>Description</p> <p>To take advantage of public resources in full, a database named "PrognoScan" has been developed. This is 1) a large collection of publicly available cancer microarray datasets with clinical annotation, as well as 2) a tool for assessing the biological relationship between gene expression and prognosis. PrognoScan employs the minimum <it>P</it>-value approach for grouping patients for survival analysis that finds the optimal cutpoint in continuous gene expression measurement without prior biological knowledge or assumption and, as a result, enables systematic meta-analysis of multiple datasets.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>PrognoScan provides a powerful platform for evaluating potential tumor markers and therapeutic targets and would accelerate cancer research. The database is publicly accessible at <url>http://gibk21.bse.kyutech.ac.jp/PrognoScan/index.html</url>.</p

Approach to epigenetic analysis in language disorders

Language and learning disorders such as reading disability and language impairment are recognized to be subject to substantial genetic influences, but few causal mutations have been identified in the coding regions of candidate genes. Association analyses of single nucleotide polymorphisms have suggested the involvement of regulatory regions of these genes, and a few mutations affecting gene expression levels have been identified, indicating that the quantity rather than the quality of the gene product may be most relevant for these disorders. In addition, several of the candidate genes appear to be involved in neuronal migration, confirming the importance of early developmental processes. Accordingly, alterations in epigenetic processes such as DNA methylation and histone modification are likely to be important in the causes of language and learning disorders based on their functions in gene regulation. Epigenetic processes direct the differentiation of cells in early development when neurological pathways are set down, and mutations in genes involved in epigenetic regulation are known to cause cognitive disorders in humans. Epigenetic processes also regulate the changes in gene expression in response to learning, and alterations in histone modification are associated with learning and memory deficits in animals. Genetic defects in histone modification have been reversed in animals through therapeutic interventions resulting in rescue of these deficits, making it particularly important to investigate their potential contribution to learning disorders in humans

Estrogen receptor transcription and transactivation: Estrogen receptor alpha and estrogen receptor beta - regulation by selective estrogen receptor modulators and importance in breast cancer

Estrogens display intriguing tissue-selective action that is of great biomedical importance in the development of optimal therapeutics for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer, for menopausal hormone replacement, and for fertility regulation. Certain compounds that act through the estrogen receptor (ER), now referred to as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), can demonstrate remarkable differences in activity in the various estrogen target tissues, functioning as agonists in some tissues but as antagonists in others. Recent advances elucidating the tripartite nature of the biochemical and molecular actions of estrogens provide a good basis for understanding these tissue-selective actions. As discussed in this thematic review, the development of optimal SERMs should now be viewed in the context of two estrogen receptor subtypes, ERα and ERβ, that have differing affinities and responsiveness to various SERMs, and differing tissue distribution and effectiveness at various gene regulatory sites. Cellular, biochemical, and structural approaches have also shown that the nature of the ligand affects the conformation assumed by the ER-ligand complex, thereby regulating its state of phosphorylation and the recruitment of different coregulator proteins. Growth factors and protein kinases that control the phosphorylation state of the complex also regulate the bioactivity of the ER. These interactions and changes determine the magnitude of the transcriptional response and the potency of different SERMs. As these critical components are becoming increasingly well defined, they provide a sound basis for the development of novel SERMs with optimal profiles of tissue selectivity as medical therapeutic agents

DNA methylation, the early-life social environment and behavioral disorders

One of the outstanding questions in behavioral disorders is untangling the complex relationship between nurture and nature. Although epidemiological data provide evidence that there is an interaction between genetics (nature) and the social and physical environments (nurture) in a spectrum of behavioral disorders, the main open question remains the mechanism. Emerging data support the hypothesis that DNA methylation, a covalent modification of the DNA molecule that is a component of its chemical structure, serves as an interface between the dynamic environment and the fixed genome. We propose that modulation of DNA methylation in response to environmental cues early in life serves as a mechanism of life-long genome adaptation. Under certain contexts, this adaptation can turn maladaptive resulting in behavioral disorders. This hypothesis has important implications on understanding, predicting, preventing, and treating behavioral disorders including autism that will be discussed

As Far as the Eye Can See: Relationship between Psychopathic Traits and Pupil Response to Affective Stimuli

Psychopathic individuals show a range of affective processing deficits, typically associated with the interpersonal/affective component of psychopathy. However, previous research has been inconsistent as to whether psychopathy, within both offender and community populations, is associated with deficient autonomic responses to the simple presentation of affective stimuli. Changes in pupil diameter occur in response to emotionally arousing stimuli and can be used as an objective indicator of physiological reactivity to emotion. This study used pupillometry to explore whether psychopathic traits within a community sample were associated with hypo-responsivity to the affective content of stimuli. Pupil activity was recorded for 102 adult (52 female) community participants in response to affective (both negative and positive affect) and affectively neutral stimuli, that included images of scenes, static facial expressions, dynamic facial expressions and sound-clips. Psychopathic traits were measured using the Triarchic Psychopathy Measure. Pupil diameter was larger in response to negative stimuli, but comparable pupil size was demonstrated across pleasant and neutral stimuli. A linear relationship between subjective arousal and pupil diameter was found in response to sound-clips, but was not evident in response to scenes. Contrary to predictions, psychopathy was unrelated to emotional modulation of pupil diameter across all stimuli. The findings were the same when participant gender was considered. This suggests that psychopathy within a community sample is not associated with autonomic hypo-responsivity to affective stimuli, and this effect is discussed in relation to later defensive/appetitive mobilisation deficits