47 research outputs found
Effects of Surveillance on Intrinsic Motivation
Previous research indicates that explicit surveillance should induce subjects to attribute their performance at a task to the surveillance; hence, such subjects should persist to a lesser extent than subjects not exposed to such surveillance. Two forms of explicit surveillance were utilized: human and camera, as well as the appropriate opposites (human non- and camera non-surveillance). Subjects were directed to perform a model construction task, then were unobtrusively observed during a post-task âwaiting period.â No difference in persistence was found for type of surveillance utilized. However, as predicted, subjects exposed to surveillance persisted less with the task materials than subjects not exposed
STAT3 activation in large granular lymphocyte leukemia is associated with cytokine signaling and DNA hypermethylation
Large granular lymphocyte leukemia (LGLL) is characterized by somatic gain-of-function STAT3 mutations. However, the functional effects of STAT3 mutations on primary LGLL cells have not been studied in detail. In this study, we show that CD8+ T cells isolated from STAT3 mutated LGLL patients have high protein levels of epigenetic regulators, such as DNMT1, and are characterized by global hypermethylation. Correspondingly, treatment of healthy CD8+ T cells with IL-6, IL-15, and/or MCP-1 cytokines resulted in STAT3 activation, increased DNMT1, EZH2, c-MYC, l-MYC, MAX, and NF kappa B levels, increased DNA methylation, and increased oxidative stress. Similar results were discovered in KAI3 NK cells overexpressing gain-of-function STAT3(Y640F) and STAT3(G618R) mutants compared to KAI3 NK cells overexpressing STAT3(WT). Our results also confirm that STAT3 forms a direct complex with DNMT1, EZH2, and HDAC1. In STAT3 mutated LGLL cells, DNA methyltransferase (DNMT) inhibitor azacitidine abrogated the activation of STAT3 via restored SHP1 expression. In conclusion, STAT3 mutations cause DNA hypermethylation resulting in sensitivity to DNMT inhibitors, which could be considered as a novel treatment option for LGLL patients with resistance to standard treatments.Peer reviewe
Interaction between smoking and ATG16L1T300A triggers Paneth cell defects in Crohnâs disease
Sensorimotor Function in Progressive Multiple Sclerosis
Background: A sensitive test reflecting subtle sensorimotor changes throughout disease progression independent of mobility impairment is currently lacking in progressive multiple sclerosis.
Objectives: We examined non-ambulatory measures of upper and lower extremity sensorimotor function that may reveal differences between relapsingâremitting and progressive forms of multiple sclerosis.
Methods: Cutaneous sensitivity, proprioception, central motor function and mobility were assessed in 32 relapsingâremitting and 31 progressive multiple sclerosis patients and 30 non-multiple sclerosis controls.
Results: Cutaneous sensation differed between relapsingâremitting and progressive multiple sclerosis at the foot and to a lesser extent the hand. Proprioception function in the upper but not the lower extremity differed between relapsingâremitting and progressive multiple sclerosis, but was different for both upper and lower extremities between multiple sclerosis patients and non-multiple sclerosis controls. Foot-tap but not hand-tap speed was slower in progressive compared to relapsingâremitting multiple sclerosis, suggestive of greater central motor function impairment in the lower extremity in progressive multiple sclerosis. In addition, the non-ambulatory sensorimotor measures were more sensitive in detecting differences between relapsingâremitting and progressive multiple sclerosis than mobility assessed with the 25-foot walk test. Conclusion: This study provides novel information about changes in sensorimotor function in progressive compared with relapsingâremitting forms of multiple sclerosis, and in particular the importance of assessing both upper and lower extremity function. Importantly, our findings showed loss of proprioceptive function in multiple sclerosis but also in progressive compared to relapsingâremitting multiple sclerosis
Socialt kapital och politiskt deltagande : En studie av sju afrikanska stater
Avsikten med avhandlingen har varit att undersöka om socialt kapital har en positiv effekt pĂ„ politiskt deltagande i Afrika. Totalt studerades sju afrikanska demokratier, nĂ€mligen Kap Verde, Ghana, Benin, Namibia, Botswana, Mauritius och Sydafrika. Datamaterialet hĂ€mtades frĂ„n Afrobarometer. För denna avhandling anvĂ€ndes surveydata frĂ„n omgĂ„ng fem som utkom mellan Ă„ren 2011â2013. Analysen gjordes i olika faser. Först presenterades deskriptiv statistik för socialt kapital och politiskt deltagande. Sedan testades sambanden mellan socialt kapital och politiskt deltagande med hjĂ€lp av bivariata analyser. Analysen fullbordades i form av en multivariat logistisk regressionsanalys.
Tidigare studier pÄ omrÄdet har pÄvisat att socialt kapital har en gynnande effekt pÄ politiskt deltagande. DÀrmed var syftet att pröva om detta Àven gÀller för Afrika dÀr sambandet mellan socialt kapital och politiskt deltagande inte studerats i samma utstrÀckning som pÄ övriga hÄll i vÀrlden. I avhandlingen operationaliserades socialt kapital med hjÀlp av tvÄ indikatorer, nÀmligen förtroende och föreningsaktivitet. Föreningsaktiviteten mÀttes genom engagemang i frivilliga- och religiösa organisationer. Politiskt deltagande undersöktes med hjÀlp av fem indikatorer. Dessa utgjordes av att rösta i val, att arbeta för ett parti eller en kandidat, att delta i kampanjorienterat arbete, att kontakta politiker och slutligen att delta i demonstrationer eller protestmarscher.
Av resultaten framgick att föreningsaktivitet utövade en positiv effekt pÄ samtliga former av politiskt deltagande. Studien intygar att det politiska deltagandet var högre bland individer som uppvisade högre föreningsengagemang. Förtroende prÀglades av ett annorlunda mönster. Förtroende saknade statistisk effekt i fyra av fem fall. Endast i förhÄllande till demonstrationer och protestmarscher identifierades ett positivt samband. Till följd dÀrav faststÀlls att den positiva effekten av socialt kapital pÄ politiskt deltagandet Àven gÀllde i de sju afrikanska staterna med sÀrskild betoning pÄ föreningsaktivitet. Detta medan förtroende saknade genomgÄende positiv effekt pÄ politiskt deltagande
History of forest insect investigations in British Columbia III. The Vernon Laboratory and federal entomology in British Columbia
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Phosphoinositide Lipids in Ocular Tissues
Inositol phospholipids play an important role in cell physiology. The inositol head groups are reversibly phosphorylated to produce seven distinct phosphorylated inositides, commonly referred to as phosphoinositides (PIs). These seven PIs are dynamically interconverted from one PI to another by the action of PI kinases and PI phosphatases. The PI signals regulate a wide variety of cellular functions, including organelle distinction, vesicular transport, cytoskeletal organization, nuclear events, regulation of ion channels, cell signaling, and host–pathogen interactions. Most of the studies of PIs in ocular tissues are based on the PI enzymes and PI phosphatases. In this study, we examined the PI levels in the cornea, retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), and retina using PI-binding protein as probes. We have examined the lipids PI(3)P, PI(4)P, PI(3,4)P2, PI(4,5)P2, and PI(3,4,5)P3, and each is present in the cornea, RPE, and retina. Alterations in the levels of these PIs in mouse models of retinal disease and corneal infections have been reported, and the results of our study will help in the management of anomalous phosphoinositide metabolism in ocular tissues
Insulin receptor signaling regulates actin cytoskeletal organization in developing photoreceptors
The insulin receptor (ir) and ir signaling proteins are widely distributed throughout the cns. ir signaling provides a trophic signal for transformed retinal neurons in culture and we recently reported that deletion of ir in rod photoreceptors by cre/lox system resulted in stressâinduced photoreceptor degeneration. these studies suggest a neuroprotective role of ir in rod photoreceptor cell function. however, there are no studies available on the role of insulinâinduced ir signaling in the development of normal photoreceptors. to examine the role of insulinâinduced ir signaling, we analyzed cultured neuronal cells isolated from newborn rodent retinas. in insulinâlacking cultures, photoreceptors from wildâtype rat retinas exhibited an abnormal morphology with a wide axon cone and disorganization of the actin and tubulin cytoskeleton. photoreceptors from ir knockout mouse retinas also exhibited a similar abnormal morphology. a novel finding in this study was that addition of docosahexaenoic acid, a photoreceptor trophic factor, restored normal axonal outgrowth in insulinâlacking cultures. these data suggest that ir signaling pathways regulate actin and tubulin cytoskeletal organization in photoreceptors; they also imply that insulin and docosahexaenoic acid activate at least partially overlapping signaling pathways that are essential for the development of normal photoreceptors.Fil: Rajala, Raju V. S.. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center; Estados UnidosFil: Rajala, Ammaji. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center; Estados UnidosFil: Brush, Richard S.. University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center; Estados UnidosFil: Rotstein, Nora Patricia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂfico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - BahĂa Blanca. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de BahĂa Blanca. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de BahĂa Blanca; ArgentinaFil: Politi, Luis Enrique. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones CientĂficas y TĂ©cnicas. Centro CientĂfico TecnolĂłgico Conicet - BahĂa Blanca. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de BahĂa Blanca. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto de Investigaciones BioquĂmicas de BahĂa Blanca; Argentin