Acoustic competition in the gulf toadfish Opsanus beta: Acoustic tagging

Nesting male gulf toadfish Opsanus beta produce a boatwhistle advertisement call used in male–male competition and to attract females and an agonistic grunt call. The grunt is a short-duration pulsatile call, and the boatwhistle is a complex call typically consisting of zero to three introductory grunts, a long tonal boop note, and zero to three shorter boops. The beginning of the boop note is also gruntlike. Anomalous boatwhistles contain a short-duration grunt embedded in the tonal portion of the boop or between an introductory grunt and the boop. Embedded grunts have sound-pressure levels and frequency spectra that correspond with those of recognized neighbors, suggesting that one fish is grunting during another’s call, a phenomenon here termed acoustic tagging. Snaps of nearby pistol shrimp may also be tagged, and chains of tags involving more than two fish occur. The stimulus to tag is a relatively intense sound with a rapid rise time, and tags are generally produced within 100 ms of a trigger stimulus. Time between the trigger and the tag decreases with increased trigger amplitude. Tagging is distinct from increased calling in response to natural calls or stimulatory playbacks since calls rarely overlap other calls or playbacks. Tagging is not generally reciprocal between fish, suggesting parallels to dominance displays

Cancer Molecular Analysis Project: Weaving a rich cancer research tapestry

AbstractThe Cancer Molecular Analysis Project (CMAP) of the NCI is integrating diverse cancer research data to elucidate fundamental etiologic processes, enable development of novel therapeutic approaches, and facilitate the bridging of basic and clinical science

Smad4 Loss Synergizes with TGFα Overexpression in Promoting Pancreatic Metaplasia, PanIN Development, and Fibrosis

Aims: While overexpression of TGFα has been reported in human pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), mice with overexpressed TGFα develop premalignant pancreatic acinar-toductal metaplasia (ADM) but not PDAC. TGF-β signaling pathway is pivotal to the development of PDAC and tissue fibrosis. Here we sought to investigate the interplay between TGFα and TGF-β signaling in pancreatic tumorigenesis and fibrosis, namely via Smad4 inactivation. Methods: The MT-TGFα mouse was crossed with a new Smad4 conditional knock-out mouse (Smad4flox/flox;p48-Cre or S4) to generate Smad4flox/flox;MT-TGFα;p48-Cre (STP). After TGFα overexpression was induced with zinc sulfate water for eight months, the pancreata of the STP, MT-TGFα, and S4 mice were examined for tumor development and fibrotic responses. PanIN lesions and number of ducts were counted, and proliferation was measured by Ki67 immunohistochemistry (IHC). Qualitative analysis of fibrosis was analyzed by Trichrome Masson and Sirius Red staining, while vimentin was used for quantification. Expression analyses of fibrosis, pancreatitis, or desmoplasia associated markers (α-SMA, Shh, COX-2, Muc6, Col1a1, and Ctgf) were performed by IHC and/or qRT-PCR. Results: Our STP mice exhibited advanced ADM, increased fibrosis, increased numbers of PanIN lesions, overexpression of chronic pancreatitis-related marker Muc6, and elevated expression of desmoplasia-associated marker Col1A1, compared to the MT-TGFα mice. The inactivation of Smad4 in the exocrine compartment was responsible for both the enhanced PanIN formation and fibrosis in the pancreas. The phenotype of the STP mice represents a transient state from ADMs to PanINs, closely mimicking the interface area seen in human chronic pancreatitis associated with PDAC. Conclusion: We have documented a novel mouse model, the STP mice, which displayed histologic presentations reminiscent to those of human chronic pancreatitis with signs of early tumorigenesis. The STP mice could be a suitable animal model for interrogating the transition of chronic pancreatitis to pancreatic cancer

Key Residues Defining the Μ-Opioid Receptor Binding Pocket: A Site-Directed Mutagenesis Study

Structural elements of the rat Μ-opioid receptor important in ligand receptor binding and selectivity were examined using a site-directed mutagenesis approach. Five single amino acid mutations were made, three that altered conserved residues in the Μ, Δ, and Κ receptors (Asn 150 to Ala, His 297 to Ala, and Tyr 326 to Phe) and two designed to test for Μ/Δ selectivity (Ile 198 to Val and Val 202 to Ile). Mutation of His 297 in transmembrane domain 6 (TM6) resulted in no detectable binding with [ 3 H]DAMGO ( 3 H-labeled d-Ala 2 , N -Me-Phe 4 ,Gly-ol 5 -enkephalin), [ 3 H]bremazocine, or [ 3 H]ethylketocyclazocine. Mutation of Asn 150 in TM3 produces a three- to 20-fold increase in affinity for the opioid agonists morphine, DAMGO, fentanyl, Β-endorphin 1–31 , JOM-13, deltorphin II, dynorphin 1–13 , and U50,488, with no change in the binding of antagonists such as naloxone, naltrexone, naltrindole, and nor-binaltorphamine. In contrast, the Tyr 326 mutation in TM7 resulted in a decreased affinity for a wide spectrum of Μ, Δ, and Κ agonists and antagonists. Altering Val 202 to Ile in TM4 produced no change on ligand affinity, but Ile 198 to Val resulted in a four- to fivefold decreased affinity for the Μ agonists morphine and DAMGO, with no change in the binding affinities of Κ and Δ ligands.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/65474/1/j.1471-4159.1997.68010344.x.pd

Cost Savings from Palliative Care Teams and Guidance for a Financially Viable Palliative Care Program

To quantify the cost savings of palliative care (PC) and identify differences in savings according to team structure, patient diagnosis, and timing of consult

First Report of a Novel Hepatozoon sp. in Giant Pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

The first report of giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) infected with a novel Hepatozoon species is presented. An intraleukocytic parasite was detected via routine blood smear from a zoo-housed giant panda at the National Zoological Park. Ribosomal DNA sequences indicated a previously undescribed Hepatozoon species. Phylogenetic and distance analyses of the sequences placed it within its own branch, clustered with Old World species with carnivore (primarily ursid and mustelid) hosts. Retrospective and opportunistic testing of other individuals produced additional positive detections (17/23, 73.9%), demonstrating 100% prevalence (14/14) across five institutions. All animals were asymptomatic at time of sampling, and health implications for giant pandas remain unknown

In defense of the epistemic view of quantum states: a toy theory

We present a toy theory that is based on a simple principle: the number of questions about the physical state of a system that are answered must always be equal to the number that are unanswered in a state of maximal knowledge. A wide variety of quantum phenomena are found to have analogues within this toy theory. Such phenomena include: the noncommutativity of measurements, interference, the multiplicity of convex decompositions of a mixed state, the impossibility of discriminating nonorthogonal states, the impossibility of a universal state inverter, the distinction between bi-partite and tri-partite entanglement, the monogamy of pure entanglement, no cloning, no broadcasting, remote steering, teleportation, dense coding, mutually unbiased bases, and many others. The diversity and quality of these analogies is taken as evidence for the view that quantum states are states of incomplete knowledge rather than states of reality. A consideration of the phenomena that the toy theory fails to reproduce, notably, violations of Bell inequalities and the existence of a Kochen-Specker theorem, provides clues for how to proceed with this research program.Comment: 32 pages, REVTEX, based on a talk given at the Rob Clifton Memorial Conference, College Park, May 2003; v2: minor modifications throughout, updated reference