Regulation of Human Epidermal Keratinocyte Differentiation by the Vitamin D Receptor and its Coactivators DRIP205, SRC2, and SRC3

It has long been known that the active metabolite of vitamin D, 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D3, stimulates differentiation and inhibits proliferation in epidermal keratinocytes through interaction with the vitamin D receptor (VDR). VDR functions through the coordinate binding of vitamin D response elements in the DNA and specific coactivator proteins which help to initiate transcription. It was recently observed that VDR binds to two major coactivator complexes, DRIP (VDR-interacting protein) and SRC (steroid receptor coactivator), during keratinocyte differentiation. To determine the role of VDR and its coactivators in mediating keratinocyte differentiation, we developed an adenoviral system to knock down, or in the case of VDR, overexpress these genes. In order to study all stages of keratinocyte development, we employed an advanced differentiated normal human keratinocyte culture system that produces a multilayer phenotype similar to that of normal skin. These studies have shown that VDR, DRIP, and SRC are all required for promotion of both early and late keratinocyte differentiation. Additionally, each individual differentiation marker that was assayed has a different specificity for the coactivators that regulate its expression

Racial Differences in Outcomes of an Advance Care Planning Intervention for Dialysis Patients and Their Surrogates

Background: African Americans' beliefs about end-of-life care may differ from those of whites, but racial differences in advance care planning (ACP) outcomes are unknown

Pinpointing the origin of the increased driving voltage during prolonged operation in a phosphorescent OLED based on an exciplex host

We report on the origin of the reduced power efficiency in a red phosphorescent OLED with an exciplex host after prolonged operation. The power efficiency is reduced solely by an increased driving voltage while the radiant flux remains constant. An electrical model describing the driving voltage increase is, thus, sufficient to explain the reduced power efficiency. The electrical model of the fresh OLED and at different stages of degradation was devised from four different measurement methods. Using multiple measurement methods to determine the model parameters results in a rather unique set of model parameters, despite the large number of model parameters (38) as revealed by a correlation analysis. The increase in driving voltage could be reproduced by modifying only 7 out of the 38 model parameters. A sensitivity analysis identified the parameters with the largest effect (66%) on the driving voltage increase to be the trap density and the mobility of the employed hole transporting layer. This work highlights the benefit of using multiple measurement methods to derive reliable model parameters and the use of a sensitivity analysis to pinpoint the origin of the investigated property

Composite Variables: When and How

Use of composite variables is a common practice, but knowledge about what researchers should consider when creating composite variables is lacking

3D-HST+CANDELS : the evolution of the galaxy size-mass distribution since z=3

Spectroscopic+photometric redshifts, stellar mass estimates, and rest-frame colors from the 3D-HST survey are combined with structural parameter measurements from CANDELS imaging to determine the galaxy size-mass distribution over the redshift range 0 < z < 3. Separating early- and late-type galaxies on the basis of star-formation activity, we confirm that early-type galaxies are on average smaller than late-type galaxies at all redshifts, and we find a significantly different rate of average size evolution at fixed galaxy mass, with fast evolution for the early-type population, R eff∝(1 + z)–1.48, and moderate evolution for the late-type population, R eff∝(1 + z)-0.75Peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

PCR and Omics Based Techniques to Study the Diversity, Ecology and Biology of Anaerobic Fungi:Insights, Challenges, and Opportunities

Anaerobic fungi (phylum Neocallimastigomycota) are common inhabitants of the digestive tract of mammalian herbivores, and in the rumen, can account for up to 20% of the microbial biomass. Anaerobic fungi play a primary role in the degradation of lignocellulosic plant material. They also have a syntrophic interaction with methanogenic archaea, which increases their fiber degradation activity. To date, nine anaerobic fungal genera have been described, with further novel taxonomic groupings known to exist based on culture-independent molecular surveys. However, the true extent of their diversity may be even more extensively underestimated as anaerobic fungi continue being discovered in yet unexplored gut and non-gut environments. Additionally many studies are now known to have used primers that provide incomplete coverage of the Neocallimastigomycota. For ecological studies the internal transcribed spacer 1 region (ITS1) has been the taxonomic marker of choice, but due to various limitations the large subunit rRNA (LSU) is now being increasingly used. How the continued expansion of our knowledge regarding anaerobic fungal diversity will impact on our understanding of their biology and ecological role remains unclear; particularly as it is becoming apparent that anaerobic fungi display niche differentiation. As a consequence, there is a need to move beyond the broad generalization of anaerobic fungi as fiber-degraders, and explore the fundamental differences that underpin their ability to exist in distinct ecological niches. Application of genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics to their study in pure/mixed cultures and environmental samples will be invaluable in this process. To date the genomes and transcriptomes of several characterized anaerobic fungal isolates have been successfully generated. In contrast, the application of proteomics and metabolomics to anaerobic fungal analysis is still in its infancy. A central problem for all analyses, however, is the limited functional annotation of anaerobic fungal sequence data. There is therefore an urgent need to expand information held within publicly available reference databases. Once this challenge is overcome, along with improved sample collection and extraction, the application of these techniques will be key in furthering our understanding of the ecological role and impact of anaerobic fungi in the wide range of environments they inhabit

Minimal change nephrotic syndrome after stem cell transplantation: a case report and literature review

Graft-versus-host disease is one of the most frequent complications occurring after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Recently, renal involvement has been described as a manifestation of chronic graft-versus-host disease. Immunosuppression seems to play a major role: clinical disease is triggered by its tapering and resolution is achieved with the resumption of the immunosuppressive therapy. Prognosis is apparently favourable, but long term follow up data are lacking

Search for New Physics with Jets and Missing Transverse Momentum in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search for new physics is presented based on an event signature of at least three jets accompanied by large missing transverse momentum, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36 inverse picobarns collected in proton--proton collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV with the CMS detector at the LHC. No excess of events is observed above the expected standard model backgrounds, which are all estimated from the data. Exclusion limits are presented for the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard model. Cross section limits are also presented using simplified models with new particles decaying to an undetected particle and one or two jets

Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV

A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7 TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector, and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at 95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE

Combined search for the quarks of a sequential fourth generation

Results are presented from a search for a fourth generation of quarks produced singly or in pairs in a data set corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2011. A novel strategy has been developed for a combined search for quarks of the up and down type in decay channels with at least one isolated muon or electron. Limits on the mass of the fourth-generation quarks and the relevant Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements are derived in the context of a simple extension of the standard model with a sequential fourth generation of fermions. The existence of mass-degenerate fourth-generation quarks with masses below 685 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level for minimal off-diagonal mixing between the third- and the fourth-generation quarks. With a mass difference of 25 GeV between the quark masses, the obtained limit on the masses of the fourth-generation quarks shifts by about +/- 20 GeV. These results significantly reduce the allowed parameter space for a fourth generation of fermions.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO