The effect of potassium infusion on proximal sodium reabsorption and renin release in the dog

The effect of potassium infusion on proximal sodium reabsorption and renin release in the dog. The effect of infusions of potassium chloride (KC1) on sodium reabsorption by the proximal tubule and renal renin release was measured in 18 dogs. Following renal arterial infusions of 8 or 16 µEq/min/kg potassium chloride, fractional and absolute sodium reabsorption by the proximal tubule, measured by micropuncture techniques, was not significantly altered. As compared to five control dogs, urinary sodium excretion was significantly increased following both infusions of KC1. The release of renin was significantly decreased following both rates of potassium infusion. The inhibition of renin release was not associated with consistent changes in either glomerular filtration rate or renal plasma flow. The data indicate that the inhibition of renin release following the infusion of potassium is probably not the result of a marked increase in sodium delivery from the proximal tubule

A High Density of Human Communication-Associated Genes in Chromosome 7q31-q36: Differential Expression in Human and Non-Human Primate Cortices

The human brain is distinguished by its remarkable size, high energy consumption, and cognitive abilities compared to all other mammals and non-human primates. However, little is known about what has accelerated brain evolution in the human lineage. One possible explanation is that the appearance of advanced communication skills and language has been a driving force of human brain development. The phenotypic adaptations in brain structure and function which occurred on the way to modern humans may be associated with specific molecular signatures in today’s human genome and/or transcriptome. Genes that have been linked to language, reading, and/or autism spectrum disorders are prime candidates when searching for genes for human-specific communication abilities. The database and genome-wide expression analyses we present here revealed a clustering of such communication-associated genes (COAG) on human chromosomes X and 7, in particular chromosome 7q31-q36. Compared to the rest of the genome, we found a high number of COAG to be differentially expressed in the cortices of humans and non-human primates (chimpanzee, baboon, and/or marmoset). The role of X-linked genes for the development of human-specific cognitive abilities is well known. We now propose that chromosome 7q31-q36 also represents a hot spot for the evolution of human-specific communication abilities. Selective pressure on the T cell receptor beta locus on chromosome 7q34, which plays a pivotal role in the immune system, could have led to rapid dissemination of positive gene variants in hitchhiking COAG

Random line tessellations of the plane: statistical properties of many-sided cells

We consider a family of random line tessellations of the Euclidean plane introduced in a much more formal context by Hug and Schneider [Geom. Funct. Anal. 17, 156 (2007)] and described by a parameter \alpha\geq 1. For \alpha=1 the zero-cell (that is, the cell containing the origin) coincides with the Crofton cell of a Poisson line tessellation, and for \alpha=2 it coincides with the typical Poisson-Voronoi cell. Let p_n(\alpha) be the probability for the zero-cell to have n sides. By the methods of statistical mechanics we construct the asymptotic expansion of \log p_n(\alpha) up to terms that vanish as n\to\infty. In the large-n limit the cell is shown to become circular. The circle is centered at the origin when \alpha>1, but gets delocalized for the Crofton cell, \alpha=1, which is a singular point of the parameter range. The large-n expansion of \log p_n(1) is therefore different from that of the general case and we show how to carry it out. As a corollary we obtain the analogous expansion for the {\it typical} n-sided cell of a Poisson line tessellation.Comment: 26 pages, 3 figure

Surface state engineering of molecule-molecule interactions

Engineering the electronic structure of organics through interface manipulation, particularly the interface dipole and the barriers to charge carrier injection, is of essential importance to improved organic devices. This requires the meticulous fabrication of desired organic structures by precisely controlling the interactions between molecules. The well-known principles of organic coordination chemistry cannot be applied without proper consideration of extra molecular hybridization, charge transer and dipole formation at the interfaces. Here we identify the interplay between energy level alignment, charge transfer, surface dipole and charge pillow effect and show how these effects collectively determine the net force between adsorbed porphyrin 2H-TPP on Cu(111). We show that the forces between supported porphyrins can be altered by controlling the amount of charge transferred across the interface accurately through the relative alignment of molecular electronic levels with respect to the Shockley surface state of the metal substrate, and hence govern the self-assembly of the molecules

Methylation and Expression Analyses of the 7q Autism Susceptibility Locus Genes MEST, COPG2, and TSGA14 in Human and Anthropoid Primate Cortices

The autism susceptibility locus on human chromosome 7q32 contains the maternally imprinted MEST and the non-imprinted COPG2 and TSGA14 genes. Autism is a disorder of the ‘social brain’ that has been proposed to be due to an overbalance of paternally expressed genes. To study regulation of the 7q32 locus during anthropoid primate evolution, we analyzed the methylation and expression patterns of MEST, COPG2, and TSGA14 in human, chimpanzee, Old World monkey (baboon and rhesus macaque), and New World monkey (marmoset) cortices. In all human and anthropoid primate cortices, the MEST promoter was hemimethylated, as expected for a differentially methylated imprinting control region, whereas the COPG2 and TSGA14 promoters were completely demethylated, typical for transcriptionally active non-imprinted genes. The MEST gene also showed comparable mRNA expression levels in all analyzed species. In contrast, COPG2 expression was downregulated in the human cortex compared to chimpanzee, Old and New World monkeys. TSGA14 either showed no differential regulation in the human brain compared to chimpanzee and marmoset or a slight upregulation compared to baboon. The human-specific downregulation supports a role for COPG2 in the development of a ‘social brain’. Promoter methylation patterns appear to be more stable during evolution than gene expression patterns, suggesting that other mechanisms may be more important for inter-primate differences in gene expression

Second order analysis of geometric functionals of Boolean models

This paper presents asymptotic covariance formulae and central limit theorems for geometric functionals, including volume, surface area, and all Minkowski functionals and translation invariant Minkowski tensors as prominent examples, of stationary Boolean models. Special focus is put on the anisotropic case. In the (anisotropic) example of aligned rectangles, we provide explicit analytic formulae and compare them with simulation results. We discuss which information about the grain distribution second moments add to the mean values.Comment: Chapter of the forthcoming book "Tensor Valuations and their Applications in Stochastic Geometry and Imaging" in Lecture Notes in Mathematics edited by Markus Kiderlen and Eva B. Vedel Jensen. (The second version mainly resolves minor LaTeX problems.

Recoil-Ion Detection System

This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation Grant NSF PHY-931478

CVID-Associated B Cell Activating Factor Receptor Variants Change Receptor Oligomerization, Ligand Binding, and Signaling Responses.

Binding of the B cell activating factor (BAFF) to its receptor (BAFFR) activates in mature B cells many essential pro-survival functions. Null mutations in the BAFFR gene result in complete BAFFR deficiency and cause a block in B cell development at the transition from immature to mature B cells leading therefore to B lymphopenia and hypogammaglobulinemia. In addition to complete BAFFR deficiency, single nucleotide variants encoding BAFFR missense mutations were found in patients suffering from common variable immunodeficiency (CVID), autoimmunity, or B cell lymphomas. As it remained unclear to which extent such variants disturb the activity of BAFFR, we performed genetic association studies and developed a cellular system that allows the unbiased analysis of BAFFR variants regarding oligomerization, signaling, and ectodomain shedding. In addition to genetic association studies, the BAFFR variants P21R, A52T, G64V, DUP92-95, P146S, and H159Y were expressed by lentiviral gene transfer in DG-75 Burkitt's lymphoma cells and analyzed for their impacts on BAFFR function. Binding of BAFF to BAFFR was affected by P21R and A52T. Spontaneous oligomerization of BAFFR was disturbed by P21R, A52T, G64V, and P146S. BAFF-dependent activation of NF-κB2 was reduced by P21R and P146S, while interactions between BAFFR and the B cell antigen receptor component CD79B and AKT phosphorylation were impaired by P21R, A52T, G64V, and DUP92-95. P21R, G64V, and DUP92-95 interfered with phosphorylation of ERK1/2, while BAFF-induced shedding of the BAFFR ectodomain was only impaired by P21R. Although all variants change BAFFR function and have the potential to contribute as modifiers to the development of primary antibody deficiencies, autoimmunity, and lymphoma, P21R is the only variant that was found to correlate positively with CVID

BAFFR activates PI3K/AKT signaling in human naive but not in switched memory B cells through direct interactions with B cell antigen receptors.

Binding of BAFF to BAFFR activates in mature B cells PI3K/AKT signaling regulating protein synthesis, metabolic fitness, and survival. In humans, naive and memory B cells express the same levels of BAFFR, but only memory B cells seem to survive without BAFF. Here, we show that BAFF activates PI3K/AKT only in naive B cells and changes the expression of genes regulating migration, proliferation, growth, and survival. BAFF-induced PI3K/AKT activation requires direct interactions between BAFFR and the B cell antigen receptor (BCR) components CD79A and CD79B and is enhanced by the AKT coactivator TCL1A. Compared to memory B cells, naive B cells express more surface BCRs, which interact better with BAFFR than IgG or IgA, thus allowing stronger responses to BAFF. As ablation of BAFFR in naive and memory B cells causes cell death independent of BAFF-induced signaling, BAFFR seems to act also as an intrinsic factor for B cell survival

Sex Disparities in Arrest Outcomes for Domestic Violence

Domestic violence arrests have been historically focused on protecting women and children from abusive men. Arrest patterns continue to reflect this bias with more men arrested for domestic violence compared to women. Such potential gender variations in arrest patterns pave the way to the investigation of disparities by sex of the offender in domestic violence arrests. This study utilizes data from a quantitative dataset that includes responses by police officers who completed a specially mandated checklist after responding to a domestic dispute. The results showed that while females are arrested quite often in domestic disputes, there remains a significant difference in the arrest outcome whereby male suspects were more likely to be arrested than female suspects. Regression models further indicated differences based on sex and certain predictors of arrest, which supported sex-based rationales in arrests for domestic violence.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline