New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Oral Administration of <i>Porphyromonas gingivalis</i>, a Major Pathogen of Chronic Periodontitis, Promotes Resistance to Paclitaxel in Mouse Xenografts of Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Chemotherapy is not a first-line therapy for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), which is the most common type of oral cancer, because most OSCC shows resistance to chemotherapeutic reagents. Inflammatory signals are suggested to be associated with chemoresistance as well as carcinogenesis in many different cancers, and thus chronic periodontitis, the most common chronic inflammatory disease of the oral cavity, could modulate responsiveness to chemotherapeutic agents used against oral cancer. This study was performed to define the role of chronic periodontitis in oral cancer progression and to determine the responsiveness of oral cancer to a chemotherapeutic reagent. First, we quantified the tumor growth rate and changes in serum cytokine profiles of mice administered Porphyromonas gingivalis, a major pathogen of chronic periodontitis. Compared with uninfected mice, the mice that were chronically administered P. gingivalis showed increased resistance to paclitaxel and a decreased tumor growth rate. In addition, P. gingivalis-treated mice exhibited higher serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) than uninfected mice. Furthermore, the sensitivity of tumor xenografts to paclitaxel in mice administered P. gingivalis was dramatically increased when the mice were administered ibuprofen, an anti-inflammatory drug which supports the modulatory effect of periodontal pathogen-induced inflammation in chemoresistance

Inclusion Agglomeration on Ultra-Low C Liquid Steel Surface: Roles of Ti in the Steel and the Oxygen Potential

Behavior of inclusions as particles on liquid Ultra-Low C (ULC) steel was investigated both by an in-situ observation and a theoretical analysis. The behavior was examined in view of Ti content in the steel as an alloying component and of oxygen potential exerted on the surface of the steel melt. A confocal scanning laser microscopy with a gold image furnace was used for the observation, and the force exerted between two particles was extracted. It was found that the inclusions showed attraction each other, and agglomerated. When the oxygen potential was low (PO2≃10-22 bar), the presence of Ti ([%Ti]=0.0735) did not influence on the agglomeration force as well as the acceleration. However, increasing PO2 (≃ 10 - 15 bar) resulted in slight decrease of the acceleration. When Ti content was very low ([%Ti]=0.0018), PO2 did not influence the attraction. A post-mortem analysis of the inclusion composition revealed that the inclusions on the Ti-free steel surface were mostly alumina regardless of the PO2 employed in the present study, while those on the Ti-added steel were composed of Fe tO –Al 2O 3 (low PO2) or Fe tO –TiO x(–Al 2O 3) (high PO2). From the analysis using Kralchevski-Paunov model for lateral capillary force between two spherical particles, it is suggested that the formation of Fe tO -containing oxidation product lowers the contact angle between the inclusion and the liquid steel, thereby lowering the agglomeration force as well as the acceleration. However, the model generally underestimated the agglomeration force. Graphical abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.] © 2022, The Korean Institute of Metals and Materials.11Nsciescopuskc

Organic dyes incorporating low-band-gap chromophores based on π-extended benzothiadiazole for dye-sensitized solar cells

International audienc

The Comparisons of Real-time Ammonia Adsorption Measurement in Varying Inlet Tubes and the Different Ammonia Measurement Methods in the Atmosphere

Abstract Ammonia (NH3) is an important, albeit sticky, precursor for producing secondary inorganic aerosols (SIA), especially in the form of ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) and ammonium sulfate ((NH4)2SO4). To reduce SIAs, many researchers have attempted to measure the concentration of ambient NH3 using real-time or passive methods. However, NH3 is a highly sticky gas and is therefore difficult to measure using real-time methods without incurring losses during measurement. In this study, four different tubing materials, semi seamless tubes, perfluoroalkoxy (PFA), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), were used to ascertain the adsorption of NH3 in inlets using real-time instruments. Without heating sample tubes and at 0% relative humidity (RH), this study shows that PTFE had the least adsorption(i.e., 0% at 1 and 2m of sample tube), and semi-seamless tubes had the highest adsorption (i.e., 27.5% at 1 m of sample tube). To calculate the adsorption of NH3 under ambient conditions, at various inlet lengths, the RH of NH3 was varied from 20% to 80%, which showed that shorter inlets and higher RH lower NH3 adsorption at inlets (i.e., 1.74 ppb m−1 at 80% RH and 7.48 ppb m−1 at 20% RH). Additionally, inlet heating was effective in reducing the adsorption of NH3 as the RH decreased. Applying the inlet system (i.e., 2 m of PTFE tube with heating) showed excellent correlation (slope: 0.995 and coefficient: 0.992) between two different real-time measurements while measuring ambient air

Whole genome and global gene expression analyses of the model mushroom Flammulina velutipes reveal a high capacity for lignocellulose degradation.

Flammulina velutipes is a fungus with health and medicinal benefits that has been used for consumption and cultivation in East Asia. F. velutipes is also known to degrade lignocellulose and produce ethanol. The overlapping interests of mushroom production and wood bioconversion make F. velutipes an attractive new model for fungal wood related studies. Here, we present the complete sequence of the F. velutipes genome. This is the first sequenced genome for a commercially produced edible mushroom that also degrades wood. The 35.6-Mb genome contained 12,218 predicted protein-encoding genes and 287 tRNA genes assembled into 11 scaffolds corresponding with the 11 chromosomes of strain KACC42780. The 88.4-kb mitochondrial genome contained 35 genes. Well-developed wood degrading machinery with strong potential for lignin degradation (69 auxiliary activities, formerly FOLymes) and carbohydrate degradation (392 CAZymes), along with 58 alcohol dehydrogenase genes were highly expressed in the mycelium, demonstrating the potential application of this organism to bioethanol production. Thus, the newly uncovered wood degrading capacity and sequential nature of this process in F. velutipes, offer interesting possibilities for more detailed studies on either lignin or (hemi-) cellulose degradation in complex wood substrates. The mutual interest in wood degradation by the mushroom industry and (ligno-)cellulose biomass related industries further increase the significance of F. velutipes as a new model