Preparation and Characterization of a Polyclonal Antibody against Brominated Protein

(Di)bromotyrosine is formed by the specific reaction of eosinophil peroxidase and can be used as an eosinophil activation marker. In the present study, an antibody for (di)bromotyrosine in proteins was prepared to investigate the pathogenesis of eosinophil-related diseases such as allergic responses. A rabbit polyclonal antibody was raised against brominated keyhole limpet hemocyanin. The specificity of the antiserum was investigated with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The antiserum recognized brominated bovine serum albumin (BSA) and dibromotyrosine-conjugated BSA. The antiserum also reacted with chlorinated BSA and di-iodotyrosine-conjugated BSA. Moreover, the specificity of the antiserum was investigated using competitive ELISA. Dibromotyrosine and di-iodotyrosine inhibited the recognition of brominated BSA by the antiserum. However, the recognition of brominated BSA by the antiserum was not inhibited by bromotyrosine, chlorotyrosine, iodotyrosine, nitrotyrosine, aminotyrosine, phosphotyrosine, or tyrosine. These results suggested that the epitope of the antiserum is dihalogenated tyrosine. Immunohistochemically, the antiserum stained brominated rat eosinophils but not chlorinated or nitrated eosinophils. In conclusion, an antiserum for dihalogenated protein was prepared. It is expected that the antiserum will be useful for the analysis of the pathogenesis of allergic diseases such as asthma and atopic dermatitis

Diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) is a risk factor for further surgery in short-segment lumbar interbody fusion.

First online: 01 October 2014[Purpose] To elucidate the effect of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) on the clinical results of short-segment lumbar interbody fusion (LIF) for the treatment of degenerative lumbar spinal diseases. [Methods] The 208 patients who underwent one- or two-level LIF were selected as the subjects of this study. Patients with prior lumbar fusion surgery or follow-up <1 year were excluded. Outcome measures were surgery-free survival or the need for further surgery for pseudoarthrosis and/or adjacent segment disease (ASD). The Cox proportional-hazards model was used to identify possible risk factors (DISH, age, sex, number of levels fused, level of the lowest instrumented vertebra, and laminectomy adjacent to the index fused levels) for further surgery. [Results] Among the 208 patients (39 with DISH), 21 patients required further surgery during follow-up. Cox analysis showed that DISH (hazard ratio = 5.46) and two-level fusion (hazard ratio = 2.83) were significant independent predictors of further surgery. Age, sex, level of the lowest instrumented vertebra, and laminectomy adjacent to the index fused levels were not significant predictors. [Conclusions] DISH after short-segment LIF surgery is a significant risk factor for further surgery because of pseudoarthrosis or ASD

Photon correlation in GaAs self-assembled quantum dots

We report on photon coincidence measurement in a single GaAs self-assembled quantum dot (QD) using a pulsed excitation light source. At low excitation, when a neutral exciton line was present in the photoluminescence (PL) spectrum, we observed nearly perfect single photon emission from an isolated QD at 670 nm wavelength. For higher excitation, multiple PL lines appeared on the spectra, reflecting the formation of exciton complexes. Cross-correlation functions between these lines showed either bunching or antibunching behavior, depending on whether the relevant emission was from a biexciton cascade or a charged exciton recombination.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Effects of Oak Wilt Disease on Fungal Community Composition and Wood Decomposition in Dead Quercus serrata Trunks

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Histone H3.3 sub-variant H3mm7 is required for normal skeletal muscle regeneration

Regulation of gene expression requires selective incorporation of histone H3 variant H3.3 into chromatin. Histone H3.3 has several subsidiary variants but their functions are unclear. Here we characterize the function of histone H3.3 sub-variant, H3mm7, which is expressed in skeletal muscle satellite cells. H3mm7 knockout mice demonstrate an essential role of H3mm7 in skeletal muscle regeneration. Chromatin analysis reveals that H3mm7 facilitates transcription by forming an open chromatin structure around promoter regions including those of myogenic genes. The crystal structure of the nucleosome containing H3mm7 reveals that, unlike the S57 residue of other H3 proteins, the H3mm7-specific A57 residue cannot form a hydrogen bond with the R40 residue of the cognate H4 molecule. Consequently, the H3mm7 nucleosome is unstable in vitro and exhibited higher mobility in vivo compared with the H3.3 nucleosome. We conclude that the unstable H3mm7 nucleosome may be required for proper skeletal muscle differentiation

Condensin complexes regulate mitotic progression and interphase chromatin structure in embryonic stem cells

Loss of the condensin complex components Smc2 and -4 disrupts epigenetic modifications required for embryonic stem cell survival

MicroRNA-9 controls dendritic development by targeting REST

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are conserved noncoding RNAs that function as posttranscriptional regulators of gene expression. miR-9 is one of the most abundant miRNAs in the brain. Although the function of miR-9 has been well characterized in neural progenitors, its role in dendritic and synaptic development remains largely unknown. In order to target miR-9 in vivo, we developed a transgenic miRNA sponge mouse line allowing conditional inactivation of the miR-9 family in a spatio-temporal-controlled manner. Using this novel approach, we found that miR-9 controls dendritic growth and synaptic transmission in vivo. Furthermore, we demonstrate that miR-9-mediated downregulation of the transcriptional repressor REST is essential for proper dendritic growth.Fil: Giusti, Sebastian Alejandro. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Vogl, Annette M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Brockmann, Marina M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Vercelli, Claudia Alejandra. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Investigación en Biomedicina de Buenos Aires - Instituto Partner de la Sociedad Max Planck; ArgentinaFil: Rein, Martin L.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Trümbach, Dietrich. Helmholtz Zentrum München; AlemaniaFil: Wurst, Wolfgang. Helmholtz Zentrum München; AlemaniaFil: Cazalla, Demian. University of Utah; Estados UnidosFil: Stein, Valentin. Universitaet Bonn; AlemaniaFil: Deussing, Jan M.. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; AlemaniaFil: Refojo, Damian. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry; Alemani

Site-controlled quantum dots fabricated using an atomic-force microscope assisted technique

An atomic-force microscope assisted technique is developed to control the position and size of self-assembled semiconductor quantum dots (QDs). Presently, the site precision is as good as ± 1.5 nm and the size fluctuation is within ± 5% with the minimum controllable lateral diameter of 20 nm. With the ability of producing tightly packed and differently sized QDs, sophisticated QD arrays can be controllably fabricated for the application in quantum computing. The optical quality of such site-controlled QDs is found comparable to some conventionally self-assembled semiconductor QDs. The single dot photoluminescence of site-controlled InAs/InP QDs is studied in detail, presenting the prospect to utilize them in quantum communication as precisely controlled single photon emitters working at telecommunication bands