CNS Technology Website Administrative Guide (Version 1.0)

Air Force Office of Scientific Research (F49620-01-1-0397); National Science Foundation (SBE-0354378); Office of Naval Research (N00014-01-1-0624)

Feeling the heat: The campylobacter jejuni HrcA transcriptional repressor is an intrinsic protein thermosensor

The heat-shock response, a universal protective mechanism consisting of a transcriptional reprogramming of the cellular transcriptome, results in the accumulation of proteins which coun-teract the deleterious effects of heat-stress on cellular polypeptides. To quickly respond to thermal stress and trigger the heat-shock response, bacteria rely on different mechanisms to detect temperature variations, which can involve nearly all classes of biological molecules. In Campylobacter jejuni the response to heat-shock is transcriptionally controlled by a regulatory circuit involving two re-pressors, HspR and HrcA. In the present work we show that the heat-shock repressor HrcA acts as an intrinsic protein thermometer. We report that a temperature upshift up to 42°C negatively affects HrcA DNA-binding activity to a target promoter, a condition required for de-repression of regu-lated genes. Furthermore, we show that this impairment of HrcA binding at 42°C is irreversible in vitro, as DNA-binding was still not restored by reversing the incubation temperature to 37°C. On the other hand, we demonstrate that the DNA-binding activity of HspR, which controls, in combi-nation with HrcA, the transcription of chaperones’ genes, is unaffected by heat-stress up to 45°C, portraying this master repressor as a rather stable protein. Additionally, we show that HrcA binding activity is enhanced by the chaperonin GroE, upon direct protein–protein interaction. In conclu-sion, the results presented in this work establish HrcA as a novel example of intrinsic heat-sensing transcriptional regulator, whose DNA-binding activity is positively modulated by the GroE chap-eronin

Thermo-recurrent nematic random laser

This experimental work is aimed to investigate the thermal behavior of random laser action in dye doped nematic liquid crystals. The study evidenced an important temperature dependence of the random lasing characteristics in the nematic phase and in close proximity of the nematic -isotropic (N-I) phase transition. A lowering of the laser emission intensity as the temperature increases is strictly related to the shift of the lasing threshold as function of the temperature even though the pump energy is kept fixed. The optical losses increasing owing to the thermal fluctuation enhanced scattering drive the input-output smoother behavior until the system stops to lase, because below threshold. The unexpected reoccurrence of random lasing at higher temperature, in proximity of N-I transition is found to be related to a different scattering mechanism, the micro-droplets nucleation and critical opalescence

Examining adherence to activity monitoring devices to improve physical activity in adults with cardiovascular disease: A systematic review

Background Activity monitoring devices are currently being used to facilitate and monitor physical activity. No prior review has examined adherence to the use of activity monitoring devices amongst adults with cardiovascular disease. Methods Literature from June 2012 to October 2017 was evaluated to examine the extent of adherence to any activity monitoring device used to collect objective physical activity data. Randomized control trials comparing usual care against the use of an activity monitoring device, in a community intervention for adults from any cardiovascular diagnostic group, were included. A systematic search of databases and clinical trials registers was conducted using Joanna Briggs Institute methodology. Results Of 10 eligible studies, two studies reported pedometer use and eight accelerometer use. Six studies addressed the primary outcome. Mean adherence was 59.1% (range 39.6% to 85.7%) at last follow-up. Studies lacked equal representation by gender (28.6% female) and age (range 42 to 82 years). Conclusion This review indicates that current research on activity monitoring devices may be overstated due to the variability in adherence. Results showed that physical activity tracking in women and in young adults have been understudied

Bayesian Function-on-Function Regression for Multilevel Functional Data

Medical and public health research increasingly involves the collection of complex and high dimensional data. In particular, functional data—where the unit of observation is a curve or set of curves that are finely sampled over a grid—is frequently obtained. Moreover, researchers often sample multiple curves per person resulting in repeated functional measures. A common question is how to analyze the relationship between two functional variables. We propose a general function-on-function regression model for repeatedly sampled functional data on a fine grid, presenting a simple model as well as a more extensive mixed model framework, and introducing various functional Bayesian inferential procedures that account for multiple testing. We examine these models via simulation and a data analysis with data from a study that used event-related potentials to examine how the brain processes various types of images

A population-based observational study of diabetes during pregnancy in Victoria, Australia, 1999-2008

Objectives: This paper reports secular trends in diabetes in pregnancy in Victoria, Australia and examines the effect of including or excluding women with pre-existing diabetes on gestational diabetes (GDM) prevalence estimates

The evolution of vertically acquired HCV infection

Materials and methods All children with vertically acquired HCV infection who came to our attention and were regularly followed from the first months of life were included in this analysis. One child with double HCV and HIV infection was excluded. HCV associated clinical manifestations, viral genotype, persistence of viremia and HCV antibodies, liver biochemistry (ALT levels, bilirubin, alpha fetoprotein, coagulation parameters), liver ultrasound and other investigations to identify extrahepatic manifestations (e.g. the appearance of auto-antibodies or cryoglobulins, C3 and C4 concentrations) were evaluated

Noxious stimulation induces self-protective behavior in bumblebees

It has been widely stated that insects do not show self-protective behavior towards noxiously-stimulated body parts, but this claim has never been empirically tested. Here, we tested whether an insect species displays a type of self-protective behavior: self-grooming a noxiously-stimulated site. We touched bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) on the antenna with a noxiously-heated (65°C) probe and found that, in the first two minutes after this stimulus, bees groomed their touched antenna more than their untouched antenna and more than bees that were touched with an unheated probe or not touched at all. Our results present evidence that bumblebees display self-protective behavior. We discuss the potential neural mechanisms of this behavior and the implications for the topic of insect pain