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Associations between Dietary Acid Load and Biomarkers of Inflammation and Hyperglycemia in Breast Cancer Survivors.
Metabolic acidosis can lead to inflammation, tissue damage, and cancer metastasis. Dietary acid load contributes to metabolic acidosis if endogenous acid-base balance is not properly regulated. Breast cancer survivors have reduced capacities to adjust their acid-base balance; yet, the associations between dietary acid load and inflammation and hyperglycemia have not been examined among them. We analyzed data collected from 3042 breast cancer survivors enrolled in the Women's Healthy Eating and Living (WHEL) Study who had provided detailed dietary intakes and measurements of plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). Using a cross-sectional design, we found positive associations between dietary acid load and plasma CRP and HbA1c. In the multivariable-adjusted models, compared to women with the lowest quartile, the intakes of dietary acid load among women with the highest quartile showed 30-33% increases of CRP and 6-9% increases of HbA1c. Our study is the first to demonstrate positive associations between dietary acid load and CRP and HbA1c in breast cancer survivors. Our study identifies a novel dietary factor that may lead to inflammation and hyperglycemia, both of which are strong risk factors for breast cancer recurrence and comorbidities
Extreme star formation events in quasar hosts over
We explore the relationship between active galactic nuclei and star formation
in a sample of 513 optically luminous type 1 quasars up to redshifts of 4
hosting extremely high star formation rates (SFRs). The quasars are selected to
be individually detected by the \textit{Herschel} SPIRE instrument at 3 at 250 m, leading to typical SFRs of order of 1000
Myr. We find the average SFRs to increase by almost a factor
10 from to , mirroring the rise in the comoving SFR density
over the same epoch. However, we find that the SFRs remain approximately
constant with increasing accretion luminosity for accretion luminosities above
10 L. We also find that the SFRs do not correlate with black
hole mass. Both of these results are most plausibly explained by the existence
of a self-regulation process by the starburst at high SFRs, which controls SFRs
on time-scales comparable to or shorter than the AGN or starburst duty cycles.
We additionally find that SFRs do not depend on Eddington ratio at any
redshift, consistent with no relation between SFR and black hole growth rate
per unit black hole mass. Finally, we find that high-ionisation broad
absorption line (HiBAL) quasars have indistinguishable far-infrared properties
to those of classical quasars, consistent with HiBAL quasars being normal
quasars observed along a particular line of sight, with the outflows in HiBAL
quasars not having any measurable effect on the star formation in their hosts.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figure
Exoplanets Torqued by the Combined Tides of a Moon and Parent Star
In recent years, there has been interest in Earth-like exoplanets in the
habitable zones of low mass stars (). Furthermore, it has
been argued that a large moon may be important for stabilizing conditions on a
planet for life. If these two features are combined, then an exoplanet can feel
a similar tidal influence from both its moon and parent star, leading to
potentially interesting dynamics. The moon's orbital evolution depends on the
exoplanet's initial spin period . When is small, transfer of the
exoplanet's angular momentum to the moon's orbit can cause the moon to migrate
outward sufficiently to be stripped by the star. When is large, the moon
migrates less and the star's tidal torques spin down the exoplanet. Tidal
interactions then cause the moon to migrate inward until it is likely tidally
disrupted by the exoplanet and potentially produces rings. While one may think
that these findings preclude the presence of moons for the exoplanets of low
mass stars, in fact a wide range of timescales are found for the loss or
destruction of the moon; it can take depending on
the system parameters. When the moon is still present, the combined tidal
torques force the exoplanet to spin asynchronously with respect to both its
moon and parent star, which tidally heats the exoplanet. This can produce heat
fluxes comparable to those currently coming through the Earth, arguing that
combined tides may be a method for driving tectonic activity in exoplanets.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, updated with minor changes to match version
accepted for publication in A
Beta-arrestin inhibits CAMKKbeta-dependent AMPK activation downstream of protease-activated-receptor-2
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Proteinase-activated-receptor-2 (PAR<sub>2</sub>) is a seven transmembrane receptor that can activate two separate signaling arms: one through Gαq and Ca<sup>2+ </sup>mobilization, and a second through recruitment of β-arrestin scaffolds. In some cases downstream targets of the Gαq/Ca<sup>2+ </sup>signaling arm are directly inhibited by β-arrestins, while in other cases the two pathways are synergistic; thus β-arrestins act as molecular switches capable of modifying the signal generated by the receptor.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here we demonstrate that PAR<sub>2 </sub>can activate adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a key regulator of cellular energy balance, through Ca<sup>2+</sup>-dependent Kinase Kinase β (CAMKKβ), while inhibiting AMPK through interaction with β-arrestins. The ultimate outcome of PAR<sub>2 </sub>activation depended on the cell type studied; in cultured fibroblasts with low endogenous β-arrestins, PAR<sub>2 </sub>activated AMPK; however, in primary fat and liver, PAR<sub>2 </sub>only activated AMPK in β-arrestin-2<sup>-/- </sup>mice. β-arrestin-2 could be co-immunoprecipitated with AMPK and CAMKKβ under baseline conditions from both cultured fibroblasts and primary fat, and its association with both proteins was increased by PAR<sub>2 </sub>activation. Addition of recombinant β-arrestin-2 to in vitro kinase assays directly inhibited phosphorylation of AMPK by CAMKKβ on Thr172.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Studies have shown that decreased AMPK activity is associated with obesity and Type II Diabetes, while AMPK activity is increased with metabolically favorable conditions and cholesterol lowering drugs. These results suggest a role for β-arrestin in the inhibition of AMPK signaling, raising the possibility that β-arrestin-dependent PAR<sub>2 </sub>signaling may act as a molecular switch turning a positive signal to AMPK into an inhibitory one.</p
Assigning Creative Commons Licenses to Research Metadata: Issues and Cases
This paper discusses the problem of lack of clear licensing and transparency
of usage terms and conditions for research metadata. Making research data
connected, discoverable and reusable are the key enablers of the new data
revolution in research. We discuss how the lack of transparency hinders
discovery of research data and make it disconnected from the publication and
other trusted research outcomes. In addition, we discuss the application of
Creative Commons licenses for research metadata, and provide some examples of
the applicability of this approach to internationally known data
infrastructures.Comment: 9 pages. Submitted to the 29th International Conference on Legal
Knowledge and Information Systems (JURIX 2016), Nice (France) 14-16 December
201
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