Anti-tumor Mechanisms of HPV16 E6*

High-risk types of the human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) are the causative agents of nearly all cases of cervical cancer, as well as a significant number of head, neck, penile, vulvar and anal cancers. Like many other viruses with small genomes, HPV (~8 kb) utilizes numerous mechanisms to increase the capacity of its genome to encode the proteins necessary for successful completion of its infectious life cycle, including alternative splicing. Studies over the past few decades have focused intensively on the activities and roles of E6 proteins from HR-HPVs during the process of cellular transformation, clearly implicating E6 as a major transforming agent. In contrast, the role of the smaller splice isoform, E6*, in the carcinogenic process has not yet been established. Based on previous studies, we proposed that E6* had the potential to reduce tumor formation in vivo. To test this prediction, we injected HPV16+ SiHa and HPV16- C33A cervical cancer cells overexpressing E6* into nude mice and monitored tumor growth over several weeks while comparing them with control tumors lacking E6* overexpression. E6* was found to reduce growth in both SiHa- and C33A-derived tumors. These findings were followed up by in vitro experiments showing that E6* binds to full-length E6 and decreases the growth rate in SiHa cells. Subsequently, we sought to find the cellular pathways most influenced by E6* in attenuating SiHa and C33A tumor growth. Thus, proteomic analysis was performed on both cell lines, revealing that the β -Integrin pathway in SiHa cells and the mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative phosphorylation pathway in C33A cells were the most significantly altered. Proteomic data was confirmed using immunoblot, microscopy, and flow cytometry techniques. These findings will assist in our quest for understanding the fundamental driving forces behind HPV-mediated and non-HPV-mediated cervical cancers and introduce novel ideas for small molecule inhibitors. Our studies provide several promising leads for future analyses, specifically in the context of human cancers, and carry with them the exciting possibility of replicating the anti-oncogenic activity of E6* in such a way as to provide therapeutic benefit

Engaging Students in Authentic Mathematical Discourse in a High School Mathematics Classroom

The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the successes and challenges a teacher faces when implementing authentic mathematical discourse in a high school mathematics classroom. Nine lessons were implemented that emphasized student engagement in Common Core Mathematics Practice Three (MP3) (construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.) This was a qualitative action research study that took place in a Geometry classroom with 16 9th-11th grade students. Personal journal entries were recorded by the teacher-researcher after each lesson which included detailed summaries of the lesson and reflections on instances of students engaging in MP3 as well as observed challenges that hindered students\u27 engagement in MP3. Observational data from a building-level instructional coach and student artifacts were also collected. Data showed that the following three factors were prominent in leading to student engagement in MP3: 1) transferring responsibility from the teacher to students; 2) investing into lesson plans, time management, class structure, and relationships with students; and 3) establishing a classroom culture of safety, respect, and high expectations. The results of the study indicated that high school mathematics students are capable of engaging in authentic mathematical discourse when teachers intentionally consider these three factors and implement lessons that provide opportunities and encourage students to engage in MP3

Immigration: The Shaping of Partisan Identity and Presidential Vote Choice

Immigration as an issue is salient in U.S. politics, particularly regarding the 2016 presidential election. Building a wall on the southern border of the United States, expanding border patrol units, and deporting all unauthorized aliens are all salient immigration issues pervasive in the politics of today. The Latino population is often targeted as the population that these issues affect to the greatest extent, and thus, their vote hinges upon the issue. What impact does immigration as an issue have on Latino partisan identity, and in turn, vote choice? The author draws election data from the Cooperative Congressional Election Study and conducts regression analysis to determine the issue of immigration's effect on partisan identity and vote choice. The results show that immigration directly affects both Latino partisan identity and presidential vote choice. The findings point to further research on issue salience and party identification.Political Scienc

Comcast Launches New X1 Service in Utah to Compete in Innovative Industry

SALT LAKE CITY — Many Utahns received the latest Comcast technology Tuesday in what company executives hope will revolutionize the television experience.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/huntsman_news/1138/thumbnail.jp

Action at a distance as a full-value solution of Maxwell equations: basis and application of separated potential's method

The inadequacy of Li\'{e}nard-Wiechert potentials is demonstrated as one of the examples related to the inconsistency of the conventional classical electrodynamics. The insufficiency of the Faraday-Maxwell concept to describe the whole electromagnetic phenomena and the incompleteness of a set of solutions of Maxwell equations are discussed and mathematically proved. Reasons of the introduction of the so-called ``electrodynamics dualism concept" (simultaneous coexistence of instantaneous Newton long-range and Faraday-Maxwell short-range interactions) have been displayed. It is strictly shown that the new concept presents itself as the direct consequence of the complete set of Maxwell equations and makes it possible to consider classical electrodynamics as a self-consistent and complete theory, devoid of inward contradictions. In the framework of the new approach, all main concepts of classical electrodynamics are reconsidered. In particular, a limited class of motion is revealed when accelerated charges do not radiate electromagnetic field.Comment: ReVTeX file, 24pp. Small corrections which do not have influence results of the paper. Journal reference is adde

Evolutionary Signatures in the Formation of Low-Mass Protostars. II. Towards Reconciling Models and Observations

A long-standing problem in low-mass star formation is the "luminosity problem," whereby protostars are underluminous compared to the accretion luminosity expected both from theoretical collapse calculations and arguments based on the minimum accretion rate necessary to form a star within the embedded phase duration. Motivated by this luminosity problem, we present a set of evolutionary models describing the collapse of low-mass, dense cores into protostars, using the Young & Evans (2005) model as our starting point. We calculate the radiative transfer of the collapsing cores throughout the full duration of the collapse in two dimensions. From the resulting spectral energy distributions, we calculate standard observational signatures to directly compare to observations. We incorporate several modifications and additions to the original Young & Evans model in an effort to better match observations with model predictions. We find that scattering, 2-D geometry, mass-loss, and outflow cavities all affect the model predictions, as expected, but none resolve the luminosity problem. A cycle of episodic mass accretion, however, can resolve this problem and bring the model predictions into better agreement with observations. Standard assumptions about the interplay between mass accretion and mass loss in our model give star formation efficiencies consistent with recent observations that compare the core mass function (CMF) and stellar initial mass function (IMF). The combination of outflow cavities and episodic mass accretion reduce the connection between observational Class and physical Stage to the point where neither of the two common observational signatures (bolometric temperature and ratio of bolometric to submillimeter luminosity) can be considered reliable indicators of physical Stage.Comment: 27 pages. Accepted for publication in Ap

NASA Marshall Impact Testing Facility Capabilities Applicable to Lunar Dust Work

The Impact Testing Facility at Marshall Space Flight Center has several guns that would be of use in studying impact phenomena with respect to lunar dust. These include both ballistic guns, using compressed gas and powder charges, and hypervelocity guns, either light gas guns or an exploding wire gun. In addition, a plasma drag accelerator expected to reach 20 km/s for small particles is under development. Velocity determination and impact event recording are done using ultra-high-speed cameras. Simulation analysis is also available using the SPHC hydrocode

The clearing of discs around late type T Tauri stars: constraints from the infrared two colour plane

We have undertaken SED modeling of discs around low mass T Tauri stars in order to delineate regions of the infrared two colour plane (K - [8] versus K - [24]) that correspond to discs in different evolutionary stages. This provides a ready tool for classifying the nature of star-disc systems based on infrared photometry. In particular we demonstrate the distinct loci followed by discs that undergo `uniform draining' (reduction in surface density by a spatially uniform factor) from those that clear from the inside out. We draw attention to the absence of objects on this `draining locus' in those star forming regions where the 24um sensitivity would permit their detection, as compared with the ~20 objects in these regions with colours suggestive of inner holes. We thus conclude that discs predominantly clear from the inside out. We also apply our classification of the infrared two colour plane to stars of spectral type M3-M5 in the IC 348 cluster and show that some of its members (dubbed `weak excess' sources by Muzerolle et al 2010) that had previously been assumed to be in a state of clearing are instead likely to be optically thick discs in which the dust is well settled towards the mid-plane. Nevertheless, there are many discs in a state of partial clearing in IC 348, with their abundance (relative to the total population of disc bearing stars) being around four times higher than for comparable stars in Taurus. However, the number of partially cleared discs relative to the total number of late type stars is similarly low in both regions (10 and 20 % respectively). We therefore conclude that IC 348 represents a more evolved version of the Taurus population (with more of its discs being highly settled or partially cleared) but that the timescale for clearing is similarly short (a few times 10^5 years) in both cases.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, accepted, MNRA