Mechanotransduction of mitochondrial AMPK and its distinct role in flow-induced breast cancer cell migration

The biophysical microenvironment of the tumor site has significant impact on breast cancer progression and metastasis. The importance of altered mechanotransduction in cancerous tissue has been documented, yet its role in the regulation of cellular metabolism and the potential link between cellular energy and cell migration remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the role of mechanotransduction in AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation in breast cancer cells in response to interstitial fluid flow (IFF). Additionally, we explored the involvement of AMPK in breast cancer cell migration. IFF was applied to the 3D cell-matrix construct. The subcellular signaling activity of Src, FAK, and AMPK was visualized in real-time using fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET). We observed that breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) are more sensitive to IFF than normal epithelial cells (MCF-10A). AMPK was activated at the mitochondria of MDA-MB-231 cells by IFF, but not in other subcellular compartments (i.e., cytosol, plasma membrane, and nucleus). The inhibition of FAK or Src abolished flow-induced AMPK activation in the mitochondria of MDA-MB-231 cells. We also observed that global AMPK activation reduced MDA-MB-231 cell migration. Interestingly, specific AMPK inhibition in the mitochondria reduced cell migration and blocked flow-induced cell migration. Our results suggest the linkage of FAK/Src and mitochondria-specific AMPK in mechanotransduction and the differential role of AMPK in breast cancer cell migration depending on its subcellular compartment-specific activation

Mapping Postcolonial Literature

Matthew Hannah (Assistant Professor of Digital Humanities) Yiqiu Yan (Undergraduate Researcher) Space and place are incredibly important features of the postcolonial novel and, for writers of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries who are living in former colonies, geography plays an incredibly significant role in navigating issues of identity, language, and nationality. Because the land is such a contested concept in postcolonial writing, we believe that attending to the localities described in literary representations of the land will provide a rich resource for theorizing the relationship between people and places, between colonies and nations. “Mapping Postcolonial Literature” will showcase an interactive map of literary spaces and places mentioned and described in twentieth and twenty-first-century English-language novels written in and about former colonies around the world. While our collection will not be complete, we hope to collect a sizable corpus as a test case for future projects. Using Zotero and the Hathi Trust data analysis portal, we will collect a representative corpus of texts from a list of postcolonial novels and perform algorithmic analyses to scrape location data from the corpus using named entity recognition. Then, we will geocode the resulting list of locations and add descriptive content for some of the locations derived from the novels themselves, combining spatial representation with literary description. The resulting dataset will then be visualized using mapping software to generate a map of the geographic locations mentioned in the collection of novels

12. College Students’ Grocery Shopping Food Safety Practices During the Covid-19 Experience

Background Grocery shopping behaviors that support food safety among college students is not well documented. COVID-19 pandemic efforts related to hygiene practices may have improved these by increasing hand sanitizing, grocery cart cleansing, and altering food packaging and storage. Differences in practices have been identified among urban, suburban, and rural consumers, but not specifically in college-age students. Purpose To assess grocery shopping behaviors of college students during the COVID-19 experience. Method A cross-sectional online survey was conducted in Spring 2020 using network sampling of university students ≥ 18 years of age. A subset of the 89 questions was used for this study. Forty-six questions were scored to yield a total food safety practice score. Results There were 282 respondents: 21.4% urban, 52.4% suburban, and 26.1% from rural areas. Approximately 55% indicated responsibility for household grocery shopping. The majority purchased groceries from a supercenter with location, price, and quality of products identified as primary reasons for this choice. Chi-square tests revealed no significant difference in total food safety practice scores among residential areas, however, differences (p \u3c 0.05) were found for individual behaviors related to poultry and meat selection, cart placement, and storage; produce selection and storage; and use of cooling bags. Cloth bags were used by 25% of students, with 3% following laundering recommendations. Conclusions College students report inadequate frequency of grocery shopping food safety practices despite the public emphasis on hygiene practices. Differences in specific behaviors among urban, suburban and rural college students may guide intervention efforts

Eco-Centre|Eko Centar - Bosnia and Herzegovina 2013 summer global internship

The Eco Center of Blagaj was inaugerated in 2007 with the aim of contributing to nature conservation and increasing environmental awareness. It is a project under the non-profit organization Novi Val. Nine years after it was established, the youth club Novi Val started the project entitled Eco development in rural areas of Bosnia nad Herzegovina and Serbia. Within this project, Novi Val is carrying out activities through several programs: protection of the white vultures, development of cattle farming, protection of the indigenous Tornjak dog species, protection of the Velez Pramenka sheep, preservation of biodiversity, protection of cultural and historical monuments of Blagaj, as well as educational and ecotourism programs

EDUCATION AND JOB MATCH: REVISITED

To study the changes in the effect of degree field on mismatch and the change in the effect of mismatch of wages over time, we revisit a study by Robst (2006) who found that workers who are mismatched earn less than adequately match workers with the same amount schooling. Using recent data from 2015 National Survey of College Graduate (NSCG), we also find a negative relationship between the case of mismatch and the outcome of workers in term of wages, even though the degree of mismatch doesn’t seem to matter as much

Expression and function of ATP-dependent potassium channels in zebrafish islet β-cells

ATP-sensitive potassium channels (K(ATP) channels) are critical nutrient sensors in many mammalian tissues. In the pancreas, K(ATP) channels are essential for coupling glucose metabolism to insulin secretion. While orthologous genes for many components of metabolism–secretion coupling in mammals are present in lower vertebrates, their expression, functionality and ultimate impact on body glucose homeostasis are unclear. In this paper, we demonstrate that zebrafish islet β-cells express functional K(ATP) channels of similar subunit composition, structure and metabolic sensitivity to their mammalian counterparts. We further show that pharmacological activation of native zebrafish K(ATP) using diazoxide, a specific K(ATP) channel opener, is sufficient to disturb glucose tolerance in adult zebrafish. That β-cell K(ATP) channel expression and function are conserved between zebrafish and mammals illustrates the evolutionary conservation of islet metabolic sensing from fish to humans, and lends relevance to the use of zebrafish to model islet glucose sensing and diseases of membrane excitability such as neonatal diabetes

Ruthenium and Iron-Catalysed Decarboxylative N-alkylation of Cyclic α-Amino Acids with Alcohols:Sustainable Routes to Pyrrolidine and Piperidine Derivatives

A modular and waste-free strategy for constructing N-substituted cyclic amines via decarboxylative N-alkylation of α-amino acids employing ruthenium- and iron-based catalysts is presented. The reported method allows the synthesis of a wide range of five- and six-membered N-alkylated heterocycles in moderate-to-excellent yields starting from predominantly proline and a broad range of benzyl alcohols, and primary and secondary aliphatic alcohols. Examples using pipecolic acid for the construction of piperidine derivatives, as well as the one-pot synthesis of α-amino nitriles, are also shown

The endocrine influence on the bone microenvironment in early breast cancer

Multiple factors influence the survival of disseminated breast tumour cells (DTCs) in bone. Whilst gene signature studies have identified genes that predict a propensity of tumours to metastasise to bone, the bone environment is key in determining the fate of these tumour cells. Breast cancer cells locate to specific niches within the bone that support their survival, regulated by host factors within the bone microenvironment including bone cells, cells of the bone micro vasculature, immune cells and the extracellular matrix. Reproductive endocrine hormones affect bone and clinical studies across the menopausal transition have provided comprehensive understanding of the changes in the bone microenvironment during this time. Menopause is characterised by a decrease in ovarian oestradiol and inhibins, with an increase in pituitary follicle stimulating hormone and this review will focus on the role of these 3 hormones in determining the fate of DTCs in bone. Both in vivo and clinical data suggest premenopausal bone is a conducive environment for growth of breast cancer cells in bone. Adjuvant cancer treatment aims to reduce the risk of tumour recurrence by targeting DTCs and drugs targeting the bone resorbing osteoclasts, such as bisphosphonates, have been evaluated in this setting. Both preclinical and adjuvant clinical studies and have shown that bisphosphonates ability to decrease tumour growth in bone is influenced by levels of endocrine hormones, with enhanced effects in a postmenopausal bone microenvironment. The challenge is to understand the molecular mechanisms behind this phenomenon and to evaluate if alternative adjuvant bone targeted therapies may be effective in premenopausal women