Bringing Light Into the Dark: Associations of Fire Interest and Fire Setting With the Dark Tetrad

Fire setting is a significant problem for society, costing many human lives and causing great property damage. One important risk factor of fire setting observed in forensic samples is fire interest. However, less is known about the relationship of fire interest and fire setting to other variables such as personality traits in subclinical samples. In this study, we observed the relationship of potentially important personality traits with fire interest and fire setting in a sample of N = 222 students. In addition to zero-order correlations, we calculated path models and a logistic regression including all predictor variables. From the Dark Tetrad, consisting of psychopathy, narcissism, Machiavellianism, and three facets of sadism, psychopathy, and physical sadism were found to be associated with fire interest and fire setting. Furthermore, vicarious sadism was associated with fire interest. The other Dark Tetrad traits and four sensation seeking facets did not substantially add to the predictions. This confirms the results of previous studies with clinical and forensic samples with psychopathy and sadism as relevant predictors for fire interest and fire setting. Our results also provide evidence for viewing sadism as the multidimensional construct discriminating between vicarious and other forms of sadism, for the distinction of psychopathy and Machiavellianism, and for the Dark Tetrad being linked to object related violence.Peer Reviewe

A new common functional coding variant at the DDC gene change renal enzyme activity and modify renal dopamine function.

The intra-renal dopamine (DA) system is highly expressed in the proximal tubule and contributes to Na+ and blood pressure homeostasis, as well as to the development of nephropathy. In the kidney, the enzyme DOPA Decarboxylase (DDC) originating from the circulation. We used a twin/family study design, followed by polymorphism association analysis at DDC locus to elucidate heritable influences on renal DA production. Dense single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping across the DDC locus on chromosome 7p12 was analyzed by re-sequencing guided by trait-associated genetic markers to discover the responsible genetic variation. We also characterized kinetics of the expressed DDC mutant enzyme. Systematic polymorphism screening across the 15-Exon DDC locus revealed a single coding variant in Exon-14 that was associated with DA excretion and multiple other renal traits indicating pleiotropy. When expressed and characterized in eukaryotic cells, the 462Gln variant displayed lower Vmax (maximal rate of product formation by an enzyme) (21.3 versus 44.9 nmol/min/mg) and lower Km (substrate concentration at which half-maximal product formation is achieved by an enzyme.)(36.2 versus 46.8 μM) than the wild-type (Arg462) allele. The highly heritable DA excretion trait is substantially influenced by a previously uncharacterized common coding variant (Arg462Gln) at the DDC gene that affects multiple renal tubular and glomerular traits, and predicts accelerated functional decline in chronic kidney disease

Pró-bicho Pelotas

Trabalho apresentado no 31º SEURS - Seminário de Extensão Universitária da Região Sul, realizado em Florianópolis, SC, no período de 04 a 07 de agosto de 2013 - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina.Desenvolvido desde 2012, o Projeto Pró-Bicho Pelotas visa auxiliar protetores voluntários de animais e a ONG SOS Pelotas (organização que atua no resgate e no tratamento de animais abandonados) na obtenção de imagens fotográficas com qualidade dos animais resgatados e que se encontram disponíveis para adoção responsável. Através do email do projeto são agendadas as sessões fotográficas dos animais. As fotografias são obtidas com equipamento profissional e em um fundo infinito portátil, construído pelos discentes. Desta forma, a obtenção de imagens pode ser realizada no próprio Centro de Artes ou no local onde os animais se encontram. Após a edição e o tratamento, as imagens são veiculadas em álbuns na página do Projeto na rede social Facebook. Juntamente com os álbuns são divulgados os contatos do protetor que está cuidando do animais até a adoção. O agendamento das sessões, a obtenção de imagens, seu tratamento e sua divulgação é realizado por discentes do Centro de Artes da UFPel que cursaram as disciplinas de Introdução à Fotografia e Fotografia nos cursos de Artes Visuais (Bacharelado e Licenciatura), Design Gráfico e Design Digital. Além de divulgar os álbuns do projeto, na página também são divulgados animais que estão para adoção e cujo protetor encaminhou as fotografias e solicitações de divulgação de animais desaparecidos ou encontrados. As publicações na página atingem semanalmente cerca de 10 mil usuários. Em 2012, dos 164 animais fotografados, entre cães e gatos, mais de 65% foram adotados

Caprin-1, a novel Cyr61-interacting protein, promotes osteosarcoma tumor growth and lung metastasis in mice

Osteosarcoma (OS) is the most common primary bone malignancy in children and adolescents. More than 30% of patients develop lung metastasis, which is the leading cause of mortality. Recently, the extracellular matrix protein Cyr61 has been recognized as a malignancy promoting protein in OS mouse model with prognostic potential in human OS. In this study, we aimed at the identification of novel Cyr61-interacting proteins. Here we report that Cyr61 associates with Caprin-1, and confocal microscopy showed that stable ectopic expression of Caprin-1 leads to the formation of stress granules containing Caprin-1 and Cyr61, confers resistance to cisplatin-induced apoptosis, and resulted in constitutive phosphorylation of Akt and ERK1/2. Importantly, ectopic expression of Caprin-1 dramatically enhanced primary tumor growth, remarkably increased lung metastatic load in a SCID intratibial OS mouse model, and decreased significantly (p<0.0018) the survival of the mice. Although Caprin-1 expression, evaluated with a tissue microarray including samples from 59 OS patients, failed to be an independent predictor for the patients' outcome in this limited cohort of patients, increased Caprin-1 expression indicated a tendency to shortened overall survival, and more strikingly, Cyr61/Caprin-1 co-expression was associated with worse survival than that observed for patients with tumors expressing either Cyr61 or Caprin-1 alone or none of these proteins. The findings imply that Caprin-1 may have a metastasis promoting role in OS and show that through resistance to apoptosis and via the activation of Akt and ERK1/2 pathways, Caprin-1 is significantly involved in the development of OS metastasis

Numerical simulations of type I planetary migration in nonturbulent magnetized discs

Using 2D MHD numerical simulations performed with two different finite difference Eulerian codes, we analyze the effect that a toroidal magnetic field has on low mass planet migration in nonturbulent protoplanetary discs. The presence of the magnetic field modifies the waves that can propagate in the disc. In agreement with a recent linear analysis (Terquem 2003), we find that two magnetic resonances develop on both sides of the planet orbit, which contribute to a significant global torque. In order to measure the torque exerted by the disc on the planet, we perform simulations in which the latter is either fixed on a circular orbit or allowed to migrate. For a 5 earth mass planet, when the ratio \beta between the square of the sound speed and that of the Alfven speed at the location of the planet is equal to 2, we find inward migration when the magnetic field B_{\phi} is uniform in the disc, reduced migration when B_{\phi} decreases as r^{-1} and outward migration when B_{\phi} decreases as r^{-2}. These results are in agreement with predictions from the linear analysis. Taken as a whole, our results confirm that even a subthermal stable field can stop inward migration of an earth--like planet.Comment: 17 pages, 12 figures, accepted in MNRAS. A version with full resolution, colour figures is available at http://www.maths.qmul.ac.uk/~rpn/preprints

SLC25A51 is a mammalian mitochondrial NAD+ transporter

Mitochondria require nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) to carry out the fundamental processes that fuel respiration and mediate cellular energy transduction. Mitochondrial NAD+ transporters have been identified in yeast and plants1,2, but their existence in mammals remains controversial3,4,5. Here we demonstrate that mammalian mitochondria can take up intact NAD+, and identify SLC25A51 (also known as MCART1)—an essential6,7 mitochondrial protein of previously unknown function—as a mammalian mitochondrial NAD+ transporter. Loss of SLC25A51 decreases mitochondrial—but not whole-cell—NAD+ content, impairs mitochondrial respiration, and blocks the uptake of NAD+ into isolated mitochondria. Conversely, overexpression of SLC25A51 or SLC25A52 (a nearly identical paralogue of SLC25A51) increases mitochondrial NAD+ levels and restores NAD+ uptake into yeast mitochondria lacking endogenous NAD+ transporters. Together, these findings identify SLC25A51 as a mammalian transporter capable of importing NAD+ into mitochondria.acceptedVersio

UV-nanoimprint lithography and large area roll-to-roll texturization with hyperbranched polymer nanocomposites for light-trapping applications

Light-trapping textures were produced in hyperbranched polymer (HBP) silica nanocomposites using a UV-nanoimprint lithography (UVNIL) replication method, either in batch or roll-to-roll processes. The hardness of the HBP was found to increase by a factor of 2.5 with the addition of 50 vol% of nanoparticles. A nickel master with random sub-micron pyramidal structures was used to imprint nanocomposites containing up to 20 vol% of silica on a polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) substrate. The influence of nanoparticle fraction and pressure on the texture morphology and light scattering properties of the replicas was studied using scanning electron microscopy and optical analysis. The roughness and coherence length of the textures were similar to those of the master for all investigated compositions and process pressures. Likewise, the light scattering performance of aluminum-coated texturized nanocomposites was identical to that of the metal template, with a haze of 90% over the 400–800 nm spectral range. Thin film amorphous silicon solar cells were deposited on the texturized substrates using a large-area roll-to-roll process. The photocurrent of these devices was found to be 23% higher than the reference value of a flat cell

Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies from the CHARGE consortium identifies common variants associated with carotid intima media thickness and plaque

Carotid intima media thickness (cIMT) and plaque determined by ultrasonography are established measures of subclinical atherosclerosis that each predicts future cardiovascular disease events. We conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association data in 31,211 participants of European ancestry from nine large studies in the setting of the Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology (CHARGE) Consortium. We then sought additional evidence to support our findings among 11,273 individuals using data from seven additional studies. In the combined meta-analysis, we identified three genomic regions associated with common carotid intima media thickness and two different regions associated with the presence of carotid plaque (P < 5 × 10 -8). The associated SNPs mapped in or near genes related to cellular signaling, lipid metabolism and blood pressure homeostasis, and two of the regions were associated with coronary artery disease (P < 0.006) in the Coronary Artery Disease Genome-Wide Replication and Meta-Analysis (CARDIoGRAM) consortium. Our findings may provide new insight into pathways leading to subclinical atherosclerosis and subsequent cardiovascular events