The identification and characterization of Mio10 and MINOS1 as novel regulators of mitochondrial inner membrane organization

Various mitochondrial inner membrane proteins contribute to the structure of cristae membranes and to the overall dynamic morphology of the inner membrane. These proteins include the F1FOATPase dimers, which contribute to the curvature and angular shape of cristae. Also, Fcj1/Mitofilin are involved in cristae junction formation and act in an antagonistic manner in inner membrane curvature with respect to F1FOATPase dimers. Whereas several small proteins mediate F1FOATPase dimerization in yeast by binding sequentially at monomer interfaces, the exact nature of what promotes F1FOATPase dimerization in higher eukaryotes is yet to be determined. To this end, the initial aim of this study was to identify novel F1FOATPase dimerization factors in higher eukaryotes that parallel the action of small dimerization factors in yeast. An in silico approach to identify novel F1FOATPase dimerization factors resulted in the identification of the human mitochondrial protein MINOS1 as a potential candidate. MINOS1, along with its human homolog, Mio10, were investigated. These proteins however were found not to be stably associated with the F1FOATPase. Moreover, Mio10 did not affect F1FOATPase dimerization, oligomerization, or enzymatic activity. Thus a role of Mio10 and MINOS in dimerization was excluded. Instead by using an affinity purification based mass spectrometric analysis, Mio10/MINOS1 were identified as novel interaction partners of Fcj1/Mitofilin. Topological analysis of Mio10 and MINOS together with results of size exclusion chromatography indicated that the two proteins form large mitochondrial inner membrane complexes. Furthermore, analysis of a MIO10 deletion strain by fluorescence and electron microscopy provided evidence for the critical role that Mio10 plays in inner membrane organization. Mitochondria from mio10∆ and fcj1∆ strains exhibited leaflet-like stacked cristae membranes and appeared to have lost defined cristae tips. The complex that contains Mio10/Fcj1 in yeast and MINOS1/Mitofilin in human mitochondria was hence termed as the MINOS complex (Mitochondrial Inner membrane Organizing System). The presented findings highlight the functional and evolutionary significance of the MINOS complex as a player in mitochondrial inner membrane architecture as well as a multifunctional component in eukaryotic mitochondria and potentially in other cellular organelles

The Practice of Transformational Leadership Style in the Ministry of Labour and Social Development in the Kingdom of Bahrain

Are managers at the Ministry of Labour and Social Development in the Kingdom of Bahrain practicing the Transformational Leadership style? Do managers with longer years of experience practice the four dimensions of transformational leadership more frequently than those with lesser years of experience? These are some of the questions that this study have sought answers to. Specifically, the research tried to determine the frequency at which transformational leadership dimensions such as idealized influence; inspirational motivation; intellectual stimulation; and individualized considerations are being practiced by managers in the said ministry, based on the perceptions of 96 rank and file employees, and 38 managers. It also determined if the frequency of practicing transformational leadership style is significantly related with the years of managerial experience. The study further investigated if managers’ perceptions would significantly differ with that of the rank & file employees. The findings revealed that years’ of managerial experience is not significantly related to the frequency of practice of transformational leadership dimensions. It was also found that idealized influence was the most frequently practiced transformational leadership dimension, while inspirational motivation was the least frequently practiced one in the Ministry of Labour and Social Development in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Keywords: Transformational Leadership, Managers, Leadership Dimensions, Government Leaders, Kingdom of Bahrain DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-26-13 Publication date:September 30th 201

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早大学位記番号:新9199博士(国際コミュニケーション学)早稲田大

The Role of Small Satellites in the Establishment of the Gulf Region\u27s First Graduate Level Space Studies Program

Yahsat, Northrop Grumman, and Khalifa University created the Gulf region\u27s first master\u27s level advanced studies space program. To date this program has graduated three classes of master\u27s students and received accolades from the UAE Space Agency and Abu Dhabi\u27s Mubadala Investment Company. The program\u27s primary goal is to develop the resources and work force that the UAE requires to establish itself as a space-faring nation. Integral to this program are small satellites, initially used to train and educate the students and ultimately growing to accommodate new technologies and scientific payloads developed in the UAE. The first of these small satellites, a 1U CubeSat named MYSat-1 was launched in November of 2018 and deployed from the Northrop Grumman Cygnus on 13 February, 2019. In this paper we present the role small satellites played in the establishment of this program. We discuss the challenges of establishing a satellite program at a university without a formal aerospace curriculum and how the small satellite became the anchor project for the student development. In this context, we explore the advantages of making use of the broadly established small satellite COTS component marketplace relative to the didactical benefits to be gained from having the students develop the new hardware in-house. Finally, we review the process of setting up a new small satellite lab established to be used as the primary resource for developing and testing small satellites in the country

Making religious buildings more accessible: The case of mosques in Abu Dhabi’s and Dubai’s neighborhoods

More than a house of worship, religious buildings have a critical and authoritative role in the social and political life of people. Yet, such places of divine and spirit have received limited attention in transportation and urban planning research. This research evaluates accessibility to one kind of religious institution: mosques. The article studies the ease of access to mosques at walkable distances of 400 m and 800 m radii in twelve selected neighborhoods in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Analysis uses the gravity metric under two network scenarios: streets only, and the combined network of streets and alleys. Gravity values demonstrate three types of accessibility to mosques: plots without access, plots with minimum access to one mosque, and plots with choice access to more than one mosque. Findings show neighborhoods have experienced an erratic decrease in accessibility to mosques. In both cities, percentages of plots with an overall accessibility to mosques, (sum of both minimum and choice), were higher in the pre- and-early-suburban phases. With the inclusion of alleyways, the overall accessibility percentages increased in many cases. The study reveals that good pedestrian accessibility results from an effective interplay between street design, plot densities, network intersection density, strategic placement of alleys, and mosques’ ratio and spatial distribution

Making religious buildings more accessible: The case of mosques in Abu Dhabi’s and Dubai’s neighborhoods

More than a house of worship, religious buildings have a critical and authoritative role in the social and political life of people. Yet, such places of divine and spirit have received limited attention in transportation and urban planning research. This research evaluates accessibility to one kind of religious institution: mosques. The article studies the ease of access to mosques at walkable distances of 400 m and 800 m radii in twelve selected neighborhoods in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Analysis uses the gravity metric under two network scenarios: streets only, and the combined network of streets and alleys. Gravity values demonstrate three types of accessibility to mosques: plots without access, plots with minimum access to one mosque, and plots with choice access to more than one mosque. Findings show neighborhoods have experienced an erratic decrease in accessibility to mosques. In both cities, percentages of plots with an overall accessibility to mosques, (sum of both minimum and choice), were higher in the pre- and-early-suburban phases. With the inclusion of alleyways, the overall accessibility percentages increased in many cases. The study reveals that good pedestrian accessibility results from an effective interplay between street design, plot densities, network intersection density, strategic placement of alleys, and mosques’ ratio and spatial distribution

Metagenomic sequencing and reverse transcriptase PCR reveal that mobile phones and environmental surfaces are reservoirs of Multidrug-Resistant superbugs and SARS-CoV-2

Background: Mobile phones of healthcare workers (HCWs) can act as fomites in the dissemination of microbes. This study was carried out to investigate microbial contamination of mobile phones of HCWs and environmental samples from the hospital unit using a combination of phenotypic and molecular methods. Methods: This point prevalence survey was carried out at the Emergency unit of a tertiary care facility. The emergency unit has two zones, a general zone for non-COVID-19 patients and a dedicated COVID-19 zone for confirmed or suspected COVID-19 patients. Swabs were obtained from the mobile phones of HCWs in both zones for bacterial culture and shotgun metagenomic analysis. Metagenomic sequencing of pooled environmental swabs was conducted. RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2 detection was carried out. Results: Bacteria contamination on culture was detected from 33 (94.2%) mobile phones with a preponderance of Staphylococcus epidermidis (n/N = 18/35), Staphylococcus hominis (n/N = 13/35), and Staphylococcus haemolyticus (n/N = 7/35). Two methicillin-sensitive and three methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and one pan-drug-resistant carbapenemase producer Acinetobacter baumannii were detected. Shotgun metagenomic analysis showed high signature of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in mobile phone and environmental samples with preponderance of P. aeruginosa bacteriophages. Malassezia and Aspergillus spp. were the predominant fungi detected. Fourteen mobile phones and one environmental sample harbored protists. P. aeruginosa antimicrobial resistance genes mostly encoding for efflux pump systems were detected. The P. aeruginosa virulent factor genes detected were related to motility, adherence, aggregation, and biofilms. One mobile phone from the COVID-19 zone (n/N = 1/5; 20%) had positive SARS-CoV-2 detection while all other phone and environmental samples were negative. Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that mobile phones of HCWs are fomites for potentially pathogenic and highly drug-resistant microbes. The presence of these microbes on the mobile phones and hospital environmental surfaces is a concern as it poses a risk of pathogen transfer to patients and dissemination into the community

Medication errors in the Middle East countries: a systematic review of the literature

Background: Medication errors are a significant global concern and can cause serious medical consequences for patients. Little is known about medication errors in Middle Eastern countries. The objectives of this systematic review were to review studies of the incidence and types of medication errors in Middle Eastern countries and to identify the main contributory factors involved. Methods: A systematic review of the literature related to medication errors in Middle Eastern countries was conducted in October 2011 using the following databases: Embase, Medline, Pubmed, the British Nursing Index and the Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature. The search strategy included all ages and languages. Inclusion criteria were that the studies assessed or discussed the incidence of medication errors and contributory factors to medication errors during the medication treatment process in adults or in children. Results: Forty-five studies from 10 of the 15 Middle Eastern countries met the inclusion criteria. Nine (20%) studies focused on medication errors in paediatric patients. Twenty-one focused on prescribing errors, 11 measured administration errors, 12 were interventional studies and one assessed transcribing errors. Dispensing and documentation errors were inadequately evaluated. Error rates varied from 7.1% to 90.5% for prescribing and from 9.4% to 80% for administration. The most common types of prescribing errors reported were incorrect dose (with an incidence rate from 0.15% to 34.8% of prescriptions), wrong frequency and wrong strength. Computerised physician rder entry and clinical pharmacist input were the main interventions evaluated. Poor knowledge of medicines was identified as a contributory factor for errors by both doctors (prescribers) and nurses (when administering drugs). Most studies did not assess the clinical severity of the medication errors. Conclusion: Studies related to medication errors in the Middle Eastern countries were relatively few in number and of poor quality. Educational programmes on drug therapy for doctors and nurses are urgently needed