On the 'strudel and apples' theory of historiography: A reply to Chris Lorenz

Narrative philosophies of historiography and the positivist approach to the philosophy of historiography share an emphasis on analyzing the writings of historians, rather than their research and methods of inference, confirmation and justification. But neither approach to the philosophy of historiography asks the question about the relation of historiography with the evidence. There are no “facts” in historiography, distinct atomic units that need to be selected and then put together in the historian’s narrative workshop. Instead, the historian is searching for relevant evidence to infer from representations of the past that include explanations and causal relations. Since it is trivially true that all present phenomena are the effects of the past, the historian requires information theories that tell which present phenomena are likely to preserve which types of information about the past. The forging of a narrative is only the last stage in a long process of inference

Biological insights from RIL-seq in bacteria

Bacteria reside in constantly changing environments and require rapid and precise adjustments of gene expression to ensure survival. Small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs) are a crucial element that bacteria utilize to achieve this. sRNAs are short RNA molecules that modulate gene expression usually through base-pairing interactions with target RNAs, primarily mRNAs. These interactions can lead to either negative outcomes such as mRNA degradation or translational repression or positive outcomes such as mRNA stabilization or translation enhancement. In recent years, high-throughput approaches such as RIL-seq (RNA interaction by ligation and sequencing) revolutionized the sRNA field by enabling the identification of sRNA targets on a global scale, unveiling intricate sRNA-RNA networks. In this review, we discuss the insights gained from investigating sRNA-RNA networks in well-studied bacterial species as well as in under-studied bacterial species. Having a complete understanding of sRNA-mediated regulation is critical for the development of new strategies for controlling bacterial growth and combating bacterial infections.Comment: 20 pages, 2 tables, 4 figure

Beyond shared signals: The role of downward gaze in the stereotypical representation of sad facial expressions

According to the influential shared signal hypothesis, perceived gaze direction influences the recognition of emotion from the face, for example, gaze averted sideways facilitates the recognition of sad expressions because both gaze and expression signal avoidance. Importantly, this approach assumes that gaze direction is an independent cue that influences emotion recognition. But could gaze direction also impact emotion recognition because it is part of the stereotypical representation of the expression itself? In Experiment 1, we measured gaze aversion in participants engaged in a facial expression posing task. In Experiment 2, we examined the use of gaze aversion when constructing facial expressions on a computerized avatar. Results from both experiments demonstrated that downward gaze plays a central role in the representation of sad expressions. In Experiment 3, we manipulated gaze direction in perceived facial expressions and found that sadness was the only expression yielding a recognition advantage for downward, but not sideways gaze. Finally, in Experiment 4 we independently manipulated gaze aversion and eyelid closure, thereby demonstrating that downward gaze enhances sadness recognition irrespective of eyelid position. Together, these findings indicate that (1) gaze and expression are not independent cues and (2) the specific type of averted gaze is critical. In consequence, several premises of the shared signal hypothesis may need revision. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved

"Children of the Dream"Revisited: 70 Years of Collective Early Child Care in Israeli Kibbutzim

FSW - Gezinsopvoeding - Ou

Arabidopsis immunophilins ROF1 (AtFKBP62) and ROF2 (AtFKBP65) exhibit tissue specificity, are heat-stress induced, and bind HSP90

The plant co-chaperones FK506-binding proteins (FKBPs) are peptidyl prolyl cis-trans isomerases that function in protein folding, signal transduction and chaperone activity. We report the characterization of the Arabidopsis large FKBPs ROF1 (AtFKBP62) and ROF2 (AtFKBP65) expression and protein accumulation patterns. Transgenic plants expressing ROF1 promoter fused to GUS reporter gene reveal that ROF1 expression is organ specific. High expression was observed in the vascular elements of roots, in hydathodes and trichomes of leaves and in stigma, sepals, and anthers. The tissue specificity and temporal expression of ROF1 and ROF2 show that they are developmentally regulated. Although ROF1 and ROF2 share 85% identity, their expression in response to heat stress is differentially regulated. Both genes are induced in plants exposed to 37 degrees C, but only ROF2 is a bonafide heat-stress protein, undetected when plants are grown at 22 degrees C. ROF1/ROF2 proteins accumulate at 37 degrees C, remain stable for at least 4 h upon recovery at 22 degrees C, whereas, their mRNA level is reduced after 1 h at 22 degrees C. By protein interaction assays, it was demonstrated, that ROF1 is a novel partner of HSP90. The five amino acids identified as essential for recognition and interaction between the mammalian chaperones and HSP90 are conserved in the plant ROF1-HSP90. We suggest that ROF/HSP90 complexes assemble in vivo. We propose that specific complexes formation between an HSP90 and ROF isoforms depends on their spatial and temporal expression. Such complexes might be regulated by environmental conditions such as heat stress or internal cues such as different hormones.Fil: Aviezer-Hagai, Keren. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Skovorodnikova, Julia. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Galigniana, Mario Daniel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Fundación de Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental. Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental; ArgentinaFil: Farchi Pisanty, Odelia. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Maayan, Erez. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Bocovza, Shmuel. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Efrat, Yael. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Von Koskull Döring, Pascal. Goethe Universitat Frankfurt; AlemaniaFil: Ohad, Nir. Universitat Tel Aviv; IsraelFil: Breiman, Adina. Universitat Tel Aviv; Israe

Sleeping out-of-home in a kibbutz communal arrangement: It makes a difference for infant-mother attachment

Wetensch. publicatieFaculteit der Sociale Wetenschappe

Cyclodextrin-mediated Crystallization of Acid β-glucosidase in Complex with Amphiphilic Bicyclic Nojirimycin Analogues

Cyclodextrin-based host-guest chemistry has been exploited to facilitate co-crystallization of recombinant human acid β-glucosidase (β-glucocerebrosidase, GlcCerase) with amphiphilic bicyclic nojirimycin analogues of the sp2-iminosugar type. Attempts to co-crystallize GlcCerase with 5-N,6-O-[N′-(n-octyl)iminomethylidene]nojirimycin (NOI-NJ) or with 5-N,6-S-[N′-(n-octyl)iminomethylidene]-6-thionojirimycin (6S-NOI-NJ), two potent inhibitors of the enzyme with promising pharmacological chaperone activity for several Gaucher disease-associated mutations, were unsuccessful probably due to the formation of aggregates that increase the heterogeneity of the sample and affect nucleation and growth of crystals. Cyclomaltoheptaose (β-cyclodextrin, βCD) efficiently captures NOI-NJ and 6S-NOI-NJ in aqueous media to form inclusion complexes in which the lipophilic tail is accommodated in the hydrophobic cavity of the cyclooligosaccharide. The dissociation constant of the complex of the amphiphilic sp2-iminosugars with βCD is two orders of magnitude higher than that of the corresponding complex with GlcCerase, allowing the efficient transfer of the inhibitor from the βCD cavity to the GlcCerase active site. Enzyme-inhibitor complexes suitable for X-ray analysis were thus grown in the presence of βCD. In contrast to what was previously observed for the complex of GlcCerase with the more basic derivative, 6-amino-6-deoxy-5-N,6-N-[N′-(n-octyl)iminomethylidene]nojirimycin (6N-NOI-NJ), the β-anomers of both NOI-NJ and 6S-NOI-NJ were seen in the active site, even though the α-anomer was exclusively detected both in aqueous solution and in the corresponding βCD:sp2-iminosugar complexes. Our results further suggest that cyclodextrin derivatives might serve as suitable delivery systems of amphiphilic glycosidase inhibitors in a biomedical context.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación CTQ2007-61180/PPQ, SAF2010-15670, CTQ2010-15848Junta de Andalucía P08-FQM-03711Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional 03122, ISSG-CT-2007-03719