Queen of Heaven for piano and electronics

Title from PDF of title page, viewed on November 4, 2011Dissertation advisor: James MobberleyVitaThesis (D.M.A.)--Conservatory of Music and Dance. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2011Queen of Heaven is a large-scale composition for piano and electronics, cast as five meditations on the Virgin Mary. Each of the five movements is set in musical materials that both subjectively and symbolically express the composer's study and experience of scriptural, liturgical and iconographic sources relating to different aspects of her unique place in Christian theology. The first movement, “Hail, Holy Queen,” imagines the greeting of the Virgin by the hosts of angels, in enormous, sonorous and terrifying voices. The second and fourth movements each take their inspiration from titles for Mary: “Full-of-Grace” from kecharitomene, the Greek word of greeting spoken by the Archangel Gabriel in Luke 1:28; and “The-One-Who-Gives-Birth-To- God” from Theotokos, an ancient liturgical and devotional epithet. These two are divided by “The Unburnt Bush,” based on iconographic and liturgical sources that celebrate the prefiguration of the Virgin in the burning bush of Exodus. The fifth and final movement returns to the heavenly setting of the first, drawing its imagery from Revelation 12: “And a great sign appeared in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.” The electronic sounds in Queen of Heaven consist of both triggered sound files and live processing of the piano. One of the composer's goals in constructing these sounds was to combine the reliability of fixed media electronics with the performative flexibility and spontaneity possible with live-generated sound and processing. The sound files for the first and third movements allow for flexibility in pacing for the pianist by using sounds whose textures imply no particular metric stresses, and whose duration is such to allow a wide flexibility of tempo for the pianist. This model is broken by the explicitly metric character of the electronic sound in the fifth movement, which is designed for the pianist to be able to follow easily without the use of a click track. Queen of Heaven was commissioned by pianist Kari Johnson, and is dedicated to the Most Holy God-Bearer and Ever-Virgin Mary.Frontmatter -- Hail, Holy Queen! (angelic greeting of the Mother of God) -- Full-of-grace (kecharitomene) -- The unburnt bush -- The one-who-gives-birth-to-God (theotokos) -- The woman clothed with the su

Suv4-20h deficiency results in telomere elongation and derepression of telomere recombination

Mammalian telomeres have heterochromatic features, including trimethylated histone H3 at lysine 9 (H3K9me3) and trimethylated histone H4 at lysine 20 (H4K20me3). In addition, subtelomeric DNA is hypermethylated. The enzymatic activities responsible for these modifications at telomeres are beginning to be characterized. In particular, H4K20me3 at telomeres could be catalyzed by the novel Suv4-20h1 and Suv4-20h2 histone methyltransferases (HMTases). In this study, we demonstrate that the Suv4-20h enzymes are responsible for this histone modification at telomeres. Cells deficient for Suv4-20h2 or for both Suv4-20h1 and Suv4-20h2 show decreased levels of H4K20me3 at telomeres and subtelomeres in the absence of changes in H3K9me3. These epigenetic alterations are accompanied by telomere elongation, indicating a role for Suv4-20h HMTases in telomere length control. Finally, cells lacking either the Suv4-20h or Suv39h HMTases show increased frequencies of telomere recombination in the absence of changes in subtelomeric DNA methylation. These results demonstrate the importance of chromatin architecture in the maintenance of telomere length homeostasis and reveal a novel role for histone lysine methylation in controlling telomere recombination

Enhanced Photodegradation of Synthetic Dyes Mediated by Ag3PO4-Based Semiconductors under Visible Light Irradiation

[EN] Four silver phosphate-based materials were successfully synthesized, characterized, and evaluated, together with TiO2, in the photodegradation of synthetic dyes (tartrazine, Orange II, rhodamine, and Brilliant Blue FCF) under two irradiation sources centered at 420 and 450 nm. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images showed different topologies of the synthesized materials, whereas diffuse reflectance spectra demonstrated that they display absorption up to 500 nm. Degradation experiments were performed in parallel with the silver materials and TiO2. Upon irradiation centered at 420 nm, the abatement of the dyes was slightly more efficient in the case of TiO2-except for Orange II. Nevertheless, upon irradiation centered at 450 nm, TiO(2)demonstrated complete inefficiency and silver phosphates accomplished the complete abatement of the dyes-except for Brilliant Blue FCF. A careful analysis of the achieved degradation of dyes revealed that the main reaction mechanism involves electron transfer to the photogenerated holes in the valence band of silver photocatalysts, together with the direct excitation of dyes and the subsequent formation of reactive species. The performance of TiO(2)was only comparable at the shorter wavelength when hydroxyl radicals could be formed; however, it could not compete under irradiation at 450 nm since the formed superoxide anion is not as reactive as hydroxyl radicals.This research was funded by Spanish Government (Grant SEV-2016-0683), Generalitat Valenciana (Prometeo Program) and H2020/Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions under the AQUAlity project (Reference: 765860). The authors would like to acknowledge H2020/Marie Sk¿odowska-Curie Actions under the AQUAlity project (Reference: 765860). Consellería d¿Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esport (PROMETEO/2017/075 and GRISOLÍAP/2017/005) is gratefully acknowledged.Pavanello, A.; Blasco-Brusola, A.; Johnston, PF.; Miranda Alonso, MÁ.; Marín García, ML. (2020). Enhanced Photodegradation of Synthetic Dyes Mediated by Ag3PO4-Based Semiconductors under Visible Light Irradiation. Catalysts. 10(7):1-17. https://doi.org/10.3390/catal10070774S117107Boczkaj, G., & Fernandes, A. (2017). Wastewater treatment by means of advanced oxidation processes at basic pH conditions: A review. Chemical Engineering Journal, 320, 608-633. doi:10.1016/j.cej.2017.03.084Miklos, D. B., Remy, C., Jekel, M., Linden, K. G., Drewes, J. E., & Hübner, U. (2018). Evaluation of advanced oxidation processes for water and wastewater treatment – A critical review. Water Research, 139, 118-131. doi:10.1016/j.watres.2018.03.042Gągol, M., Przyjazny, A., & Boczkaj, G. (2018). 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Correlated Response to Selection for Litter Size Residual Variability in Rabbits' Body Condition

[EN] Selection for decreasing litter size residual variance has been proposed as an indirect way to select for resilience. Resilience has been directly related to welfare. A good body condition and efficient body fat mobilization have been associated with an optimal level of animal welfare. Two rabbit lines have been divergently selected for litter size residual variability. The low line selected for decreasing litter size variance more efficiently managed the body fat from mating to weaning in the second productive cycle in females compared to the high line, which could be related to the lower culling rate reported previously in the low line. Therefore, body condition can be used as a useful biomarker of resilience. A divergent selection experiment for residual variance of litter size at birth was carried out in rabbits during twelve generations. Residual variance of litter size was estimated as the within-doe variance of litter size after pre-correction for year and season as well as parity and lactation status effects. The aim of this work was to study the correlated response to selection for litter size residual variability in body condition from mating to weaning. Body condition is related directly to an animal's fat deposits. Perirenal fat is the main fat deposit in rabbits. Individual body weight (IBW) and perirenal fat thickness (PFT) were used to measure body condition at second mating, delivery, 10 days after delivery, and weaning. Litter size of the first three parities was analyzed. Both lines decreased body condition between mating to delivery; however, the decrease in body condition at delivery was lower in the low line, despite this line having higher litter size at birth (+0.54 kits, p = 0.93). The increment of body condition between delivery and early lactation was slightly higher in the low line. On the other hand, body condition affected success of females' receptivity and fertility at the third mating, e.g., receptive females showed a higher IBW and PFT than unreceptive ones (+129 g and +0.28 mm, respectively), and fertile females had a higher IBW and PFT than unfertile ones (+82 g and +0.28 mm, respectively). In conclusion, the does selected for reducing litter size variability showed a better deal with situations of high-energy demand, such as delivery and lactation, than those selected for increasing litter size variability, which would agree with the better health and welfare condition in the low line.This research was supported by Project AGL2017-86083-C2-2-P, funding by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion (MIC)-Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (AEI) and el Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER).Agea, I.; García, MDLL.; Blasco Mateu, A.; Massanyi, P.; Capcarová, M.; Argente, M. (2020). Correlated Response to Selection for Litter Size Residual Variability in Rabbits' Body Condition. Animals. 10(12):1-8. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10122447S181012Colditz, I. G., & Hine, B. C. (2016). Resilience in farm animals: biology, management, breeding and implications for animal welfare. Animal Production Science, 56(12), 1961. doi:10.1071/an15297Berghof, T. V. L., Poppe, M., & Mulder, H. A. (2019). Opportunities to Improve Resilience in Animal Breeding Programs. Frontiers in Genetics, 9. doi:10.3389/fgene.2018.00692Schröder, U. J., & Staufenbiel, R. (2006). Invited Review: Methods to Determine Body Fat Reserves in the Dairy Cow with Special Regard to Ultrasonographic Measurement of Backfat Thickness. Journal of Dairy Science, 89(1), 1-14. doi:10.3168/jds.s0022-0302(06)72064-1Maes, D. G. D., Janssens, G. P. J., Delputte, P., Lammertyn, A., & de Kruif, A. (2004). Back fat measurements in sows from three commercial pig herds: relationship with reproductive efficiency and correlation with visual body condition scores. Livestock Production Science, 91(1-2), 57-67. doi:10.1016/j.livprodsci.2004.06.015Pascual, J. J., Castella, F., Cervera, C., Blas, E., & Fernández-Carmona, J. (2000). The use of ultrasound measurement of perirenal fat thickness to estimate changes in body condition of young female rabbits. Animal Science, 70(3), 435-442. doi:10.1017/s135772980005178xBarletta, R. V., Maturana Filho, M., Carvalho, P. D., Del Valle, T. A., Netto, A. S., Rennó, F. P., … Wiltbank, M. C. (2017). Association of changes among body condition score during the transition period with NEFA and BHBA concentrations, milk production, fertility, and health of Holstein cows. Theriogenology, 104, 30-36. doi:10.1016/j.theriogenology.2017.07.030Van Staaveren, N., Doyle, B., Manzanilla, E. G., Calderón Díaz, J. A., Hanlon, A., & Boyle, L. A. (2017). Validation of carcass lesions as indicators for on-farm health and welfare of pigs. Journal of Animal Science, 95(4), 1528. doi:10.2527/jas2016.1180Sánchez, J. P., de la Fuente, L. F., & Rosell, J. M. (2012). Health and body condition of lactating females on rabbit farms1. Journal of Animal Science, 90(7), 2353-2361. doi:10.2527/jas.2011-4065Mulder, H. A., & Rashidi, H. (2017). Selection on resilience improves disease resistance and tolerance to infections. Journal of Animal Science, 95(8), 3346. doi:10.2527/jas2017.1479Argente, M. J., García, M. L., Zbyňovská, K., Petruška, P., Capcarová, M., & Blasco, A. (2019). Correlated response to selection for litter size environmental variability in rabbits’ resilience. Animal, 13(10), 2348-2355. doi:10.1017/s1751731119000302Blasco, A., Martínez-Álvaro, M., García, M.-L., Ibáñez-Escriche, N., & Argente, M.-J. (2017). Selection for environmental variance of litter size in rabbits. 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No preferential C-allocation to storage over growth in clipped birch and oak saplings

Herbivory is one of the most globally distributed disturbances affecting C-cycling in trees, yet our understanding of how it alters tree C-allocation to different functions like storage, growth or rhizodeposition is still limited. We performed continuous 13C-labelling coupled to a clipping experiment to quantify the effects of simulated browsing on the growth, leaf morphology and relative allocation of stored vs. recently assimilated C to the growth (bulk biomass) and non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) stores (soluble sugars and starch) of the different organs of two tree species with contrasting wood anatomy: diffuse-porous (Betula pubescens) and ring-porous (Quercus petraea). Transfers of C from plants to bulk and rhizosphere soil were also evaluated. Clipped birch and oak trees shifted their C-allocation patterns above-ground as a means to recover from defoliation. However, such increased allocation to current-year stems and leaves did not entail reductions in the allocation to the rhizosphere, which remained unchanged between clipped and control trees of both species. B. pubescens and Q. petraea showed differences in their vulnerability and recovery strategies to clipping, the ring-porous species being less affected in terms of growth and architecture to clipping than the diffuse-porous. These contrasting patterns could be partly explained by differences in their C cycling after clipping. Defoliated oaks showed a faster recovery of their canopy biomass, which was supported by increased allocation of recently fixed C, but associated with large decreases in the fine root biomass of clipped trees of this species. Following clipping, both species recovered NSC pools to a larger extent than growth, but the allocation of 13C-labelled photo-assimilates into storage compounds was not increased as compared to controls. Despite their different response to clipping, our results indicate no preventative allocation into storage occurred during the first year after clipping in any of the two studied tree species

Impact of telomerase ablation on organismal viability, aging, and tumorigenesis in mice lacking the DNA repair proteins PARP-1, Ku86, or DNA-PKcs

The DNA repair proteins poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1), Ku86, and catalytic subunit of DNA-PK (DNA-PKcs) have been involved in telomere metabolism. To genetically dissect the impact of these activities on telomere function, as well as organismal cancer and aging, we have generated mice doubly deficient for both telomerase and any of the mentioned DNA repair proteins, PARP-1, Ku86, or DNA-PKcs. First, we show that abrogation of PARP-1 in the absence of telomerase does not affect the rate of telomere shortening, telomere capping, or organismal viability compared with single telomerase-deficient controls. Thus, PARP-1 does not have a major role in telomere metabolism, not even in the context of telomerase deficiency. In contrast, mice doubly deficient for telomerase and either Ku86 or DNA-PKcs manifest accelerated loss of organismal viability compared with single telomerase-deficient mice. Interestingly, this loss of organismal viability correlates with proliferative defects and age-related pathologies, but not with increased incidence of cancer. These results support the notion that absence of telomerase and short telomeres in combination with DNA repair deficiencies accelerate the aging process without impacting on tumorigenesis

Cannabinoid receptor CB2 drives HER2 pro-oncogenic signaling in breast cancer

Pharmacological activation of cannabinoid receptors elicits antitumoral responses in different models of cancer. However, the biological role of these receptors in tumor physio-pathology is still unknown. We analyzed CB2 cannabinoid receptor protein expression in two series of 166 and 483 breast tumor samples operated in the University Hospitals of Kiel, Tübingen and Freiburg between 1997 and 2010. CB2 mRNA expression was also analyzed in previously published DNA microarray datasets. The role of CB2 in oncogenesis was studied by generating a mouse line that expresses the HER2 rat ortholog (neu) and lacks CB2, and by a variety of biochemical and cell biology approaches in human breast cancer cells in culture and in vivo, upon modulation of CB2 expression by si/shRNAs and overexpression plasmids. CB2-HER2 molecular interaction was studied by co-localization, coimmunoprecipitation and proximity ligation assays. We show an association between elevated CB2 expression in HER2+ breast tumors and poor patient prognosis. We also demonstrate that genetic inactivation of CB2 impairs tumor generation and progression in MMTV-neu mice. Moreover, we show that HER2 upregulates CB2 expression by activating the transcription factor ELK1 via the ERK cascade, and that an increased CB2 expression activates the HER2 prooncogenic signaling machinery at the level of the tyrosine kinase c-SRC. Finally, HER2 and CB2 form heteromers in cancer cells. Our findings reveal an unprecedented role of CB2 as a pivotal regulator of HER2 pro-oncogenic signaling in breast cancer, and suggest that CB2 may be a biomarker with prognostic value in these tumors

Association of Multiple Sclerosis Susceptibility Variants and Early Attack Location in the CNS

Objective: The anatomic location of subsequent relapses in early multiple sclerosis (MS) appears to be predicted by the first attack location. We sought to determine if genetic polymorphisms associated with MS susceptibility are associated with attack location. Methods: 17 genome-wide association study-identified MS susceptibility polymorphisms were genotyped in 503 white, non-Hispanic patients seen within a year of MS onset. Their association with the CNS location of the first two MS attacks was assessed in multivariate repeated measures analyses (generalized estimating equations with robust standard errors). Results: The IL12A polymorphism was independently associated with increased odds of attacks involving the spinal cord (OR = 1.52, 95% CI 1.11, 2.07, p = 0.009), as was the IRF8 polymorphism (OR = 2.40, 95% CI [1.04, 5.50], p = 0.040). The IL7R polymorphism was associated with reduced odds of attacks involving the brainstem/cerebellum (OR = 0.46, 95% CI 0.22, 0.97, p = 0.041), as were the TNFRSF1A and IL12A polymorphisms. The CD6 polymorphism conferred reduced odds of optic neuritis as an attack location (OR = 0.69, 95% CI [0.49, 0.97], p = 0.034). Several other genes showed trends for association with attack location. Conclusions: Some of the MS susceptibility genes may be associated with MS attack location. The IL12A polymorphism is of particular interest given that interferon beta therapy appears to influence IL12 levels. These findings may lead to improved understanding of MS pathogenesis and treatment