Effect of Steroids and Sulfated Steroids on Growth of the Human MG-63 Osteoblast-like Cell Line

The importance of estrogen in bone regulation is exemplified by the rapid loss of bone density at the onset of menopause. Post-menopausal women have low levels of estrogens, but high levels of inactive sulfated steroids. These can be converted to active steroids by steroid sulfatase. While it is known that estrogens can stimulate the growth and maintenance of bone cells, it is not known if sulfated steroids can induce a similar response. The purpose of this study was to determine if sulfated steroids can induce proliferation of a human osteoblast-like cell line MG-63, and if steroid sulfatase inhibitors were capable of blocking that response. A growth assay was developed to assess proliferation of MG-63 cells in the presence of various steroids. The results of an initial experiment with a number of steroids indicated differences in growth, with estradiol, estrone sulfate, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate showing increased proliferation. A follow up experiment with estradiol, estrone sulfate, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate showed that proliferation was increased in the presence of estradiol and estrone sulfate. A dose-response testing proliferation of MG-63 cells to estradiol and estrone sulfate, resulted in estradiol stimulating growth above baseline at 10μM and 1μM, and estrone sulfate increasing growth only at 10μM. A steroid sulfatase inhibitor, DU-14, was able to block estrone sulfate-stimulated growth at 10μM, but not at 1μM. Another steroid sulfatase inhibitor, EMATE, actually stimulated growth at 1μM; however, this inhibitor is known to be estrogenic. The estrogen receptor antagonist ICI 182,780 inhibited estrone sulfate- and estradiol-stimulated growth at 100nM. Steroid sulfatase activity was assessed in MG-63 microsomes and whole cells in the presence of DU-14 and EMATE. It was found that steroid sulfatase activity in the presence of the inhibitors was virtually eliminated. These data demonstrate that growth in the human MG-63 osteoblast-like cells is stimulated by estrogens and by sulfated estrogens. This supports the concept that sulfated steroids are important in maintaining bone density

Developmental Changes in Infants' Knowledge of the Instrumental Value of Babbling

The present study sought to discover the age at which infants realize that their vocalizations may be used to elicit social responses from others, and to examine whether infants? knowledge of the consequences of their babbling is related to their primary caregivers? natural levels of responsiveness. Participants were 27 caregiver-infant dyads from the Ithaca, NY area. Infants were 2 and 5 months of age. Infants participated in an unstructured play session with their caregivers, followed by a still-face interaction with an unfamiliar experimenter who initially engaged the infants, and then became quiet and assumed a neutral expression. Five-month-olds exhibited a significant increase in the quantity of non-cry vocalizations from the first interaction period to the still-face, thus demonstrating that they have learned that their vocalizations have an effect on others. Two-month-olds did not show a significant change in the quantity of vocalizations. No significant relationship was found between caregiver responsiveness and infants' vocal behavior across the still face

The relationality of religion and science:Toward a new discourse-analytical framework

In deze studie wordt niet gevraagd wat de relatie tussen religie en wetenschap is maar wordt onderzocht hoe relaties ‘religie’ en ‘wetenschap’ bepalen. Historisch onderzoek naar de interactie van deze twee concepten maakt duidelijk dat aannames over hun onderlinge relatie de definities van deze begrippen in de loop der tijd hebben veranderd. Dit weerlegt de gangbare gedachte dat de relatie tussen religie en wetenschap gebaseerd is op ons begrip van ‘religie’ en ‘wetenschap.’ Het is eerder zo dat het idee van relatie de definitie van onze termen bepaalt en transformeert. Het idee dat religie en wetenschap elkaar uitsluiten heeft geleid tot de tweedeling bovennatuurlijk versus natuurlijk, die de boventoon voert in veel definities van religie en wetenschap. De reductionistische aanname dat met wetenschap de wereld verklaard kan worden heeft ertoe geleid dat van religie een strikt wetenschappelijk studieobject werd gemaakt. Argumenten tegen de gangbare dichotomisering hebben ertoe geleid dat religie en wetenschap geconceptualiseerd worden als complementair. Dit heeft geresulteerd in begrippen als wetenschappelijke religies en religieuze wetenschappen. Nieuwe ideeën omtrent relaties leiden tot nieuwe definities, nieuwe tradities en nieuwe sociale artefacten. Deze vragen om een nieuw analyseparadigma dat dit brede spectrum van betekenissen van ‘religie’ en ‘wetenschap’ kan verklaren. In deze studie wordt betoogd dat zowel bij de bestudering van religie als in de wetenschapsbeoefening in het algemeen ‘relationaliteitsanalyse,’ waarin de relaties zelf het primaire analyseobject zijn, toegevoegde waarde kan hebben. Zo kan onduidelijkheid omtrent kernbegrippen overwonnen worden en de aandacht worden verlegd van wat de betekenis van een term is naar het hoe van een term in een discoursanalytisch kader

New insights into the effects on blood pressure of diets low in salt and high in fruits and vegetables and low-fat dairy products

Results from the recent Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH)-Sodium trial provide the latest evidence concerning the effects of dietary patterns and sodium intake on blood pressure. Participants ate either the DASH diet (high in fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, and reduced in saturated and total fat) or a typical US diet. Within each diet arm, participants ate higher, intermediate, and lower sodium levels, each for 30 days. The results indicated lower blood pressure with lower sodium intake for both diet groups. Although some critics would argue otherwise, these findings provide important new evidence for the value of the DASH diet and sodium reduction in controlling blood pressure

Graph Neural Networks and Arithmetic Circuits

We characterize the computational power of neural networks that follow the graph neural network (GNN) architecture, not restricted to aggregate-combine GNNs or other particular types. We establish an exact correspondence between the expressivity of GNNs using diverse activation functions and arithmetic circuits over real numbers. In our results the activation function of the network becomes a gate type in the circuit. Our result holds for families of constant depth circuits and networks, both uniformly and non-uniformly, for all common activation functions

Hybrid sideways/longitudinal swimming in the monoflagellate Shewanella oneidensis: from aerotactic band to biofilm

Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 are facultative aerobic electroactive bacteria, with an appealing potential for sustainable energy production and bioremediation. They gather around air sources, forming aerotactic bands and biofilms. Though accumulation is crucial to technological exploitation, their collective behaviour remains poorly reported. Here we establish a comprehensive framework for the study of aerotaxis, unveiling a novel hybrid locomotion pattern. Despite having only one flagellum, MR-1 combine motility features of mono- and multiflagellate bacteria, alternating longitudinal fast and sideways slow swimming. The adaptive tuning of the resulting bimodal velocity distributions fulfils different biological functions, such as aerotaxis and confinement. Overall, we reveal the mechanisms underlying the aerotactic collective behaviour of MR-1, in the process leading from accumulation to biofilm formatio

Resistance of Human Cytomegalovirus to Cyclopropavir Maps to a Base Pair Deletion in the Open Reading Frame of \u3cem\u3eUL97\u3c/em\u3e

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widespread pathogen in the human population, affecting many immunologically immature and immunocompromised patients, and can result in severe complications, such as interstitial pneumonia and mental retardation. Current chemotherapies for the treatment of HCMV infections include ganciclovir (GCV), foscarnet, and cidofovir. However, the high incidences of adverse effects (neutropenia and nephrotoxicity) limit the use of these drugs. Cyclopropavir (CPV), a guanosine nucleoside analog, is 10-fold more active against HCMV than GCV (50% effective concentrations [EC50s] = 0.46 and 4.1 μM, respectively). We hypothesize that the mechanism of action of CPV is similar to that of GCV: phosphorylation to a monophosphate by viral pUL97 protein kinase with further phosphorylation to a triphosphate by endogenous kinases, re- sulting in inhibition of viral DNA synthesis. To test this hypothesis, we isolated a CPV-resistant virus, sequenced its genome, and discovered that bp 498 of UL97 was deleted. This mutation caused a frameshift in UL97 resulting in a truncated protein that lacks a kinase domain. To determine if this base pair deletion was responsible for drug resistance, the mutation was engineered into the wild-type viral genome, which was then exposed to increasing concentrations of CPV. The results demonstrate that the engineered virus was approximately 72-fold more resistant to CPV (EC50 = 25.8 ± 3.1 μM) than the wild-type virus (EC50 = 0.36 ± 0.11 μM). We conclude, therefore, that this mutation is sufficient for drug resistance and that pUL97 is involved in the mechanism of action of CPV

Les Dones en els Videojocs : Videojocs Feministes pel Canvi Social

Premi UAB de l'Observatori per a la Igualtat als millors Treballs de Fi de Grau amb perspectiva de gènere. 7a Edició, curs 2021-2022Aquest TFG respon a la problemàtica de la masculinització dels videojocs, i les violències de gènere digitals que allà s'hi perpetuen. L'objectiu principal és demostrar (i reivindicar) com el videojoc pot esdevenir una eina pedagògica feminista que condueixi al canvi social. La justificació teòrica parteix de considerar el videojoc com a eina educativa a partir del seu diàleg amb les pedagogies crítiques, i la part pràctica consisteix en un artefacte cultural en forma de "guia gamer", que recomana jocs amb importància pedagògica i perspectiva de gènere, i cobreix el buit de referents femenins empoderats que els hi manquen als infants