903 research outputs found
Insights into Hypoxic Systemic Responses Based on Analyses of Transcriptional Regulation in Arabidopsis
We have adopted a hypoxic treatment system in which only roots were under hypoxic conditions. Through analyzing global transcriptional changes in both shoots and roots, we found that systemic signals may be transduced from roots to trigger responses in tissues not directly subjected to hypoxia. The molecular mechanisms of such systemic responses under flooding are currently largely unknown. Using ontological categorization for regulated genes, a systemic managing program of carbohydrate metabolism was observed, providing an example of how systemic responses might facilitate the survival of plants under flooding. Moreover, a proportion of gene expressions that regulated in shoots by flooding was affected in an ethylene signaling mutation, ein2-5. Many systemic-responsive genes involved in the systemic carbohydrate managing program, hormone responses and metabolism, ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation were also affected in ein2-5. These results suggested an important role of ethylene in mediation of hypoxic systemic responses. Genes associated with abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis are upregulated in shoots and down regulated in roots. An ABA signaling mutation, abi4-1, affects expression of several systemic responsive genes. These results suggested that regulation of ABA biosynthesis could be required for systemic responses. The implications of these results for the systemic responses of root-flooded Arabidopsis are discussed
Metrology Camera System of Prime Focus Spectrograph for Subaru Telescope
The Prime Focus Spectrograph (PFS) is a new optical/near-infrared multi-fiber
spectrograph designed for the prime focus of the 8.2m Subaru telescope. PFS
will cover a 1.3 degree diameter field with 2394 fibers to complement the
imaging capabilities of Hyper SuprimeCam. To retain high throughput, the final
positioning accuracy between the fibers and observing targets of PFS is
required to be less than 10um. The metrology camera system (MCS) serves as the
optical encoder of the fiber motors for the configuring of fibers. MCS provides
the fiber positions within a 5um error over the 45 cm focal plane. The
information from MCS will be fed into the fiber positioner control system for
the closed loop control. MCS will be located at the Cassegrain focus of Subaru
telescope in order to to cover the whole focal plane with one 50M pixel Canon
CMOS camera. It is a 380mm Schmidt type telescope which generates a uniform
spot size with a 10 micron FWHM across the field for reasonable sampling of
PSF. Carbon fiber tubes are used to provide a stable structure over the
operating conditions without focus adjustments. The CMOS sensor can be read in
0.8s to reduce the overhead for the fiber configuration. The positions of all
fibers can be obtained within 0.5s after the readout of the frame. This enables
the overall fiber configuration to be less than 2 minutes. MCS will be
installed inside a standard Subaru Cassgrain Box. All components that generate
heat are located inside a glycol cooled cabinet to reduce the possible image
motion due to heat. The optics and camera for MCS have been delivered and
tested. The mechanical parts and supporting structure are ready as of spring
2016. The integration of MCS will start in the summer of 2016.Comment: 11 pages, 15 figures. SPIE proceeding. arXiv admin note: text overlap
with arXiv:1408.287
Food Traceability Systems, Consumersâ Risk Perception, and Purchase Intention: Evidence from the â4-label-1-Qâ Approach in Taiwan
Many food safety issues have arisen in Taiwan during the past decade. Therefore, in 2016, the Taiwan government proposed the "five rings of food safety" policy to comprehensively protect consumer food supply. Among these policies, the "4-labels-1-Q" approach was adopted to ensure the selection of foods with traceable labels for retrospective study. Hence, this study investigated the association between the degree of familiarity with the 4-labels-1-Q food traceability system and risk perceptions and also investigated whether a consumer's purchase intention toward fresh foods with food labels changed after viewing an educational film on food labels. This study defined subjects as the main food purchasers for their families; 290 valid questionnaire interviews were administered and educational films shown in Tainan markets and stores. Results showed that knowledge about labels significantly affected risk perception for labeling. Age, educational level, and degree of risk perception influenced purchase intention. Results also showed that after viewing the video, subjects' label knowledge and purchase intention increased significantly. However, after adjustment for age, educational level, income, and purchase places, the effect of film education on risk perception was insignificant, especially for those who had lower educational levels, including those older than 65 years. Public trust can be boosted through label education among age groups using different channels and methods, and encouraging the sale of labeled foods in traditional markets would be a useful strategy. Age, educational level, income, and risk perception of participants significantly affected purchase intention. This study can be a reference for designing risk communication strategies and promoting traceable agricultural products
Longitudinal stage profiles forecasting in rivers for flash floods
Copyright Š 2010 Elsevier. NOTICE: this is the authorâs version of a work that was accepted for publication in Journal of Hydrology. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Journal of Hydrology Vol. 388 (2010), DOI: 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2010.05.028A flash flood routing model with artificial neural networks predictions was developed for stage profiles forecasting. The artificial neural network models were used to predict the 1-3 h lead time river stages at gauge stations along a river. The predictions were taken as interior boundaries in the flash flood routing model for the forecast of longitudinal stage profiles, including the un-gauged sites of a whole river. The flash flood routing model was based on the dynamic wave equations with discretization processes of the four-point finite difference method. Five typhoon events were applied to calibrate the rainfall-stage model and the other three events were simulated to verify the model's capability. The results revealed that the flash flood river routing model conjunction with artificial neural networks can provide accurate river stages for flood forecasting.National Science Council of Taiwa
Costunolide causes mitotic arrest and enhances radiosensitivity in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Purpose</p> <p>This work aimed to investigate the effect of costunolide, a sesquiterpene lactone isolated from <it>Michelia compressa</it>, on cell cycle distribution and radiosensitivity of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The assessment used in this study included: cell viability assay, cell cycle analysis by DNA histogram, expression of phosphorylated histone H3 (Ser 10) by flow cytometer, mitotic index by Liu's stain and morphological observation, mitotic spindle alignment by immunofluorescence of alpha-tubulin, expression of cell cycle-related proteins by Western blotting, and radiation survival by clonogenic assay.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our results show that costunolide reduced the viability of HA22T/VGH cells. It caused a rapid G2/M arrest at 4 hours shown by DNA histogram. The increase in phosphorylated histone H3 (Ser 10)-positive cells and mitotic index indicates costunolide-treated cells are arrested at mitosis, not G2, phase. Immunofluorescence of alpha-tubulin for spindle formation further demonstrated these cells are halted at metaphase. Costunolide up-regulated the expression of phosphorylated Chk2 (Thr 68), phosphorylated Cdc25c (Ser 216), phosphorylated Cdk1 (Tyr 15) and cyclin B1 in HA22T/VGH cells. At optimal condition causing mitotic arrest, costunolide sensitized HA22T/VGH HCC cells to ionizing radiation with sensitizer enhancement ratio up to 1.9.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Costunolide could reduce the viability and arrest cell cycling at mitosis in hepatoma cells. Logical exploration of this mitosis-arresting activity for cancer therapeutics shows costunolide enhanced the killing effect of radiotherapy against human HCC cells.</p
A PERIOD3 variant causes a circadian phenotype and is associated with a seasonal mood trait.
In humans, the connection between sleep and mood has long been recognized, although direct molecular evidence is lacking. We identified two rare variants in the circadian clock gene PERIOD3 (PER3-P415A/H417R) in humans with familial advanced sleep phase accompanied by higher Beck Depression Inventory and seasonality scores. hPER3-P415A/H417R transgenic mice showed an altered circadian period under constant light and exhibited phase shifts of the sleep-wake cycle in a short light period (photoperiod) paradigm. Molecular characterization revealed that the rare variants destabilized PER3 and failed to stabilize PERIOD1/2 proteins, which play critical roles in circadian timing. Although hPER3-P415A/H417R-Tg mice showed a mild depression-like phenotype, Per3 knockout mice demonstrated consistent depression-like behavior, particularly when studied under a short photoperiod, supporting a possible role for PER3 in mood regulation. These findings suggest that PER3 may be a nexus for sleep and mood regulation while fine-tuning these processes to adapt to seasonal changes
âI canât see an end in sight.â How the COVID-19 pandemic may influence suicide risk: a qualitative study
<jats:p> Zusammenfassung: Theoretischer Hintergrund: Das Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war es, eine deutschsprachige Adaptation der Bergen Study Addiction Scale (BStAS), einer Skala zur Erfassung von exzessivem Studierverhalten, zu entwickeln und zu validieren. Methode: Die Daten von 615 Studierenden wurden analysiert. Die Dimensionalität der BStAS wurde mittels konfirmatorischer Faktorenanalyse ĂźberprĂźft. AuĂerdem wurden Korrelations- und hierarchische Regressionsanalysen durchgefĂźhrt, um Zusammenhänge von exzessivem Studierverhalten mit PersĂśnlichkeit und Gesundheit zu untersuchen. Ergebnisse: Der Vergleich mit Dynamic Fit Index Cutoffs deutete auf eine moderate Missspezifikation des einfaktoriellen Modells hin. Wie erwartet war exzessives Studierverhalten positiv mit wĂśchentlichen Lernstunden, Neurotizismus, wahrgenommenem Stress, psychosomatischen Beschwerden und Schlafproblemen assoziiert und hing negativ mit Lebenszufriedenheit zusammen. Schlussfolgerung: Es ist fraglich, ob alle Items der BStAS Aspekte einer Verhaltenssucht erfassen. Die Ergebnisse legen dennoch nahe, dass die BStAS ein Studierverhalten misst, das in Bezug auf physische und psychische Gesundheit von Relevanz ist. </jats:p>
Relationship between maximal incremental and high-intensity interval exercise performance in elite athletes
This descriptive study aimed to explore the physiological factors that determine tolerance to exertion during high-intensity interval effort. Forty-seven young women (15â28 years old) were enrolled: 23 athletes from Taiwan national or national reserve teams and 24 moderately active females. Each participant underwent a maximal incremental INC (modified Bruce protocol) cardiopulmonary exercise test on the first day and high-intensity interval testing (HIIT) on the second day, both performed on a treadmill. The HIIT protocol involved alternation between 1-min effort at 120% of the maximal speed, at the same slope reached at the end of the INC, and 1-min rest until volitional exhaustion. Gas exchange, heart rate (HR), and muscle oxygenation at the right vastus lateralis, measured by near-infrared spectroscopy, were continuously recorded. The number of repetitions completed (Rlim) by each participant was considered the HIIT tolerance index. The results showed a large difference in the Rlim (range, 2.6â12.0 repetitions) among the participants. Stepwise linear regression revealed that the variance in the Rlim within the cohort was related to the recovery rates of oxygen consumption (), HR at the second minute after INC, and muscle tissue saturation index at exhaustion (R = 0.644). In addition, age was linearly correlated with Rlim (adjusted R = â0.518, p \u3c 0.0001). In conclusion, the recovery rates for and HR after the incremental test, and muscle saturation index at exhaustion, were the major physiological factors related to HIIT performance. These findings provide insights into the role of the recovery phase after maximal INC exercise testing. Future research investigating a combination of INC and HIIT testing to determine training-induced performance improvement is warranted
Induction chemotherapy with dose-modified docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil in Asian patients with borderline resectable or unresectable head and neck cancer
BackgroundSignificant ethnic differences in susceptibility to the effects of chemotherapy exist. Here, we retrospectively analyzed the safety and efficacy of induction chemotherapy (ICT) with dose-modified docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil (TPF) in Asian patients with borderline resectable or unresectable head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC).MethodsBased on the incidence of adverse events that occurred during daily practice, TPF90 (90% of the original TPF dosage; docetaxel 67.5Â mg/m2 on Day 1, cisplatin 67.5Â mg/m2 on Day 1, and 5-fluorouracil 675Â mg/m2 on Days 1â5) was used for HNSCC patients who were scheduled to receive ICT TPF.ResultsBetween March 2011 and May 2014, 52 consecutive patients with borderline resectable or unresectable HNSCC were treated with ICT TPF90 followed by concurrent chemoradiotherapy. Forty-four patients (84.6%) received at least three cycles of ICT TPF90. The most commonly observed Grade 3â4 adverse events included neutropenia (35%), anemia (25%), stomatitis (35%), diarrhea (16%), and infections (13.5%). In an intention-to-treat analysis, the complete and partial response rates after ICT TPF90 were 13.5% and 59.6%, respectively. The complete and partial response rates following radiotherapy and salvage surgery were 42.3% and 25.0%, respectively. The estimated 3-year overall survival and progression-free survival rates were 41% [95% confidence interval (CI): 25â56%] and 23% (95% CI: 10â39%), respectively. The observed median overall survival and progression-free survival were 21.0Â months (95% CI: 13.3â28.7Â months) and 16.0Â months (95% CI: 10.7â21.3Â months), respectively.ConclusionTPF90 is a suitable option for Asian patients with borderline resectable or unresectable HNSCC who are scheduled for ICT
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