Conditional Loss-of-Growth 1 (CLoG1) is a Novel Protein that Localizes to Microtubules in Physcomitrella patens

Understanding the genetic basis of plant growth is important for agricultural improvements. Here, the intracellular localization of CLoG1, a novel protein identified in a temperature sensitive loss-of-growth genetic screen in Physcomitrella patens is investigated. An RNAi complementation assay was used to demonstrate that mEGFP tagged CLoG1 remains functional. Following this, stable lines expressing CLoG1:mEGFP fusions were generated. Imaging by confocal microscopy revealed that CLoG1 associates with the microtubule cytoskeleton, including the mitotic spindle and phragmoplast. A nuclear counting assay was conducted to investigate the participation of CLoG1 in cell division. Though there was no evidence of multi-nucleated cells, the mutation causes a decrease in the number of cells

Differences in Attitude and Awareness towards HIV/AIDS in Young, office going Males & Females

Objective: Young people, who tend to be idealistic and motivated, have inadequate knowledge, pessimistic attitudes, and risky practices which are major hindrances in preventing the spread of HIV. The study aims to assess HIV-related knowledge, attitudes and practices in young office going Males and Females.Observations: This study was a questionnaire based survey, consisted of 25 questions regarding knowledge, awareness and attitude toward HIV/ AIDS affected individuals, conducted on (n=200) (age distribution 25-35 years) to explore the levels of knowledge, awareness and their attitude about HIV. Chi (x2) square test for comparison of two groups (Males and Females) was conducted and P <0.05 was considered as statistically significant.The results showed statistically significant difference in attitude of males and females regarding HIV /AIDS. The study showed that the females were not fully aware and also has less knowledge compared to males and hence had refusal attitude towards HIV/AIDS. The awareness of women’s needs to be improved so as to have better understanding about HIV/AIDS. It is clearly indicated that there is still a stigma attached in the educated groups, especially more so in the females. Social media can play a key role in spreading awareness and improving knowledge about HIV/AIDS.Conclusion: Spectrum of myths and misperceptions especially in women emphasizing the need of education that recognizes the social context of attitude towards HIV. Results from this study may contribute to the development of appropriate educational and training programme which in turn, may assist in achieving the elusive goal in future

Harnessing Colossal Magnetic Anisotropy in Sandwiched 3d^2-Metallocenes

Single-molecule magnet (SMM) based quantum technology is gaining attentions in recent years with growing focus on achieving higher barrier of magnetization reversal. Metallocenes owing unique sandwiched-structure, assure themselves as plausible molecular systems for development of novel SMMs. Here in this work, we have explicitly investigated metallocenes of first row transition metal elements, along with their one electron oxidized (cationic) and reduced (anionic) analogues, for their magnetic anisotropies (D) adopting multi-reference ab initio calculations. Herein, we report the unprecedented high D values for 3d^2 systems among all the 3d-metallocenes

Hyperhomocysteinemia presenting as Wallenberg syndrome: A report of two cases and review of literature

Wallenberg syndrome or lateral medullary syndrome occurs due to infarction of the lateral medulla usually supplied by the posterior inferior cerebellar artery (PICA). It most commonly results from occlusion of the vertebral artery followed by the PICA. The clinical manifestations result from impaired functioning of vestibular nuclei, inferior cerebellar peduncle, central tegmental tract, descending sympathetic fibers, nucleus ambiguus, spinothalamic tracts and spinal trigeminal nucleus. The clinical manifestations include dysphagia, nausea, vomiting, ataxia, Horner′s syndrome, ipsilateral loss of pain and temperature over the face and contralateral loss over the trunk and body etc. Manifestations depend on the site of lesion. The most common etiology of Wallenberg syndrome being atherosclerotic occlusion of the arteries followed by secondary thrombosis. However, prothrombotic states rarely present as lateral medullary syndrome. Therefore, we report two cases of Wallenberg syndrome where patients were found to have hyperhomocysteinemia as a risk factor for the prothrombotic state

Varied manifestations of tuberous sclerosis

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a rare autosomal dominant disease. The prevalence of TSC is estimated to be 1 in 95,136 in general population and in those <6 years of age, it is 1 in 14,608. It is an autosomal dominant neurocutaenous disease and in about 80% of cases it is caused by a de novo mutation. The relationship between cardiac rhabdomyomas and TSC is well established. The cardiac rhabdomyomas may arise anywhere in the myocardium but are more commonly seen in the left ventricle. However, in our case an interventricular septal rhabdomyoma was seen. Angiomyolipomas (AMLs) occur in up to 80% of patients with TSC. Bilateral renal AMLs were seen in our case. There was evidence of systemic involvement in form of lymphangiomyomatosis and subependymal hamartomas

A rare case of underlying pulmonary sequestration in a patient with recently diagnosed medium and large vessel vasculitis

Vasculitis of medium- and large-sized arteries is an inflammatory and stenotic disease characterized by a strong predilection for the aortic arch and its branches. It presents with symptoms and signs as per the vessels and organs involved. Pulmonary sequestration is a rare abnormality characterized by a mass of nonfunctioning lung tissue that receives its vascular supply from a systemic artery and is separated from the normal tracheobronchial tree. The following is a rare case report showing the presence of pulmonary sequestration in a patient with recently diagnosed hypertension and intestinal angina due to medium and large vessel vasculitis

Mapping SOX9 transcriptional dynamics during multi-lineage differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells

The master transcription factor SOX9 is a key player during chondrocyte differentiation, cartilage development, homeostasis and disease. Modulation of SOX9 and its target gene expression is essential during chondrogenic, osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs). However, lack of sufficient knowledge about the signaling interplay during differentiation remains one of the main reasons preventing successful application of hMSCs in regenerative medicine. We previously showed that Transcription Factor – Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (TF-FRAP) can be used to study SOX9 dynamics at the single cell level. We showed that changes in SOX9 dynamics are linked to its transcriptional activity. Here, we investigated SOX9 dynamics during differentiation of hMSCs into the chondrogenic, osteogenic and adipogenic lineages. We show that there are clusters of cells in hMSCs with distinct SOX9 dynamics, indicating that there are a number of subpopulations present in the heterogeneous hMSCs. SOX9 dynamics data at the single cell resolution revealed novel insights about its activity in these subpopulations (cell types). In addition, the response of SOX9 to differentiation stimuli varied in these subpopulations. Moreover, we identified donor specific differences in the number of cells per cluster in undifferentiated hMSCs, and this correlated to their differentiation potential

Sanitation of the New Sports and Recreation Center

There is a perceived lack of sanitation due to malpractices by the Recreation Center users. Our research reveals that sanitation policies should not be the focus, instead behavioral changes should be targeted through awareness campaigns

Assessing Traffic and Air Quality in Central Copenhagen

Sponsored by Miljøpunkt Indre By, we assessed the traffic congestion and air quality in the city center of Copenhagen, Denmark. We conducted surveys with locals, interviewed experts, and conducted direct observations of the area. After analysis of the data, we evaluated the feasibility of a tunnel, explored possible alternative solutions, and offered recommendations for alleviating congestion and reducing air pollution. We found that while a tunnel would reduce air and noise pollution, it may not be effective in reducing traffic volume. Instead, we recommend discouraging car use and promoting public transportation by incorporating a light rail system, reducing lanes, implementing a park and ride system, and improving bicycle infrastructure