1,065 research outputs found
Energy metabolism in human pluripotent stem cells and their differentiated counterparts
Background: Human pluripotent stem cells have the ability to generate all cell types present in the adult organism, therefore harboring great potential for the in vitro study of differentiation and for the development of cell-based therapies. Nonetheless their use may prove challenging as incomplete differentiation of these cells might lead to tumoregenicity. Interestingly, many cancer types have been reported to display metabolic modifications with features that might be similar to stem cells. Understanding the metabolic properties of human pluripotent stem cells when compared to their differentiated counterparts can thus be of crucial importance. Furthermore recent data has stressed distinct features of different human pluripotent cells lines, namely when comparing embryo-derived human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSCs) reprogrammed from somatic cells. Methodology/Principal Findings: We compared the energy metabolism of hESCs, IPSCs, and their somatic counterparts. Focusing on mitochondria, we tracked organelle localization and morphology. Furthermore we performed gene expression analysis of several pathways related to the glucose metabolism, including glycolysis, the pentose phosphate pathway and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. In addition we determined oxygen consumption rates (OCR) using a metabolic extracellular flux analyzer, as well as total intracellular ATP levels by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Finally we explored the expression of key proteins involved in the regulation of glucose metabolism. Conclusions/Findings: Our results demonstrate that, although the metabolic signature of IPSCs is not identical to that of hESCs, nonetheless they cluster with hESCs rather than with their somatic counterparts. ATP levels, lactate production and OCR revealed that human pluripotent cells rely mostly on glycolysis to meet their energy demands. Furthermore, our work points to some of the strategies which human pluripotent stem cells may use to maintain high glycolytic rates, such as high levels of hexokinase II and inactive pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH). © 2011 Varum et al
Machine-Checked Proofs For Realizability Checking Algorithms
Virtual integration techniques focus on building architectural models of
systems that can be analyzed early in the design cycle to try to lower cost,
reduce risk, and improve quality of complex embedded systems. Given appropriate
architectural descriptions, assume/guarantee contracts, and compositional
reasoning rules, these techniques can be used to prove important safety
properties about the architecture prior to system construction. For these
proofs to be meaningful, each leaf-level component contract must be realizable;
i.e., it is possible to construct a component such that for any input allowed
by the contract assumptions, there is some output value that the component can
produce that satisfies the contract guarantees. We have recently proposed (in
[1]) a contract-based realizability checking algorithm for assume/guarantee
contracts over infinite theories supported by SMT solvers such as linear
integer/real arithmetic and uninterpreted functions. In that work, we used an
SMT solver and an algorithm similar to k-induction to establish the
realizability of a contract, and justified our approach via a hand proof. Given
the central importance of realizability to our virtual integration approach, we
wanted additional confidence that our approach was sound. This paper describes
a complete formalization of the approach in the Coq proof and specification
language. During formalization, we found several small mistakes and missing
assumptions in our reasoning. Although these did not compromise the correctness
of the algorithm used in the checking tools, they point to the value of
machine-checked formalization. In addition, we believe this is the first
machine-checked formalization for a realizability algorithm.Comment: 14 pages, 1 figur
Psychometric properties of 4-item questionnaire for sleep habits and time in a South American paediatric population
Objectives: To assess the psychometric properties of 4-item questionnaire about sleep habits and time in South American children (3-10 years) and adolescents (11-18 years). Material and Methods: We evaluated 459 participants from seven South American cities. Two items from week and weekend days wake up time and bedtime were asked twice, with a 2-week interval. We calculated time spent in bed (subtracting wake up time from bedtime). Participants also answered the Healthy Lifestyle in Europe by Nutrition in Adolescence (HELENA) sleep time questionnaire. Results: The questionnaire showed acceptable temporal stability in children and adolescents on total days (rho >= 0.30; p<0.05). For total days, the questionnaire presented acceptable convergent validity only in children (rho from 0.48 to 0.62; p <= 0.01) compared with the HELENA questionnaire. Conclusion: The 4-item questionnaire is a reliable and valid tool for children; however, its validity is not consistent in adolescents for sleep habits and time
Dynamic mode II delamination in through thickness reinforced composites
Through thickness reinforcement (TTR) technologies have been shown to provide effective delamination
resistance for laminated composite materials. The addition of this reinforcement allows for the design of highly
damage tolerant composite structures, specifically when subjected to impact events. The aim of this investigation
was to understand the delamination resistance of Z-pinned composites when subjected to increasing strain rates.
Z-pinned laminated composites were manufactured and tested using three point end notched flexure (3ENF)
specimens subjected to increasing loading rates from quasi-static (~0m/s) to high velocity impact (5m/s), using a
range of test equipment including drop weight impact tower and a split Hopkinson bar (SHPB).
Using a high speed impact camera and frame by frame pixel tracking of the strain rates, delamination velocities
as well as the apparent fracture toughness of the Z-pinned laminates were measured and analysed. Experimental
results indicate that there is a transition in the failure morphology of the Z-pinned laminates from quasi-static to
high strain rates. The fundamental physical mechanisms that generate this transition are discussed
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The influence of the accessory genome on bacterial pathogen evolution
Bacterial pathogens exhibit significant variation in their genomic content of virulence factors. This reflects the abundance of strategies pathogens evolved to infect host organisms by suppressing host immunity. Molecular arms-races have been a strong driving force for the evolution of pathogenicity, with pathogens often encoding overlapping or redundant functions, such as type III protein secretion effectors and hosts encoding ever more sophisticated immune systems. The pathogens’ frequent exposure to other microbes, either in their host or in the environment, provides opportunities for the acquisition or interchange of mobile genetic elements. These DNA elements accessorise the core genome and can play major roles in shaping genome structure and altering the complement of virulence factors. Here, we review the different mobile genetic elements focusing on the more recent discoveries and highlighting their role in shaping bacterial pathogen evolution
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