Disrupting the Indian hedgehog signaling pathway in vivo attenuates surgically induced osteoarthritis progression in Col2a1-CreERT2; Ihhfl/fl mice

Introduction: Previous observations implicate Indian hedgehog (Ihh) signaling in osteoarthritis (OA) development because it regulates chondrocyte hypertrophy and matrix metallopeptidase 13 (MMP-13) expression. However, there is no direct genetic evidence for the role of Ihh in OA, because mice with cartilage or other tissue-specific deletion of the Ihh gene die shortly after birth. We evaluated the role of Ihh in vivo via a Cre-loxP-mediated approach to circumvent the early death caused by Ihh deficiency. Methods: To evaluate the role of Ihh in OA development, Ihh was specifically deleted in murine cartilage using an Ihh conditional deletion construct (Col2a1-CreERT2; Ihhfl/fl). The extent of cartilage degradation and OA progression after Ihh deletion was assessed by histological analysis, immunohistochemistry, real-time PCR and in vivo fluorescence molecular tomography (FMT) 2 months after OA was induced by partial medial meniscectomy. The effect of Ihh signaling on cartilage was compared between Ihh-deleted mice and their control littermates. Results: Only mild OA changes were observed in Ihh-deleted mice, while control mice displayed significantly more cartilage damage. Typical OA markers such as type X collagen and MMP-13 were decreased in Ihh-deleted mice. In vivo FMT demonstrated decreased cathepsins and MMP activity in knee joints of animals with deletion of Ihh. Conclusions: These findings support the protective role of Ihh deletion in surgically induced OA. Thus, our findings suggest the potential to develop new therapeutic strategies that can prevent and treat OA by inhibiting Ihh signaling in chondrocytes

The Zwicky Transient Facility: Data Processing, Products, and Archive

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is a new robotic time-domain survey currently in progress using the Palomar 48-inch Schmidt Telescope. ZTF uses a 47 square degree field with a 600 megapixel camera to scan the entire northern visible sky at rates of ~3760 square degrees/hour to median depths of g ~ 20.8 and r ~ 20.6 mag (AB, 5sigma in 30 sec). We describe the Science Data System that is housed at IPAC, Caltech. This comprises the data-processing pipelines, alert production system, data archive, and user interfaces for accessing and analyzing the products. The realtime pipeline employs a novel image-differencing algorithm, optimized for the detection of point source transient events. These events are vetted for reliability using a machine-learned classifier and combined with contextual information to generate data-rich alert packets. The packets become available for distribution typically within 13 minutes (95th percentile) of observation. Detected events are also linked to generate candidate moving-object tracks using a novel algorithm. Objects that move fast enough to streak in the individual exposures are also extracted and vetted. The reconstructed astrometric accuracy per science image with respect to Gaia is typically 45 to 85 milliarcsec. This is the RMS per axis on the sky for sources extracted with photometric S/N >= 10. The derived photometric precision (repeatability) at bright unsaturated fluxes varies between 8 and 25 millimag. Photometric calibration accuracy with respect to Pan-STARRS1 is generally better than 2%. The products support a broad range of scientific applications: fast and young supernovae, rare flux transients, variable stars, eclipsing binaries, variability from active galactic nuclei, counterparts to gravitational wave sources, a more complete census of Type Ia supernovae, and Solar System objects.Comment: 30 pages, 16 figures, Published in PASP Focus Issue on the Zwicky Transient Facility (doi: 10.1088/1538-3873/aae8ac

The Zwicky Transient Facility: System Overview, Performance, and First Results

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is a new optical time-domain survey that uses the Palomar 48 inch Schmidt telescope. A custom-built wide-field camera provides a 47 deg 2 field of view and 8 s readout time, yielding more than an order of magnitude improvement in survey speed relative to its predecessor survey, the Palomar Transient Factory. We describe the design and implementation of the camera and observing system. The ZTF data system at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center provides near-real-time reduction to identify moving and varying objects. We outline the analysis pipelines, data products, and associated archive. Finally, we present on-sky performance analysis and first scientific results from commissioning and the early survey. ZTF’s public alert stream will serve as a useful precursor for that of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope

The Zwicky Transient Facility: Science Objectives

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF), a public–private enterprise, is a new time-domain survey employing a dedicated camera on the Palomar 48-inch Schmidt telescope with a 47 deg2 field of view and an 8 second readout time. It is well positioned in the development of time-domain astronomy, offering operations at 10% of the scale and style of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST) with a single 1-m class survey telescope. The public surveys will cover the observable northern sky every three nights in g and r filters and the visible Galactic plane every night in g and r. Alerts generated by these surveys are sent in real time to brokers. A consortium of universities that provided funding (“partnership”) are undertaking several boutique surveys. The combination of these surveys producing one million alerts per night allows for exploration of transient and variable astrophysical phenomena brighter than r∼20.5 on timescales of minutes to years. We describe the primary science objectives driving ZTF, including the physics of supernovae and relativistic explosions, multi-messenger astrophysics, supernova cosmology, active galactic nuclei, and tidal disruption events, stellar variability, and solar system objects. © 2019. The Astronomical Society of the Pacific

The Zwicky Transient Facility: System Overview, Performance, and First Results

The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) is a new optical time-domain survey that uses the Palomar 48 inch Schmidt telescope. A custom-built wide-field camera provides a 47 deg^2 field of view and 8 s readout time, yielding more than an order of magnitude improvement in survey speed relative to its predecessor survey, the Palomar Transient Factory. We describe the design and implementation of the camera and observing system. The ZTF data system at the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center provides near-real-time reduction to identify moving and varying objects. We outline the analysis pipelines, data products, and associated archive. Finally, we present on-sky performance analysis and first scientific results from commissioning and the early survey. ZTF's public alert stream will serve as a useful precursor for that of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope

Expression of Ki-67, Bcl-2 and Bax in the first trimester abortion materials

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate possible similar or different mechanisms in recurrent and spontaneous abortion by evaluating immunohistochemical correlation between proliferation marker Ki-67, and apoptosis markers Bcl-2 and Bax in the fetal trophoblasts and maternal deciduas from abortion material. Material and Method: Eighty samples of curettage materials from 65 abortion patients histopathologically diagnosed "decidua showing Arias-Stella reaction and chorionic villi" or only "decidua showing Arias-Stella reaction" were included in the study. Hematoxylin&Eosin stained sections from all cases were re-evaluated and further stained immunohistochemically using antibodies against Ki-67, Bcl-2 and Bax. Results: Proliferation rate evaluated by Ki-67 expression both in the cytotrophoblastic cells and decidua was found to be significantly lower in spontaneous and recurrent abortions compared to evacuation abortion. The extent of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblastic cells covering villous stroma was also decreased in spontaneous abortion. There were no significant differences between spontaneous and recurrent abortions in terms of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblasts and Ki-67 proliferation index in cytotrophoblastic cells or decidua. Bax staining showed minimal decidual expression in a few spontaneous and recurrent abortions. Conclusion: We concluded that proliferation rate was decreased in fetal villous cytotrophoblasts and maternal deciduas in spontaneous and recurrent abortions. We also proposed that loss of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblasts may cause abortion in a subset of cases. However, the data from spontaneous and recurrent abortions did not not support the presence of different mechanisms in both groups

Expression of Ki-67, Bcl-2 and Bax in the first trimester abortion materials

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate possible similar or different mechanisms in recurrent and spontaneous abortion by evaluating immunohistochemical correlation between proliferation marker Ki-67, and apoptosis markers Bcl-2 and Bax in the fetal trophoblasts and maternal deciduas from abortion material. Material and Method: Eighty samples of curettage materials from 65 abortion patients histopathologically diagnosed "decidua showing Arias-Stella reaction and chorionic villi" or only "decidua showing Arias-Stella reaction" were included in the study. Hematoxylin&Eosin stained sections from all cases were re-evaluated and further stained immunohistochemically using antibodies against Ki-67, Bcl-2 and Bax. Results: Proliferation rate evaluated by Ki-67 expression both in the cytotrophoblastic cells and decidua was found to be significantly lower in spontaneous and recurrent abortions compared to evacuation abortion. The extent of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblastic cells covering villous stroma was also decreased in spontaneous abortion. There were no significant differences between spontaneous and recurrent abortions in terms of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblasts and Ki-67 proliferation index in cytotrophoblastic cells or decidua. Bax staining showed minimal decidual expression in a few spontaneous and recurrent abortions. Conclusion: We concluded that proliferation rate was decreased in fetal villous cytotrophoblasts and maternal deciduas in spontaneous and recurrent abortions. We also proposed that loss of Bcl-2 expression in syncytiotrophoblasts may cause abortion in a subset of cases. However, the data from spontaneous and recurrent abortions did not not support the presence of different mechanisms in both groups