Relationship between a Novel Polymorphism of the C5L2 Gene and Coronary Artery Disease

C5L2 has been demonstrated to be a functional receptor of acylation-stimulating protein (ASP), which is a stimulator of triglyceride synthesis or glucose transport. However, little is known about the variations in the coding region of the C5L2 gene and their association with coronary artery disease (CAD). = 0.047, OR = 2.602, 95% CI: 1.015–6.671).The 698CT genotype of C5L2 may be a genetic maker of CAD in the Han and Uygur population in western China

Bacterial Communities in the Sediments of Dianchi Lake, a Partitioned Eutrophic Waterbody in China

Bacteria play an important role in the decomposition and cycling of a variety of compounds in freshwater aquatic environments, particularly nutrient-rich eutrophic lakes. A unique Chinese eutrophic lake - Dianchi - was selected for study because it has two separate and distinct basins, Caohai with higher organic carbon levels and Waihai with lower organic carbon levels. Sediment bacterial communities were studied in the two basins using samples collected in each season from June 2010 to March 2011. Barcoded pyrosequencing based on the 16 S rRNA gene found that certain common phyla, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Chloroflexi, were dominant in the sediments from both basins. However, from the class to genus level, the dominant bacterial groups found in the sediments were distinct between the two basins. Correlation analysis revealed that, among the environmental parameters examined, total organic carbon (TOC) accounted for the greatest proportion of variability in bacterial community. Interestingly, study results suggest that increasing allochthonous organic carbon could enhance bacterial diversity and biomass in the sediment. In addition, analysis of function genes (amoA and nosZ) demonstrated that ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) were dominant in sediments, with 99% belonging to Nitrosomonas. Denitrifying bacteria were comparatively diverse and were associated with some cultivatable bacteria

Skin Regeneration in Adult Axolotls: A Blueprint for Scar-Free Healing in Vertebrates

While considerable progress has been made towards understanding the complex processes and pathways that regulate human wound healing, regenerative medicine has been unable to develop therapies that coax the natural wound environment to heal scar-free. The inability to induce perfect skin regeneration stems partly from our limited understanding of how scar-free healing occurs in a natural setting. Here we have investigated the wound repair process in adult axolotls and demonstrate that they are capable of perfectly repairing full thickness excisional wounds made on the flank. In the context of mammalian wound repair, our findings reveal a substantial reduction in hemostasis, reduced neutrophil infiltration and a relatively long delay in production of new extracellular matrix (ECM) during scar-free healing. Additionally, we test the hypothesis that metamorphosis leads to scarring and instead show that terrestrial axolotls also heal scar-free, albeit at a slower rate. Analysis of newly forming dermal ECM suggests that low levels of fibronectin and high levels of tenascin-C promote regeneration in lieu of scarring. Lastly, a genetic analysis during wound healing comparing epidermis between aquatic and terrestrial axolotls suggests that matrix metalloproteinases may regulate the fibrotic response. Our findings outline a blueprint to understand the cellular and molecular mechanisms coordinating scar-free healing that will be useful towards elucidating new regenerative therapies targeting fibrosis and wound repair

Nucleolus: the fascinating nuclear body

Nucleoli are the prominent contrasted structures of the cell nucleus. In the nucleolus, ribosomal RNAs are synthesized, processed and assembled with ribosomal proteins. RNA polymerase I synthesizes the ribosomal RNAs and this activity is cell cycle regulated. The nucleolus reveals the functional organization of the nucleus in which the compartmentation of the different steps of ribosome biogenesis is observed whereas the nucleolar machineries are in permanent exchange with the nucleoplasm and other nuclear bodies. After mitosis, nucleolar assembly is a time and space regulated process controlled by the cell cycle. In addition, by generating a large volume in the nucleus with apparently no RNA polymerase II activity, the nucleolus creates a domain of retention/sequestration of molecules normally active outside the nucleolus. Viruses interact with the nucleolus and recruit nucleolar proteins to facilitate virus replication. The nucleolus is also a sensor of stress due to the redistribution of the ribosomal proteins in the nucleoplasm by nucleolus disruption. The nucleolus plays several crucial functions in the nucleus: in addition to its function as ribosome factory of the cells it is a multifunctional nuclear domain, and nucleolar activity is linked with several pathologies. Perspectives on the evolution of this research area are proposed

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Lung Cancer: Underlying Pathophysiology and New Therapeutic Modalities

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and lung cancer are major lung diseases affecting millions worldwide. Both diseases have links to cigarette smoking and exert a considerable societal burden. People suffering from COPD are at higher risk of developing lung cancer than those without, and are more susceptible to poor outcomes after diagnosis and treatment. Lung cancer and COPD are closely associated, possibly sharing common traits such as an underlying genetic predisposition, epithelial and endothelial cell plasticity, dysfunctional inflammatory mechanisms including the deposition of excessive extracellular matrix, angiogenesis, susceptibility to DNA damage and cellular mutagenesis. In fact, COPD could be the driving factor for lung cancer, providing a conducive environment that propagates its evolution. In the early stages of smoking, body defences provide a combative immune/oxidative response and DNA repair mechanisms are likely to subdue these changes to a certain extent; however, in patients with COPD with lung cancer the consequences could be devastating, potentially contributing to slower postoperative recovery after lung resection and increased resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Vital to the development of new-targeted therapies is an in-depth understanding of various molecular mechanisms that are associated with both pathologies. In this comprehensive review, we provide a detailed overview of possible underlying factors that link COPD and lung cancer, and current therapeutic advances from both human and preclinical animal models that can effectively mitigate this unholy relationship

Search for supersymmetry in final states with two same-sign or three leptons and jets using 36 fb−1 of √s = 13 TeV pp collision data with the ATLAS detector

A search for strongly produced supersymmetric particles using signatures involving multiple energetic jets and either two isolated same-sign leptons (e or μ), or at least three isolated leptons, is presented. The analysis relies on the identification of b-jets and high missing transverse momentum to achieve good sensitivity. A data sample of proton-proton collisions at s√=13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider in 2015 and 2016, corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb−1, is used for the search. No significant excess over the Standard Model prediction is observed. The results are interpreted in several simplified supersymmetric models featuring R-parity conservation or R-parity violation, extending the exclusion limits from previous searches. In models considering gluino pair production, gluino masses are excluded up to 1.87 TeV at 95% confidence level. When bottom squarks are pair-produced and decay to a chargino and a top quark, models with bottom squark masses below 700 GeV and light neutralinos are excluded at 95% confidence level. In addition, model-independent limits are set on a possible contribution of new phenomena to the signal region yields