A C1 inhibitor ortholog from rock bream (Oplegnathus fasciatus): Molecular perspectives of a central regulator in terms of its genomic arrangement, transcriptional profiles and anti-protease activities of recombinant peptide

Umasuthan, N.,Bathige, S.D.N.K.,Revathy, K.S.,Wickramaarachchi, W.D.N.,Wan, Q.,Whang, I.,Kim, E.,Park, M.A.,Park, H.C.,Lee, J. Pergamon Press ; Elsevier Science 2014 DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY Vol.42 No.2

C1 inhibitor (C1Inh), a member of serpin superfamily, is a crucial regulator of the activation of various plasmatic cascades associated with immunity and inflammation. This study describes the identification and characterization of a C1Inh gene from rock bream Oplegnathus fasciatus (OfC1Inh) at structural, expressional and functional levels. The cDNA-(2245bp) and corresponding gDNA-sequences (5.2kbp) of OfC1Inh were isolated from rock bream transcriptome- and BAC-libraries, respectively. Predicted amino acid sequence of OfC1Inh revealed a two-domain architecture composed of an N-terminal region with two Ig-like domains and a C-terminal region with a serpin domain. Tertiary model of OfC1Inh disclosed its active site topology. In the multi-exonic genomic arrangement of OfC1Inh, it consisted of eleven exons disjoined by ten introns as observed in few other fish homologs. Our comparative analysis indicated that the teleostean C1Inhs were distinct from their non-teleostean vertebrate counterparts in terms of their (1) extended N-terminal domains, (2) evolutionary divergence and (3) exon-intron distribution. The OfC1Inh had a TATA-deficient promoter with a putative initiator element, and two tandemly arranged downstream promoter elements. Several components associated with the immune and inflammatory transcriptional activation were also predicted to exist in 5' flanking region of OfC1Inh. The exclusive mRNA levels in liver and moderate levels in extra-hepatic tissues intimated the diversified importance of OfC1Inh in rock bream physiology. We also provide an evidence for the involvement of OfC1Inh in immune balance, based on its modulated transcription upon different PAMP (lipopolysaccharide and poly I:C)- or pathogen (Streptococcus iniae and rock bream irido virus)-challenges. A recombinantly expressed fusion protein [(r)OfC1Inh] was employed in demonstrating the anti-protease function of OfC1Inh. The (r)OfC1Inh exhibited detectable inhibitory activity against C1 esterase and thrombin, where the anti-C1 esterase role was shown to be potentiated by heparin. Taken together, the results of this study provide the first line of evidence for the possible involvement of a teleostean C1Inh in fish immunity, based on its expressional response(s) and inhibitory properties against two enzymes involved in biological cascades.

Guanylate cyclase activator YC-1 potentiates apoptotic effect of licochalcone A on human epithelial ovarian carcinoma cells via activation of death receptor and mitochondrial pathways

Lee, C.S.,Kwak, S.W.,Kim, Y.J.,Lee, S.A.,Park, E.S.,Myung, S.C.,Kim, W.,Lee, M.S.,Lee, J.J. North-Holland ; Elsevier Science Ltd 2012 european journal of pharmacology Vol.683 No.1

Natural phenol licorice compounds have been shown to induce apoptosis in cancer cells. 3-(5'-Hydroxymethyl-2'-furyl)-1-benzyl indazole (YC-1) may enhance the sensitivity of cancer cells to anticancer drugs. However, the combined effect of licochalcone A and YC-1 on cell death in ovarian cancer cells has not been studied. We assessed the combined effect of licochalcone A and YC-1 on apoptosis in human epithelial ovarian carcinoma cell lines in relation to the cell death process. In the OVCAR-3 and SK-OV-3 cell lines, licochalocone A induced a decrease in Bid, Bcl-2, Bcl-xL and survivin protein levels; an increase in Bax levels; loss of the mitochondrial transmembrane potential; cytochrome c release; activation of caspases (-8, -9 and -3); cleavage of PARP-1; and an increase in the tumor suppressor p53 levels. YC-1 enhanced licochalcone A-induced apoptosis-related protein activation, nuclear damage and cell death. These results suggest that YC-1 may potentiate the apoptotic effect of licochalcone A on ovarian carcinoma cell lines by increasing the activation of the caspase-8- and Bid-dependent pathway and the mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathway, leading to caspase activation. The combination of licochalcone A and YC-1 may confer a benefit in the treatment of human epithelial ovarian adenocarcinoma.

V994 Herculis: the multiple system with a quadruple-lined spectrum and a double eclipsing feature

Lee, C.-U.,Kim, S.-L.,Lee, J. W.,Kim, C.-H.,Jeon, Y.-B.,Kim, H.-I.,Yoon, J.-N.,Humphrey, A. Blackwell Publishing Ltd 2008 MONTHLY NOTICES- ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY Vol.389 No.4

<P>ABSTRACT</P><P>We report the discovery of a multiple system with a quadruple-lined spectrum and a double eclipsing feature. Our photometric and high-resolution spectroscopic data show that V994 Herculis (V994 Her; ADS 11373 AB) is composed of two pairs of double-lined eclipsing binaries, which we designate as A and B. System A consists of a B8V+A0V binary with an orbital period of 2.083 264 d and system B of a A2V+A4V binary with 1.420 033 d. Our light curves show that both of them have a detached binary configuration. We derive masses and radii of four components (Aa, Ab, Ba and Bb) from the synthetic analyses of light curves and radial velocity curves. The masses of systems A and B are <I>M</I><SUB>Aa</SUB>= 2.83 ± 0.20 M<SUB>⊙</SUB>, <I>M</I><SUB>Ab</SUB>= 2.30 ± 0.16 M<SUB>⊙</SUB>, <I>M</I><SUB>Ba</SUB>= 1.87 ± 0.12 M<SUB>⊙</SUB> and <I>M</I><SUB>Bb</SUB>= 1.86 ± 0.12 M<SUB>⊙</SUB>, with radii <I>R</I><SUB>Aa</SUB>= 2.15 ± 0.05 R<SUB>⊙</SUB>, <I>R</I><SUB>Ab</SUB>= 1.71 ± 0.04 R<SUB>⊙</SUB>, <I>R</I><SUB>Ba</SUB>= 1.59 ± 0.08 R<SUB>⊙</SUB> and <I>R</I><SUB>Bb</SUB>= 1.50 ± 0.08 R<SUB>⊙</SUB>, respectively. These masses and radii are well consistent with the empirical relation for double-lined eclipsing binaries.</P>

On multivariate discrete least squares

Lee, Y.J.,Micchelli, C.A.,Yoon, J. Academic Press 2016 Journal of approximation theory Vol.211 No.-

<P>For a positive integer n is an element of N we introduce the index set N-n := {1, 2,..., n}. Let X := {x(i) : i is an element of N-n} be a distinct set of vectors in R-d, Y := {y(i) : i is an element of N-n} a prescribed data set of real numbers in R and F := {f(j) : j is an element of N-m}, m < n, a given set of real valued continuous functions defined on some neighborhood O of R-d containing X. The discrete least squares problem determines a (generally unique) function f = Sigma(j is an element of Nm) c(j)(star) f(j) is an element of spanF which minimizes the square of the l(2)-norm Sigma(i is an element of Nn) (Sigma(j is an element of Nm) c(j)f(j)(x(i)) - y(i))(2) over all vectors (c(j) : j is an element of N-m) is an element of R-m. The value of f at some s is an element of O may be viewed as the optimally predicted value (in the l(2)-sense) of all functions in spanF from the given data X = {x(i) : i is an element of N-n} and Y = {y(i) : i is an element of N-n}. We ask 'What happens if the components of X and s are nearly the same'. For example, when all these vectors are near the origin in R-d. From a practical point of view this problem comes up in image analysis when we wish to obtain a new pixel value from nearby available pixel values as was done in [2], for a specified set of functions F. This problem was satisfactorily solved in the univariate case in Section 6 of Lee and Micchelli (2013). Here, we treat the significantly more difficult multivariate case using an approach recently provided in Yeon Ju Lee, Charles A. Micchelli and Jungho Yoon (2015). (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc.</P>

Electrical properties and deep traps spectra of a-plane GaN films grown on r-plane sapphire

Polyakov, A.Y.,Smirnov, N.B.,Govorkov, A.V.,Markov, A.V.,Sun, Q.,Zhang, Y.,Yerino, C.D.,Ko, T.S.,Lee, I.H.,Han, J. Elsevier 2010 Materials science & engineering. B, Advanced funct Vol.166 No.3

Electrical properties, deep traps spectra and luminescence spectra were studied for two undoped a-plane GaN (a-GaN) films grown on r-plane sapphire using metalorganic chemical vapor deposition and differing by structural perfection. For sample A, the a-GaN film was directly deposited on AlN buffer. A two-step growth scheme was implemented for sample B, including an initial islanding growth stage and a subsequent enhanced lateral growth. Preliminary detailed X-ray analysis showed that the stacking faults density was 8x10<SUP>5</SUP>cm<SUP>-1</SUP> for sample A and 1.7x10<SUP>5</SUP>cm<SUP>-1</SUP> for sample B. Electrical properties of a-GaN films were largely determined by deep traps with a level near E<SUB>c</SUB> -0.6eV, with other prominent traps having the activation energy of 0.25eV. The Fermi level was pinned by the E<SUB>c</SUB> -0.6eV deep traps for sample A, but shifted to the vicinity of the shallower 0.25eV traps for sample B, most likely due to the reduced density of the 0.6eV traps. This decrease of deep traps density is accompanied by a very pronounced improvement in the overall luminescence intensity. A correlation of the observed improvement in deep traps spectra and luminescence efficiency with the improved crystalline quality of the films is discussed.

여대생의 월경불편감 정도와 식습관에 관한 연구

김선영,김준희,김찬영,박정우,신선미,안선영,이민혜,이정아,임미선,전현정 이화여자대학교 간호과학대학 2010 이화간호학회지 Vol.- No.44

Purpose: This study was done to identify the correlation between the menstrual discomforts and dietary habits of young university women in order to provide the basic needs and make improvements on the quality of life for women. Method: The Menstrual Discomfort Questionnaire (MDQ) and Nutrition Diagnosis for Health were the tools used. The participants were 279 female university students in Seoul. Result: Factors related to MDQ were found to be the VAS scores (r=.361, p=.002), menstrual discomfort according to stress consciousness (F=3.756, p=.025), experiences of taking medicine (F= 4.130 p= .043), the types of residential forms (F=6.197, p=.000), recognition of menstrual period (F=5.466, p=.020), eating breakfast, the frequency of carbohydrates intake (F=5.28, p=.006), the frequency of vegetable intake, seaweed and mushrooms (F=4.98, p=.008). As a result of the study, there is a correlation between menstrual discomforts of female university students and dietary habits. Conclusion: In order to decrease the discomforts of the menstrual cycle that usually includes pain and bloating a well-balanced dietary habit is needed. A balance diet includes grain, vegetables, and mushroom should be taken in normal meals. We should confine the dietary habits that form severe menstrual discomfort in people and give them recommendations for ideal dietary habits that would ideally decrease the pain caused by menstruation. Therefore it is necessary that the education program and nursing mediation should be developed as a program that would aid in decreasing menstrual discomforts. In future studies, a similar study with at a larger scale should be conducted with more recommended specified nutritional assessment.

Gut-Specific Delivery of T-Helper 17 Cells Reduces Obesity and Insulin Resistance in Mice

Hong, C.P.,Park, A.,Yang, B.G.,Yun, C.H.,Kwak, M.J.,Lee, G.W.,Kim, J.H.,Jang, M.S.,Lee, E.J.,Jeun, E.J.,You, G.,Kim, K.S.,Choi, Y.,Park, J.H.,Hwang, D.,Im, S.H.,Kim, J.F.,Kim, Y.K.,Seoh, J.Y.,Surh, C. Elsevier North Holland [etc.] 2017 Gastroenterology Vol.152 No.8

<P>BACKGROUND & AIMS: Obesity and metabolic syndrome have been associated with alterations to the intestinal microbiota. However, few studies examined the effects of obesity on the intestinal immune system. We investigated changes in subsets of intestinal CD4(+) T-helper (T-H) cells with obesity and the effects of gut-tropic T(H)17 cells in mice on a high-fat diet (HFD). METHODS: We isolated immune cells from small intestine and adipose tissue of C57BL/6 mice fed a normal chow diet or a HFD for 10 weeks and analyzed the cells by flow cytometry. Mice fed a vitamin A-deficient HFD were compared with mice fed a vitamin A-sufficient HFD. Obese RAG1-deficient mice were given injections of only regulatory T cells or a combination of regulatory T cells and T(H)17 cells (wild type or deficient in integrin beta 7 subunit or interleukin 17 [IL17]). Mice were examined for weight gain, fat mass, fatty liver, glucose tolerance, and insulin resistance. Fecal samples were collected before and after T cell transfer and analyzed for microbiota composition by metagenomic DNA sequencing and quantitative polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: Mice placed on a HFD became obese, which affected the distribution of small intestinal CD4(+) T-H cells. Intestinal tissues from obese mice had significant reductions in the proportion of T(H)17 cells but increased proportion of T(H)1 cells, compared with intestinal tissues from nonobese mice. Depletion of vitamin A in obese mice further reduced the proportion of T(H)17 cells in small intestine; this reduction correlated with more weight gain and worsening of glucose intolerance and insulin resistance. Adoptive transfer of in vitro-differentiated gut-tropic T(H)17 cells to obese mice reduced these metabolic defects, which required the integrin beta 7 subunit and IL17. Delivery of T(H)17 cells to intestines of mice led to expansion of commensal microbes associated with leanness. CONCLUSIONS: In mice, intestinal T(H)17 cells contribute to development of a microbiota that maintains metabolic homeostasis, via IL17. Gut-homing T(H)17 cells might be used to reduce metabolic disorders in obese individuals.</P>

Benzo(a)pyrene induced cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in human choriocarcinoma cancer cells through reactive oxygen species-induced endoplasmic reticulum-stress pathway

Kim, S.M.,Lee, H.M.,Hwang, K.A.,Choi, K.C. Pergamon ; Elsevier Science Ltd 2017 Food and chemical toxicology Vol.107 No.1

Cigarette smoke (CS) contains over 60 well established carcinogens. In this study, we examined the effects of benzo(a)pyrene (B(a)P), a main CS component, on the viability and apoptosis of JEG-3 and BeWo human choriocarcinoma cancer cell lines. An MTT assay confirmed that B(a)P decreased the cell viability of JEG-3 and BeWo cells in a dose-dependent manner. Additionally, Western blot (WB) assay revealed that protein expression of cyclin D and cyclin E decreased, while protein expression of p21 and p27 was increased in response to B(a)P treatment for 48 h. The changes in reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels in JEG-3 and BeWo cells exposed to B(a)P were also measured by a dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCF-DA) assay, which revealed that ROS levels increased in response to B(a)P treatment for 48 h. WB assay also confirmed that each B(a)P treatment of JEG-3 and BeWo cells for 4 h promoted the expression of phosphorylated eukaryotic initiation factor 2 alpha protein (p-eIF2α) and C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP), which are known to be involved in ROS-mediated endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER-stress) related apoptosis. Overall, the protein expression of Bax (a pro-apoptosis marker) increased, while the expression of Bcl-xl (an anti-apoptotic marker) decreased and the number of apoptotic cells increased in response to B(a)P treatment for 48 h. Taken together, these results suggest that B(a)P has the potential to induce apoptosis of JEG-3 and BeWo human choriocarcinoma cancer cells by increasing the ROS level and simultaneously activating ER-stress.

CCM key comparison CCM.D-K4 'Hydrometer'

Lorefice, S,Becerra, L O,Lenard, E,Lee, Y J,Lee, W G,Madec, T,Meury, P A,Caceres, J,Santos, C,Vamossy, C,Man, J,Fen, K,Toda, K,Wright, J,Bettin, H,Toth, H BUREAU INTERNATIONAL DES POIDS ET MESURES 2016 METROLOGIA -BERLIN- Vol.53 No.-

<P></P> <P>This report presents the comparison philosophy, methodology, analysis and the results of the designed CCM.D-K4 key comparison that covered the calibration of high resolution hydrometers for liquid and alcoholometers in the density range 600 kg/m<SUP>3</SUP> to 2000 kg/m<SUP>3</SUP> at the temperature of 20°C. The main purpose of this comparison was not only to evaluate the degree of equivalence in the calibration of high accuracy hydrometers between NMI participants, but also to link, were it is possible, the results of previous comparisons to Key Comparison Reference Values (KCRVs) of CCM.D-K4. Eleven NMI laboratories took part in the CCM.D-K4 divided in two groups (petals).</P> <P>With the CCM.D-K4 purpose, two similar sets consisting of three hydrometers for liquid density determinations and an alcoholometer were circulated to the NMI participants as a travelling standard in the time interval from January 2011 to April 2012.</P> <P>Twelve Key Comparison Reference Values (KCRVs) for each petal have been obtained at the density values related to the tested density marks of the transfer standards by the results of participants. The KCRVs and corresponding uncertainties were calculated by the weighted mean in the case of consistent results, otherwise the median was used.</P> <P>The degree of equivalence (DoE) with respect to the corresponding KCRV was determined for each participant and, in this particular comparison, the Weighted Least Squares (WLS) method was used to link the individual DoE of each participant by a continuous function.</P> <P>Significant drift of the transfer standards was not detected.</P> <P>This report also gives instructions on calculating pair-wise degrees of equivalence, with the addition of any information on correlations that may be necessary to estimate more accurately as well as the procedure for linking international comparisons to the CCM.D-K4. Finally an example of linkage to the CCM.D-K4 is given by dealing with the results of the bilateral comparison between INRiM and NMIA, which was added to this comparison so that all participants were engaged after the breakage of the 9340171 artefact.</P> <P>A particularly good agreement was found among the results provided by most of the participants, even if some systematic differences and either underestimated or overestimated uncertainties of the submitted results can be identified with respect to the KCRVs. In general the deviations of the laboratory results to the KCRVs are within of 1/3rd to 1/4th of a scale division and the uncertainty at 95% is usually within half a division. During the analysis of the submitted results, a systematic difference between the first and last immersed mark was also noted, possibly due to a temperature gradient along the stem and/or wetting of the stem around the tested mark, and therefore a corrected claimed uncertainty from each laboratory is expected. However this comparison may help the laboratories to solve some residual or marginal problems as well as to better understand the uncertainty components.</P> <P>The comparison fully supports the calibration measurement capabilities table in the BIPM key comparison database (KCDB). The results can be used to link regional comparisons to this CCM key comparison</P> <H2>Main text</H2> <P> To reach the main text of this paper, click on <A HREF='http://www.bipm.org/utils/common/pdf/final_reports/M/D-K4/CCM.D-K4_Final_Report.pdf'>Final Report</A>. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database <A HREF='http://kcdb.bipm.org/'>kcdb.bipm.org/</A>.</P> <P>The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).</P>

Dielectric Properties of Highly Oriented Pb0.65Ba0.35ZrO3 Thin Films

J.S. Kim,J. S. Choi,J. H. Lee,S. H. Kim,S. H. Jeon,I. R. Hwang,B. H. Park,T.J. Choi,S.H. Shin,J.C. Lee,이명재,S. A. Seo,I. K. Yoo 한국물리학회 2005 THE JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN PHYSICAL SOCIETY Vol.47 No.2

Pb0.65Ba0.35ZrO3 (PBZ) thin films [1] were grown on MgO (001) substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). We compared the structural and dielectric properties of PBZ thin films grown at various temperatures. A high c.axis orientation appeared in PBZ thin film grown at a deposition temperature of 550 C. The c.axis-oriented PBZ thin film also showed the largest tunability among all the PBZ thin films in capacitance-voltage measurements. The tunability and dielectric loss of the PBZ thin film were 20 % and 0.00959, respectively. In addition, we compared the temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC) of a PBZ thin film with that of a Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3 (BST) thin film, which is a well-known material applicable to tunable microwave devices. We confirmed that the TCC value of a PBZ thin film was three times smaller than that of a BST thin film. Pb0.65Ba0.35ZrO3 (PBZ) thin films [1] were grown on MgO (001) substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). We compared the structural and dielectric properties of PBZ thin films grown at various temperatures. A high c.axis orientation appeared in PBZ thin film grown at a deposition temperature of 550 C. The c.axis-oriented PBZ thin film also showed the largest tunability among all the PBZ thin films in capacitance-voltage measurements. The tunability and dielectric loss of the PBZ thin film were 20 % and 0.00959, respectively. In addition, we compared the temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC) of a PBZ thin film with that of a Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3 (BST) thin film, which is a well-known material applicable to tunable microwave devices. We confirmed that the TCC value of a PBZ thin film was three times smaller than that of a BST thin film.