Publications by authors named "Emily McIntyre"

Confidence is an adaptive computation when environmental feedback is absent, yet there is little consensus regarding how perceptual confidence is computed in the brain. Difficulty arises because confidence correlates with other factors, such as accuracy, response time (RT), or evidence quality. We investigated whether neural signatures of evidence accumulation during a perceptual choice predict subjective confidence independently of these factors.

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Adaptive laboratory evolution (ALE) is a powerful approach for improving phenotypes of microbial hosts. Evolved strains typically contain numerous mutations that can be revealed by whole-genome sequencing. However, determining the contribution of specific mutations to new phenotypes is typically challenging and laborious.

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Microbial terephthalic acid (TPA) catabolic pathways are conserved among the few bacteria known to turnover this xenobiotic aromatic compound. However, to date there are few reported cases in which this pathway has been successfully expressed in heterologous hosts to impart efficient utilization of TPA as a sole carbon source. In this work, we aimed to engineer TPA conversion in Acinetobacter baylyi ADP1 via the heterologous expression of catabolic and transporter genes from a native TPA-utilizing bacterium.

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The potential for the development of psychopathology in aolescent refugees and asylees is high due to the trauma inherent in their experience. Yet, psychopathology rooted in trauma has proven amenable to treatment. Nonetheless, as most clinicians are monolingual, the language difference between clinician and client may be a barrier of desensitization and processing typically characteristic of trauma therapy.

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One primary objective of synthetic biology is to improve the sustainability of chemical manufacturing. Naturally occurring biological systems can utilize a variety of carbon sources, including waste streams that pose challenges to traditional chemical processing, such as lignin biomass, providing opportunity for remediation and valorization of these materials. Success, however, depends on identifying micro-organisms that are both metabolically versatile and engineerable.

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Chemolithoautotrophic bacteria from the genera Hydrogenovibrio, Thiomicrorhabdus and Thiomicrospira are common, sometimes dominant, isolates from sulfidic habitats including hydrothermal vents, soda and salt lakes and marine sediments. Their genome sequences confirm their membership in a deeply branching clade of the Gammaproteobacteria. Several adaptations to heterogeneous habitats are apparent.

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Cytoplasmic nucleophosmin (NPMc(+)) mutations and FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) internal tandem duplication (ITD) mutations are two of the most common known molecular alterations in acute myeloid leukemia (AML); they frequently occur together, suggesting cooperative leukemogenesis. To explore the specific relationship between NPMc+ and FLT3/ITD in vivo, we crossed Flt3/ITD knock-in mice with transgenic NPMc+ mice. Mice with both mutations develop a transplantable leukemia of either myeloid or lymphoid lineage, definitively demonstrating cooperation between Flt3/ITD and NPMc+.

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Unlabelled: Cure rates in pediatric acute leukemias remain suboptimal. Overexpression of the cell-surface chemokine receptor CXCR4 is associated with poor outcome in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Certain nonchemotherapeutic agents have been shown to modulate CXCR4 expression and alter leukemia interactions with stromal cells in the bone marrow microenvironment.

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Article Synopsis
  • Infants with MLL-rearranged acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) often face a poor prognosis, with a high likelihood of relapse due to the survival of chemotherapy-resistant leukaemia stem cells (LSCs).
  • Research found that the bone marrow stroma provides protection to MLL-R ALL, enhancing cell proliferation and reducing apoptosis, which contributes to chemotherapy resistance.
  • Inhibition of the CXCR4 signaling pathway in the bone marrow microenvironment improved the effectiveness of the FLT3 inhibitor lestaurtinib, suggesting that targeting stroma interactions may be beneficial in treating this aggressive subtype of pediatric ALL.
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Cooperating leukemogenic events in MLL-rearranged (MLL-r) infant acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) are largely unknown. We explored the role of promoter CpG island hypermethylation in the biology and therapeutic targeting of MLL-r infant ALL. The HELP (HpaII tiny fragment enrichment by ligation-mediated polymerase chain reaction [PCR]) assay was used to examine genome-wide methylation of a cohort of MLL-r infant leukemia samples (n = 5), other common childhood ALLs (n = 5), and normals (n = 5).

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Concordance of MLL-rearranged acute leukemia in infant monozygotic twins is thought to be 100% with a very short latency period, suggesting that either the MLL fusion itself is sufficient to cause leukemia or that it promotes the rapid acquisition of additional oncogenic events that result in overt disease. We report the first case of discordance in an infant monozygotic twin pair. Twin A presented at age 9 months with MLL-ENL(+) acute lymphoblastic leukemia and twin B remains healthy 3 years later.

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Media agenda setting refers to the deliberate coverage of topics or events with the goal of influencing public opinion and public policy. We conducted a quantitative content analysis of 4 prominent newspapers to examine how the media gathered and distributed news to shape public policy priorities during Hurricane Katrina. The media framed most Hurricane Katrina stories by emphasizing government response and less often addressing individuals' and communities' level of preparedness or responsibility.

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Frameshift mutations in exon 12 of the nucleophosmin gene (NPM1) result in aberrant cytoplasmic localization of the NPM protein (NPMc(+)) and occur in 25% to 35% of adult acute myeloid leukemia (AML). In adults with AML, NPMc(+) has been associated with normal karyotype, FLT3/ITD mutations, high remission induction rates, and improved survival (particularly in patients lacking FLT3/ITD). NPMc(+) has not been well characterized in childhood AML.

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