Evidence for the initiation of decompression sickness by exposure to intense underwater sound.

Mass stranding of cetaceans (whales and dolphins), in close association with the activity of naval sonar systems, has been reported on numerous occasions. Necropsy showed bubble-associated lesions similar to those described in human decompression sickness (DCS). We examined the hypothesis that exposure to underwater sound may potentiate DCS.

Characterization and rescue of telomeric abnormalities in ICF syndrome type I fibroblasts.

Mutations in the human DNA methyltransferase 3B (DNMT3B) gene lead to ICF (immunodeficiency, centromeric region instability, and facial anomalies) syndrome type I. We have previously described a telomere-related phenotype in cells from these patients, involving severe hypomethylation of subtelomeric regions, abnormally short telomeres and high levels of telomeric-repeat-containing RNA (TERRA). Here we demonstrate that ICF-patient fibroblasts carry abnormally short telomeres at a low population doubling (PD) and enter senescence prematurely.