Sixty years of life with François Gros.

This is meant to be a personal account of my relationship with François Gros who, as the director of the laboratory where I had my first team became a close and fatherly friend. Over 60 years we had permanent interactions, whether close or far away. And I wish to revive here some of our relation at the grassroots, as well as the folklore in and around his laboratory.

Tryptophan Substitution in CJ-15,208 ([Phe-D-Pro-Phe-Trp]) Introduces δ-Opioid Receptor Antagonism, Preventing Antinociceptive Tolerance and Stress-Induced Reinstatement of Extinguished Cocaine-Conditioned Place Preference.

The macrocyclic tetrapeptide CJ-15,208 ([Phe-D-Pro-Phe-Trp]) and its D-Trp isomer exhibit kappa opioid receptor (KOR) antagonism which prevents stress-induced reinstatement of extinguished cocaine-conditioned place preference. Here, we evaluated the effects of substitution of Trp and D-Trp on the peptides' opioid activity, antinociceptive tolerance, and the ability to prevent relapse to extinguished drug-CPP. Six analogs were synthesized using a combination of solid-phase peptide synthesis and cyclization in solution.

Global food insecurity and famine from reduced crop, marine fishery and livestock production due to climate disruption from nuclear war soot injection.

Atmospheric soot loadings from nuclear weapon detonation would cause disruptions to the Earth's climate, limiting terrestrial and aquatic food production. Here, we use climate, crop and fishery models to estimate the impacts arising from six scenarios of stratospheric soot injection, predicting the total food calories available in each nation post-war after stored food is consumed. In quantifying impacts away from target areas, we demonstrate that soot injections larger than 5 Tg would lead to mass food shortages, and livestock and aquatic food production would be unable to compensate for reduced crop output, in almost all countries.

Is RNA the working genome in eukaryotes ? The 60 year evolution of a conceptual challenge.

About 80 years ago, in 1943, after a century of biochemical and genetic research, DNA was established as the carrier of genetic information. At the onset of Molecular Biology around 1960, the genome of living organisms embodied 3 basic, still unknown paradigms: its composition, organisation and expression. Between 1980 and 1990, its replication was understood, and ideas about its 3D-organisation were suggested and finally confirmed by 2010.

CHOIRBM: An R package for exploratory data analysis and interactive visualization of pain patient body map data.

Body maps are commonly used to capture the location of a patient's pain and thus reflect the extent of pain throughout the body. With increasing electronic capture body map information, there is an emerging need for clinic- and research-ready tools capable of visualizing this data on individual and mass scales. Here we propose CHOIRBM, an extensible and modular R package and companion web application built on the grammar of graphics system.

Protection by vaccination of children against typhoid fever with a Vi-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine in urban Bangladesh: a cluster-randomised trial.

Background: Typhoid fever remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality in low-income and middle-income countries. Vi-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine (Vi-TT) is recommended by WHO for implementation in high-burden countries, but there is little evidence about its ability to protect against clinical typhoid in such settings.

Methods: We did a participant-masked and observer-masked cluster-randomised trial preceded by a safety pilot phase in an urban endemic setting in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Marine wild-capture fisheries after nuclear war.

Nuclear war, beyond its devastating direct impacts, is expected to cause global climatic perturbations through injections of soot into the upper atmosphere. Reduced temperature and sunlight could drive unprecedented reductions in agricultural production, endangering global food security. However, the effects of nuclear war on marine wild-capture fisheries, which significantly contribute to the global animal protein and micronutrient supply, remain unexplored.

Primary transcripts: From the discovery of RNA processing to current concepts of gene expression - Review.

The main purpose of this review is to recall for investigators - and in particular students -, some of the early data and concepts in molecular genetics and biology that are rarely cited in the current literature and are thus invariably overlooked. There is a growing tendency among editors and reviewers to consider that only data produced in the last 10-20 years or so are pertinent. However this is not the case.

Case report: narcolepsy type 1 in an adolescent with HIV infection-coincidence or potential trigger?

Rationale: Despite the acknowledged importance of environmental risk factors in the etiology of narcolepsy, there is little research on this topic. HIV as a trigger for narcolepsy has not been systematically investigated.

Patient Concerns: We describe a case of narcolepsy type 1 (NT1) in an adolescent with HIV infection presenting with increased daytime sleepiness and excessive weight gain.

Advancing Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Methods for Complex Regional Pain Syndrome: An Open-Label Study of Paired Theta Burst and High-Frequency Stimulation.

Introduction: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), a rare and severe chronic pain condition, often responds poorly to existing treatments. Previous studies demonstrated Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) provided short-term pain relief for upper extremity CRPS.

Methods: Building on previous methodologies, we employed a TMS protocol that may lead to significant pain relief for upper and lower extremity CRPS in a nonrandomized open label pilot trial involving 21 participants.

Constructing Couples' Stories: Narrative Practice Insights from a Dyadic Dementia Intervention.

Memory loss and dementia can be devastating for both caregivers and care recipients. Narrative therapeutic approaches offer promise, as well as challenges, for social interventions with couples where one partner has dementia. The Couples Life Story Approach is a recently-developed method by which practitioners work with such couples to help them narrate the story of their life together.

Cushing syndrome after bilateral lensectomy.

Unlabelled: Iatrogenic Cushing syndrome induced by oral and parenteral corticosteroid administration is a well-known complication, and necessary precautions have to be taken. Cushing syndrome, however, following treatment with glucocorticoid-containing eye drops is a very rare complication. To the best of our knowledge, there have been only four reported cases in the literature.

Information theory, gene expression, and combinatorial regulation: a quantitative analysis.

According to a functional definition of the term "gene", a protein-coding gene corresponds to a polypeptide and, hence, a coding sequence. It is therefore as such not yet present at the DNA level, but assembled from possibly heterogeneous pieces in the course of RNA processing. Assembly and regulation of genes require, thus, information about when and in which quantity specific polypeptides are to be produced.

The couples life story approach: a dyadic intervention for dementia.

This article describes an approach for working with individuals who have dementia, along with their spouses or partners. The 5-week intervention focuses on helping couples communicate, reminisce about the story of their relationship, find photographs and mementoes from their past, and develop a book that incorporates these mementoes. This clinical approach highlights the strengths and the resilience of couples and adds to the limited repertoire of dyadic interventions for dementia care which are currently available.

Regulation of gene expression and the transcription factor cycle hypothesis.

Post-genomic data show unexpected extent of the transcribed genome and the size of individual primary transcripts. Hence, most cis-regulatory modules (CRMs) binding transcription factors (TFs) at promotor, enhancer and other sites are actually transcribed within full domain transcripts (FDTs). The ensemble of these CRMs placed way upstream of exon clusters, downstream and in intronic or intergenic positions represent a program of gene expression which has been formally analysed within the Gene and Genon concept [1,2].

Angiogenic sprouting requires the fine tuning of endothelial cell cohesion by the Raf-1/Rok-α complex.

Sprouting angiogenesis, crucial for the development of new blood vessels, is a prime example of collective migration in which endothelial cells migrate as a group joined via cadherin-containing adherens junctions (AJ). The actomyosin apparatus is connected to AJ and generates contractile forces, which, depending on their strength and duration, increase or decrease cell cohesion. Thus, appropriate spatiotemporal control of junctional myosin is critical, but the mechanisms underlying it are incompletely understood.

The Intergenerational Family Relationships of Grandparents and GLBQ Grandchildren.

This paper describes the intergenerational family relationships of grandparents and GLBQ grandchildren. Reviewing empirical research on GLBQ family of origin relationships that include materials on grandparent-GLBQ grandchild relationships, this paper examines, 1) disclosure patterns with grandparents, 2) social expectations that exist about "coming out" to grandparents, 3) social expectations of GLBQ grandchildren when "coming out" to grandparents, 4) the mediating role of parents and other extended family in grandparent-GLBQ grandchild relationships, and 5) theorizing differences amongst grandparent-GLBQ grandchild relationships. This review indicates that grandparents have been overlooked in existing empirical research in research on GLBQ family relationships.

Images of Sexuality and Aging in Gerontological Literature.

Discursive portrayals of aging and sexuality have important implications for the creation and reproduction of inequalities. This article delineates some of the images of older adults' sexualities using an interpretive content analysis of gerontology articles dealing with issues of sexuality in 21 gerontological journals over a 20-year span (1988-2007). The 3 main findings of this analysis were (a) that aging sexualities are asserted, (b) that the sexual identities of older adults vary, and (c) that older adults' sexualities are regulated through a variety of mechanisms.

Advice When Children Come Out: The Cultural "Tool Kits" of Parents.

The family is one of the main areas of social life where the normalization of gay/lesbian identity is incomplete. Most research analyzes the individual and psychological aspects of how families respond to children's disclosure of a gay/lesbian identity, and ignores the social, cultural, and historical contexts. An examination of the cultural discourses, tools, and strategies that are available to parents is necessary for a full understanding of how families respond to gay/lesbian children.

What Asexuality Contributes to the Same-Sex Marriage Discussion.

While same-sex marriage debates have captured public attention, it is but one component of a broader discussion regarding the role of marriage in a changing society. To inform this discussion, I draw on qualitative, Internet survey data from 102 self-identified asexual individuals. I find that asexual relationships are complicated and nuanced in ways that have implications for a GLBTQ political agenda, including same-sex marriage recognition.

Coming to an Asexual Identity: Negotiating Identity, Negotiating Desire.

Sexuality is generally considered an important aspect of self-hood. Therefore, individuals who do not experience sexual attraction, and embrace an asexual identity are in a unique position to inform the social construction of sexuality. This study explores the experiences of asexual individuals utilizing open ended Internet survey data from 102 self-identified asexual people.