Exploratory functional and quality of life outcomes with daily consumption of the ketone ester bis-octanoyl (R)-1,3-butanediol in healthy older adults: a randomized, parallel arm, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Background: Ketone bodies are metabolites produced during fasting or on a ketogenic diet that have pleiotropic effects on the inflammatory and metabolic aging pathways underpinning frailty in models. Ketone esters (KEs) are compounds that induce hyperketonemia without dietary changes and that may impact physical and cognitive function in young adults. The functional effects of KEs have not been studied in older adults.

Rationale and protocol for a safety, tolerability and feasibility randomized, parallel arm, double-blind, placebo-controlled, pilot study of a novel ketone ester targeting frailty via immunometabolic geroscience mechanisms.

Background: Frailty is a geriatric syndrome characterized by chronic inflammation and metabolic insufficiency that creates vulnerability to poor outcomes with aging. We hypothesize that interventions which target common underlying mechanism of aging could ameliorate frailty. Ketone bodies are metabolites produced during fasting or on a ketogenic diet that have pleiotropic effects on inflammatory and metabolic aging pathways in laboratory animal models.

Quantification of Lymphangiogenesis in the Murine Lymphedema Tail Model Using Intravital Microscopy.

Lymphedema is chronic limb swelling resulting from lymphatic dysfunction. It affects an estimated five million Americans. There is no cure for this disease.

CAND1 inhibits Cullin-2-RING ubiquitin ligases for enhanced substrate specificity.

Through targeting essential cellular regulators for ubiquitination and serving as a major platform for discovering proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) drugs, Cullin-2 (CUL2)-RING ubiquitin ligases (CRL2s) comprise an important family of CRLs. The founding members of CRLs, the CUL1-based CRL1s, are known to be activated by CAND1, which exchanges the variable substrate receptors associated with the common CUL1 core and promotes the dynamic assembly of CRL1s. Here we find that CAND1 inhibits CRL2-mediated protein degradation in human cells.

Transposase expression, element abundance, element size, and DNA repair determine the mobility and heritability of // transposable elements.

Class II DNA transposable elements account for significant portions of eukaryotic genomes and contribute to genome evolution through their mobilization. To escape inactivating mutations and persist in the host genome over evolutionary time, these elements must be mobilized enough to result in additional copies. These elements utilize a "cut and paste" transposition mechanism that does not intrinsically include replication.

Pol V produced RNA facilitates transposable element excision site repair in .

The plant-specific RNA Polymerase V (Pol V) plays a key role in gene silencing, but its role in repair of double stranded DNA breaks is unclear. Excision of the transposable element creates double stranded breaks that are repaired by NHEJ. We measured excision site repair in multiple DNA methylation mutants including using an : reporter.

Mobility of mPing and its associated elements is regulated by both internal and terminal sequences.

Background: DNA transposable elements are mobilized by a "cut and paste" mechanism catalyzed by the binding of one or more transposase proteins to terminal inverted repeats (TIRs) to form a transpositional complex. Study of the rice genome indicates that the mPing element has experienced a recent burst in transposition compared to the closely related Ping and Pong elements. A previously developed yeast transposition assay allowed us to probe the role of both internal and terminal sequences in the mobilization of these elements.

Poor Reporting Quality in Basic Nutrition Research: A Case Study Based on a Scoping Review of Recent Folate Research in Mouse Models (2009-2021).

Transparent reporting of nutrition research promotes rigor, reproducibility, and relevance to human nutrition. We performed a scoping review of recent articles reporting dietary folate interventions in mice as a case study to determine the reporting frequency of generic study design items (i.e.

Roles of Cullin-RING Ubiquitin Ligases in Cardiovascular Diseases.

Maintenance of protein homeostasis is crucial for virtually every aspect of eukaryotic biology. The ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) represents a highly regulated quality control machinery that protects cells from a variety of stress conditions as well as toxic proteins. A large body of evidence has shown that UPS dysfunction contributes to the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases.

Caries experience and associated risk factors in Venezuelan 6-12-year-old schoolchildren.

This research aims to provide updated information on caries experience and associated risk factors in children 6-12 years old. A cross-sectional and descriptive study design was carried out with a non-probabilistic, convenient sample of 209 children male and female. Clinical examinations were performed by calibrated dental students following WHO detection criteria.

Expression and purification of functional recombinant CUL2•RBX1 from E. coli.

Cullin-2 (CUL2) based cullin-RING ligases (CRL2s) comprise a family of ubiquitin E3 ligases that exist only in multi-cellular organisms and are crucial for cellular processes such as embryogenesis and viral pathogenesis. CUL2 is the scaffold protein that binds one of the interchangeable substrate receptor modules, which consists of adaptor proteins and the substrate receptor protein. The VHL protein is a substrate receptor known to target hypoxia-inducible factor α (HIF1α) for ubiquitination and degradation.

Development of -based activation tags for crop insertional mutagenesis.

Modern plant breeding increasingly relies on genomic information to guide crop improvement. Although some genes are characterized, additional tools are needed to effectively identify and characterize genes associated with crop traits. To address this need, the element from rice was modified to serve as an activation tag to induce expression of nearby genes.

Quality and Safety in Healthcare for Medical Students: Challenges and the Road Ahead.

The development of skills, behaviors and attitudes regarding patient safety is of utmost importance for promoting safety culture for the next generation of health professionals. This study describes our experience of implementing a course on patient safety and quality improvement for fourth year medical students in Mexico during the COVID-19 outbreak. The course comprised essential knowledge based on the patient safety curriculum provided by the WHO.

Tracking the origin of two genetic components associated with transposable element bursts in domesticated rice.

Transposable elements (TEs) shape genome evolution through periodic bursts of amplification. In this study prior knowledge of the mPing/Ping/Pong TE family is exploited to track their copy numbers and distribution in genome sequences from 3,000 accessions of domesticated Oryza sativa (rice) and the wild progenitor Oryza rufipogon. We find that mPing bursts are restricted to recent domestication and is likely due to the accumulation of two TE components, Ping16A and Ping16A_Stow, that appear to be critical for mPing hyperactivity.

Analysis of fentanyl analogs and novel synthetic opioids in blood, serum/plasma, and urine in forensic casework.

In recent years an increasing number of novel opioids have appeared on the illicit drug market and have been linked to the growing opioid crisis in the United States. It is suspected that synthetic-opioid-related deaths are underestimated since many laboratories either use a screening method that is not specific and sensitive enough for these compounds or testing is not performed for fentanyl and its related analogs in general. We describe a method for the analysis of 19 of the most current novel opioid drugs quantitatively in whole blood and serum, and 17 analytes qualitatively in urine using solid phase extraction with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).

Using Social Network Analysis to Examine the Effect of Care Management Structure on Chronic Disease Management Communication Within Primary Care.

Background: Care management and care managers are becoming increasingly prevalent in primary care medical practice as a means of improving population health and reducing unnecessary care. Care managers are often involved in chronic disease management and associated transitional care. In this study, we examined the communication regarding chronic disease care within 24 primary care practices in Michigan and Colorado.

Cold atmospheric plasma for the ablative treatment of neuroblastoma.

Background: Recent breakthroughs have allowed for production of plasma at room temperature. Cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) may offer the capability of delivering reactive oxygen species directly into tissues, representing a novel modality for targeted cancer therapy. We studied helium-based CAP's effect on neuroblastoma, both in-vitro and in an in-vivo murine model.

Effectiveness of the California state ban on the sale of Caulerpa species in aquarium retail stores in southern California.

The invasion of the aquarium strain of the green alga Caulerpa taxifolia and subsequent alteration of community structure in the Mediterranean Sea raised awareness of the potential for non-native seaweeds to impact coastal communities. An introduction of C. taxifolia in southern California in 2000, presumably from the release of aquarium specimens, cost ~$7 million for eradication efforts.