Oncogenic functions of the FOXC2 transcription factor: a hallmarks of cancer perspective.

Epigenetic regulation of gene expression is a fundamental determinant of molecular and cellular function, and epigenetic reprogramming in the context of cancer has emerged as one of the key enabling characteristics associated with acquisition of the core hallmarks of this disease. As such, there has been renewed interest in studying the role of transcription factors as epigenetic regulators of gene expression in cancer. In this review, we discuss the current state of knowledge surrounding the oncogenic functions of FOXC2, a transcription factor that frequently becomes dysregulated in a variety of cancer types.

Jabbing together? The complementarity between social capital, formal public health rules, and COVID-19 vaccine rates in the United States.

COVID-19 vaccine rates provide a unique opportunity to explore vaccine hesitancy and potential interactions between social capital and individual, normative values, namely for public health and/or personal freedom. While economists and public health scholars realize the independent effects social capital and stringent public health rules have on prevalence and mortality rates, few recognize how these factors influence vaccination rates. We advance this literature with a novel framework to analyze these interactions.

The milliped family Striariidae Bollman, 1893. V. Stegostriaria dulcidormus, n. gen., n. sp., Kentrostriaria ohara, n. gen., n. sp., and the convergent evolution of exaggerated metazonital crests (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Striarioidea).

Two new genera and species, Stegostriaria dulcidormus (Trisariinae) and Kentrostriaria ohara (Striariinae), are described from Oregon and Idaho, respectively. The new species are distinct from any other striariids, and indeed from any other chordeumatidan millipedes, in having the second dorsal crests greatly enlarged, giving them a fanciful resemblance to stegosaurid dinosaurs. In spite of this similarity, the two species are so distinct they cannot be accommodated in the same genus or the same subfamily.

The millipede family Striariidae Bollman, 1893. IV. Amplaria oedipus, n. sp., with a secondary sexual modification of males unique among millipedes (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Striarioidea).

A new species, Amplaria oedipus, is described from Oregon, USA. Males of the new species have greatly inflated pyriform tarsi on the 5th and 6th legpairs, which is a secondary sexual modification previously not known from any other millipede.

Case studies on longitudinal mercury content in humpback whale () baleen.

Quantification of contaminant concentrations in baleen whales is important for individual and population level health assessments but is difficult due to large migrations and infrequent resighings. The use of baleen allows for a multiyear retrospective analysis of contaminant concentrations without having to collect repeated samples from the same individual. Here we provide case studies of mercury analysis using cold vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy in three individual humpback whales (), a 44.

Acute Ethanol Exposure during Synaptogenesis Rapidly Alters Medium Spiny Neuron Morphology and Synaptic Protein Expression in the Dorsal Striatum.

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders are caused by the disruption of normal brain development in utero. The severity and range of symptoms is dictated by both the dosage and timing of ethanol administration, and the resulting developmental processes that are impacted. In order to investigate the effects of an acute, high-dose intoxication event on the development of medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in the striatum, mice were injected with ethanol on P6, and neuronal morphology was assessed after 24 h, or at 1 month or 5 months of age.

Preprint articles as a tool for teaching data analysis and scientific communication.

The skill of analyzing and interpreting research data is central to the scientific process, yet it is one of the hardest skills for students to master. While instructors can coach students through the analysis of data that they have either generated themselves or obtained from published articles, the burgeoning availability of preprint articles provides a new potential pedagogical tool. We developed a new method in which students use a cognitive apprenticeship model to uncover how experts analyzed a paper and compare the professional's cognitive approach to their own.

The first true millipede-1306 legs long.

The name "millipede" translates to a thousand feet (from mille "thousand" and pes "foot"). However, no millipede has ever been described with more than 750 legs. We discovered a new record-setting species of millipede with 1,306 legs, Eumillipes persephone, from Western Australia.

A call for discovery: Re-envisioning The Cancer Genome Atlas as a blueprint for a TCGA2.0-The COVID-19 Genome Atlas.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the health of millions and had a myriad of devastating consequences for global societies since its emergence in 2019. Noting parallels between the impact of COVID-19 and cancer as diseases of global health significance, and as a way of building off the successes of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) as a comprehensive, multiomics approach to understand and combat cancer, this Call For Discovery provides a vision for creating a new TCGA2.0 (The COVID-19 Genome Atlas) as a tool that will benefit researchers, clinicians, and patients alike as the scientific community works to better understand not only the various determinants of COVID-19 disease outcome but also the most effective ways to manage and treat COVID-19 disease complications.

The brain limit.

How fast the brain and muscles can respond to information about prey location constrains visual and echolocating predators in similar ways.

Influence of Herbicide Exposure and Ranavirus Infection on Growth and Survival of Juvenile Red-Eared Slider Turtles ().

Ranaviruses are an important wildlife pathogen of fish, amphibians, and reptiles. Previous studies have shown that susceptibility and severity of infection can vary with age, host species, virus strain, temperature, population density, and presence of environmental stressors. Experiments are limited with respect to interactions between this pathogen and environmental stressors in reptiles.

Reusability of autoclaved 3D printed polypropylene compared to a glass filled polypropylene composite.

Health care waste can be a costly expenditure for facilities as specific disposal methods must be used to prevent the spread of pathogens. If more multi-use medical devices were available, it could potentially relieve some of this burden; however, sterilization between uses is important in preventing disease transmission. 3D printing has the ability to easily create custom medical devices at a low cost, but the majority of filaments utilized cannot survive steam sterilization.

Additions to the millipede family Caseyidae. II. Martenseya, a new genus of miniature, blind millipedes from California (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Striariidea, Striarioidea, Caseyidae).

A new genus, Martenseya, is described for Martenseya minutocaeca n. sp., a tiny, blind species in the family Caseyidae from Marin County, California, USA.

Three new genera and eighteen new species of miniature polydesmid millipedes from the northwestern United States (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Polydesmidae).

Three new genera, Retrorsioides, Rowlandesmus and Benedictesmus, are described and the polydesmid millipede fauna of North America is briefly reviewed with an emphasis on the genera Bidentogon Buckett Gardner, 1968 and Retrorsia Shelley, 2003. Eighteen new species are described: Bidentogon buttensis, Bidentogon norcal, Retrorsia leonardi, Retrorsia benedictae, Retrorsia richarti, Retrorsia gracilis, Retrorsia simplicissima, Retrorsioides castellum, Retrorsioides linnensis, Retrorsioides kittitas, Retrorsioides bammerti, Retrorsioides arboramagna, Rowlandesmus millicoma, Rowlandesmus dentogonopus, Benedictesmus aureua, Benedictesmus ellenae, Benedictesmus yaquina and Benedictesmus timber. Natural history notes and illustrations are provided of putative commensal fungi, nematodes and a mite found on the millipede specimens.

The role of interferons in melanoma resistance to immune checkpoint blockade: mechanisms of escape and therapeutic implications.

Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy has achieved unprecedented success in the treatment of metastatic melanoma, though its efficacy is often limited by innate and acquired mechanisms of resistance. Type I and type II interferons (IFNs) act as key determinants of checkpoint blockade therapeutic outcome, and tumour-intrinsic and -extrinsic factors that disrupt IFN activity confer resistance to various checkpoint inhibitors. This review highlights our current understanding of the mechanisms by which tumours disrupt IFN function in the context of ICB, and it discusses therapeutic strategies to overcome these mechanisms of resistance and improve the clinical reach of ICB therapy in patients with melanoma.

Rorqual Lunge-Feeding Energetics Near and Away from the Kinematic Threshold of Optimal Efficiency.

Humpback and blue whales are large baleen-bearing cetaceans, which use a unique prey-acquisition strategy-lunge feeding-to engulf entire patches of large plankton or schools of forage fish and the water in which they are embedded. Dynamically, and while foraging on krill, lunge-feeding incurs metabolic expenditures estimated at up to 20.0 MJ.

Using Critical Analysis of Scientific Literature to Maintain an Interactive Learning Environment for In-Person and Online Course Modalities.

Every instructor has concerns about effectively balancing the amount of course content with experiences to enhance a student's skills for professional success. The COVID-19 pandemic made this process even more challenging by requiring many instructors to shift rapidly from in-person to online instruction while maintaining academic integrity. The objective of this course on tissue engineering, a multidisciplinary field that aims to repair and/or replace body damage, was to increase undergraduate students' ability to read primary scientific literature and use critical analysis to creatively solve problems.

COVID-360: A Collaborative Effort to Develop a Multidisciplinary Set of Online Resources for Engaging Teaching on the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged undergraduate instructors and students in an unprecedented manner. Each has needed to find creative ways to continue the engaged teaching and learning process in an environment defined by physical separation and emotional anxiety and uncertainty. As a potential tool to meet this challenge, we developed a set of curricular materials that combined our respective life science teaching interests with the real-time scientific problem of the COVID-19 pandemic in progress.

The millipede family Striariidae Bollman, 1893: III. Four new species of Striaria Bollman, 1888 (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Striariidae) from Idaho, USA.

The millipede genus Striaria Bollman, 1888 heretofore had been thought to be confined to the Appalachian region of eastern North America, is replaced in western North America by species of the genus Amplaria Chamberlin, 1941. Collections from northern Idaho show that this is not the case, and that at least four species of Striaria occur in the west. These species are described herein as Striaria aculeata n.

The millipede family Striariidae Bollman, 1893. II. New records and species of the genus Amplaria Chamberlin, 1941 (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Striarioidea).

The millipede genus Amplaria Chamberlin, 1941 (senior synonym of Vaferaria Causey, 1958 and Speostriaria Causey, 1960) is endemic to western North America, from Mt. Palomar and San Luis Obispo, California, north to southwestern British Columbia, Canada, and east to northern Idaho. Seven species names are currently assigned to the genus.

A Flow Cytometric Assay for Investigating Melanoma Cell Adhesion to Lymphatic Endothelial Cells.

Lymph node invasion by tumor cells is an important process in the progression of melanoma and is a poor prognostic factor for patients with this cancer. Before they are able to spread to regional lymph nodes, though, melanoma cells must first adhere to lymphatic endothelium and transmigrate into the lymphatic vasculature. In order to study melanoma cell adhesion to lymphatic endothelial cells and the factors that regulate this process, we have developed an in vitro flow cytometry-based assay to measure melanoma cell attachment to lymphatic endothelial cells.

Generation of Functional Gene Knockout Melanoma Cell Lines by CRISPR-Cas9 Gene Editing.

Recent advances in the treatment of metastatic melanoma have emerged only from advances in our understanding of melanoma development and progression at the cellular and molecular levels. Despite the impact that such advances have made on the clinical management of this cancer over the last decade, additional insights into factors that promote melanoma progression and therapeutic resistance are needed to combat this disease. CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology is a powerful tool for studying gene function in a timely and cost-effective manner, enabling the manipulation of specific DNA sequences via a targeted approach.

The prognostic significance of FOXC2 gene expression in cancer: A comprehensive analysis of RNA-seq data from the cancer genome atlas.

The FOXC2 transcription factor is a key regulator of tumor progression in many cancer types. Known to exhibit an array of oncogenic functions when dysregulated, FOXC2 has emerged as a useful biomarker for predicting disease aggression and patient outcome. In this regard, increased expression and nuclear localization of FOXC2 protein in tumor tissue have become well-established as poor prognostic factors for many cancer types.