Thoracoabdominal respiratory disorder induced by cadmium aerosol and analyzed with a new machine vision model in vivo.

Inhalable environmental pollutants induce pulmonary malfunction, which alters thoracoabdominal respiratory conditions. Traditional methods of recording pressure differences or existing machine vision analyses for detecting respiratory abnormalities are not suitable for synchronous thoracic and abdominal respiratory detections. The present study provides a new method that combines a model of thoracoabdominal localization and distribution based on respiratory physiological characteristics and a machine vision analysis on respiratory conditions in mice exposed to aqueous aerosol containing cadmium with classical symptoms.

NfiR, a New Regulatory Noncoding RNA (ncRNA), Is Required in Concert with the NfiS ncRNA for Optimal Expression of Nitrogenase Genes in Pseudomonas stutzeri A1501.

Expression of nitrogenase genes () is strictly regulated at both transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels. Efficient nitrogenase activity requires maintaining sufficient levels of mRNAs, yet the underlying mechanism is not fully understood due to its complexity. We have previously shown that a novel regulatory noncoding RNA (ncRNA), NfiS, optimizes nitrogen fixation through targeting mRNA in A1501.

Diet and macronutrient niche of Asiatic black bear () in two regions of Nepal during summer and autumn.

Relatively little is known about the nutritional ecology of omnivorous Asiatic black bears () in Nepal. We characterized the diet of black bears in two seasons (June-July, "summer"; and October-November "autumn") and two study areas (Dhorpatan Hunting Reserve [DHR]; and Kailash Sacred Landscape [KSL]). We then conducted nutritional analysis of species consumed by black bears in each study area, in combination with nutritional estimates from the literature, to estimate the proportions of macronutrients (i.

Marine reserves shape seascapes on scales visible from space.

Marine reserves can effectively restore harvested populations, and 'mega-reserves' increasingly protect large tracts of ocean. However, no method exists of monitoring ecological responses at this large scale. Herbivory is a key mechanism structuring ecosystems, and this consumer-resource interaction's strength on coral reefs can indicate ecosystem health.

Site-specific glycation of Aβ1-42 affects fibril formation and is neurotoxic.

Aβ1-42 is involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis and is prone to glycation, an irreversible process where proteins accumulate advanced glycated end products (AGEs). -(Carboxyethyl)lysine (CEL) is a common AGE associated with AD patients and occurs at either Lys-16 or Lys-28 of Aβ1-42. Methyglyoxal is commonly used for the unspecific glycation of Aβ1-42, which results in a complex mixture of AGE-modified peptides and makes interpretation of a causative AGE at a specific amino acid residue difficult.

The uncharacterized bacterial protein YejG has the same architecture as domain III of elongation factor G.

InterPro family IPR020489 comprises ~1000 uncharacterized bacterial proteins. Previously we showed that overexpressing the Escherichia coli representative of this family, EcYejG, conferred low-level resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics. In an attempt to shed light on the biochemical function of EcYejG, we have solved its structure using multinuclear solution NMR spectroscopy.

Phagocyte chase behaviours: discrimination between Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria by amoebae.

Phagocytes are cells that pursue, engulf and kill bacteria. They include macrophages and neutrophils of the mammalian immune system, as well as free-living amoebae that hunt and engulf bacteria for food. Phagocytosis can result in diverse outcomes, ranging from sustenance to infection and colonization by either pathogens or beneficial symbionts-and thus, discrimination may be necessary to seek out good bacteria while avoiding bad ones.

Differential Targeting of c-Maf, Bach-1, and Elmo-1 by microRNA-143 and microRNA-365 Promotes the Intracellular Growth of in Alternatively IL-4/IL-13 Activated Macrophages.

(Mtb) can subvert the host defense by skewing macrophage activation toward a less microbicidal alternative activated state to avoid classical effector killing functions. Investigating the molecular basis of this evasion mechanism could uncover potential candidates for host directed therapy against tuberculosis (TB). A limited number of miRNAs have recently been shown to regulate host-mycobacterial interactions.

Automated simultaneous assignment of bond orders and formal charges.

Bond orders and formal charges are fundamental chemical descriptors. In cheminformatic applications it is necessary to be able to assign these properties to a given molecular structure automatically, given minimal input information. Here we describe a method for determining the bond order and formal charge assignments from only the atom types and connectivity.

Reconciling ecogeographical rules: rainfall and temperature predict global colour variation in the largest bird radiation.

Ecogeographical rules that associate climate with organismal form and function can reveal patterns of climatic adaptation. Two rules link animal coloration with climate: Gloger's rule (darker coloration where wet and warm), and Bogert's rule (darker coloration where cold). Whereas Gloger's rule was proposed for endotherms, and Bogert's rule for ectotherms, both rules may apply more broadly, despite their seemingly opposing effects.

Mitogenomes Uncover Extinct Penguin Taxa and Reveal Island Formation as a Key Driver of Speciation.

The emergence of islands has been linked to spectacular radiations of diverse organisms. Although penguins spend much of their lives at sea, they rely on land for nesting, and a high proportion of extant species are endemic to geologically young islands. Islands may thus have been crucial to the evolutionary diversification of penguins.

Transcriptionally induced enhancers in the macrophage immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.

Background: Tuberculosis is a life-threatening infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb). M.

Characterisation of N-(Octadecyl)-1,8-naphthalimide Monolayer Compression Using Molecular Dynamics and Experimental Approaches.

The development of luminescent surfaces is an active area of supramolecular chemistry, particularly for the development of new sensing platforms. One particularly useful surface deposition method is the Langmuir-Blodgett technique where organic amphiphilic fluorophores (e.g.

Haemoproteus minutus is highly virulent for Australasian and South American parrots.

Background: Haemoproteus and Plasmodium species are widespread avian blood parasites. Several Plasmodium species are known for their high virulence and have caused significant declines in naïve bird populations. The impact of closely related Haemoproteus parasites is largely unknown.

Stomach contents of long-finned pilot whales, Globicephala melas mass-stranded in Tasmania.

New data are reported from analyses of stomach contents from 114 long-finned pilot whales mass-stranded at four locations around Tasmania, Australia from 1992-2006. Identifiable prey remains were recovered from 84 (74%) individuals, with 30 (26%) individuals (17 females and 13 males) having empty stomachs. Prey remains comprised 966 identifiable lower beaks and 1244 upper beaks, belonging to 17 families (26 species) of cephalopods.

Evidence of cryptic species in the blenniid species complex, with zoogeographic implications for the South Pacific.

Rapa Nui, commonly known as Easter Island (Chile), is one of the most isolated tropical islands of the Pacific Ocean. The island location of Rapa Nui makes it the easternmost point of the geographic ranges for many western Pacific fish species that are restricted to the subtropical islands south of 20°S latitude. The blenniid fish species has been thought to have one of the most extensive geographic distribution ranges among these southern subtropical fish species, extending from the southern Great Barrier Reef to Rapa Nui.

Contrasting patterns of coding and flanking region evolution in mammalian keratin associated protein-1 genes.

Mammalian genomes contain a number of duplicated genes, and sequence identity between these duplicates can be maintained by purifying selection. However, between-duplicate recombination can also maintain sequence identity between copies, resulting in a pattern known as concerted evolution where within-genome repeats are more similar to each other than to orthologous repeats in related species. Here we investigated the tandemly-repeated keratin-associated protein 1 (KAP1) gene family, KRTAP1, which encodes proteins that are important components of hair and wool in mammals.

Decreasing brown bear () habitat due to climate change in Central Asia and the Asian Highlands.

Around the world, climate change has impacted many species. In this study, we used bioclimatic variables and biophysical layers of Central Asia and the Asian Highlands combined with presence data of brown bear () to understand their current distribution and predict their future distribution under the current rate of climate change. Our bioclimatic model showed that the current suitable habitat of brown bear encompasses 3,430,493 km in the study area, the majority of which (>65%) located in China.

Nonresonant Photons Catalyze Photodissociation of Phenol.

Phenol represents an ideal polyatomic system for demonstrating photon catalysis because of its large polarizability, well-characterized excited-state potential energy surfaces, and nonadiabatic dissociation dynamics. A nonresonant IR pulse (1064 nm) supplies a strong electric field (4 × 10 V/cm) during the photolysis of isolated phenol (CHOH) molecules to yield CHO + H near two known energetic thresholds: the S/S conical intersection and the S - S origin. H-atom speed distributions show marked changes in the relative contributions of dissociative pathways in both cases, compared to the absence of the nonresonant IR pulse.

Rotaxane-Based Transition Metal Complexes: Effect of the Mechanical Bond on Structure and Electronic Properties.

Early work by Sauvage revealed that mechanical bonding alters the stability and redox properties of their original catenane metal complexes. However, despite the importance of controlling metal ion properties for a range of applications, these effects have received relatively little attention since. Here we present a series of tri-, tetra-, and pentadentate rotaxane-based ligands and a detailed study of their metal binding behavior and, where possible, compare their redox and electronic properties with their noninterlocked counterparts.

"Feelings and Fitness" Not "Feelings or Fitness"-The of Conservation Welfare, Which Aligns Conservation and Animal Welfare Objectives.

Increasingly, human activities, including those aimed at conserving species and ecosystems (conservation activities) influence not only the survival and fitness but also the welfare of wild animals. Animal welfare relates to how an animal is experiencing its life and encompasses both its physical and mental states. While conservation biology and animal welfare science are both multi-disciplinary fields that use scientific methods to address concerns about animals, their focus and objectives sometimes appear to conflict.

Computational Prediction of Amino Acids Governing Protein-Membrane Interaction for the PIP Cell Signaling System.

Prediction and characterization of how transiently membrane-bound signaling proteins interact with the cell membrane is important for understanding and controlling cellular signal transduction networks. Existing computational methods rely on approximate descriptions of the components of the system or their interactions, and thus are unable to identify residue- or lipid-specific contributions. Our rotational interaction energy profiling method allows rapid evaluation of an electrostatically optimal orientation of a protein for membrane association, as well as the residues or lipid species responsible for its favorability.

The conservation landscape of the human ribosomal RNA gene repeats.

Ribosomal RNA gene repeats (rDNA) encode ribosomal RNA, a major component of ribosomes. Ribosome biogenesis is central to cellular metabolic regulation, and several diseases are associated with rDNA dysfunction, notably cancer, However, its highly repetitive nature has severely limited characterization of the elements responsible for rDNA function. Here we make use of phylogenetic footprinting to provide a comprehensive list of novel, potentially functional elements in the human rDNA.

A new method for modelling biological invasions from early spread data accounting for anthropogenic dispersal.

Biological invasions are one of the major causes of biodiversity loss worldwide. In spite of human aided (anthropogenic) dispersal being the key element in the spread of invasive species, no framework published so far accounts for its peculiar characteristics, such as very rapid dispersal and independence from the existing species distribution. We present a new method for modelling biological invasions using historical spatio-temporal records.

Imprinted and ancient gene: a potential mediator of cancer cell survival during tryptophan deprivation.

Background: Depletion of tryptophan and the accumulation of tryptophan metabolites mediated by the immunosuppressive enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1), trigger immune cells to undergo apoptosis. However, cancer cells in the same microenvironment appear not to be affected. Mechanisms whereby cancer cells resist accelerated tryptophan degradation are not completely understood.