Down-regulation of beta1,4-galactosyltransferase V is a critical part of etoposide-induced apoptotic process and could be mediated by decreasing Sp1 levels in human glioma cells.

beta1,4-Galactosyltransferase V (beta1,4GalT V; EC 2.4.1.38) is considered to be very important in glioma for expressing transformation-related highly branched N-glycans. Recently, we have characterized beta1,4GalT V as a positive growth regulator in several glioma cell lines. However, the role of beta1,4GalT V in glioma therapy has not been clearly reported. In this study, interfering with the expression of beta1,4GalT V by its antisense cDNA in SHG44 human glioma cells markedly promoted apoptosis induced by etoposide and the activation of caspases as well as processing of Bid and expression of Bax and Bak. Conversely, the ectopic expression of beta1,4GalT V attenuated the apoptotic effect of etoposide on SHG44 cells. In addition, both the beta1,4GalT V transcription and the binding of total or membrane glycoprotein with Ricinus communis agglutinin-I (RCA-I) were partially reduced in etoposide-treated SHG44 cells, correlated well with a decreased level of Sp1 that has been identified as an activator of beta1,4GalT V transcription. Collectively, our results suggest that the down-regulation of beta1,4GalT V expression plays an important role in etoposide-induced apoptosis and could be mediated by a decreasing level of Sp1 in SHG44 cells, indicating that inhibitors of beta1,4GalT V may enhance the therapeutic efficiency of etoposide for malignant glioma.

Is dieting behaviour decreasing in young adolescents?

Abstract Objective: To report trends in underweight, overweight and obesity in 12–15-year-old adolescents and examine changes in dieting behaviour, which have been less well documented. Design: Comparison of two independent representative cross-sectional surveys. Setting: Northern Ireland. Subjects: Weight and height were objectively measured in 1324 boys and 1160 girls in 1996 and 1274 boys and 1374 girls in 2007. Participants reported whether they were following any particular diet including a self-proposed or prescribed weight-reduction diet. Results: Overweight and obesity increased in girls from 15% to 23% and 2% to 6%, respectively. Increases were more modest in boys with overweight increasing from 13% to 18% and obesity from 3% to 6%. The proportion of underweight adolescents decreased from 9% to 6% in girls and 8% to 5% in boys. Evidence of social disparity was observed in girls from a manual socio-economic background, with overweight/obesity prevalence rates increasing from 21% to 36% compared with 15% to 26% in girls from a non-manual background. Despite these trends fewer adolescents, in particular girls, reported following weight-reduction diets (14% of overweight/obese girls in 2007 v. 21% in 1996; 8% of boys in 2007 v. 13% in 1996). Of these girls, the proportion from a manual background following weight-reduction diets decreased from 25% to 11%. Conclusions: Overweight and obesity are continuing to increase in adolescents despite government and media awareness strategies. There also appears to be reduced dieting behaviour, despite increasing body weight, particularly in girls from manual socio-economic backgrounds.

Is the number of species on earth increasing or decreasing? Time, chaos and the origin of species

Darwin's On the Origin of Species has led to a theory of evolution with a mass of empirical detail on population genetics below species level, together with heated debate on the details of macroevolutionary patterns above species level. Most of the main principles are clear and generally accepted, notably that life originated once and has evolved over time by descent with modification. Here, I review the fossil and molecular phylogenetic records of the response of life on Earth to Quaternary climatic changes. I suggest that the record can be best understood in terms of the nonlinear dynamics of the relationship between genotype and phenotype, and between climate and environments. 'The origin of species' is essentially unpredictable, but is nevertheless an inevitable consequence of the way that organisms reproduce through time. The process is 'chaotic', but not 'random'. I suggest that biodiversity is best considered as continuously branching systems of lineages, where 'species' are the branch tips. The Earth's biodiversity should thus (1) be in a state of continuous increase and (2) show continuous discrepancies between genetic and morphological data in time and space. © The Palaeontological Association.

A function-based treatment package aiming at decreasing self-injurious behaviour and tantrums.

Self-injurious and aggressive behaviours have often been identified as the cause for students’ lack of academic progress, parental distress, health risks and teachers´ low satisfaction levels. Functional analysis has been identified in the research literature as the benchmark of effective treatments for disruptive and/or inappropriate behaviours. The present study was completed with a girl diagnosed with ASD. An experimental functional analysis was conducted identifying the function of self-injurious behaviours and tantrums to be escaping from tasks. A treatment package was consequently put in place integrating several components that aimed at reducing overall levels of inappropriate behaviours. Results showed a clear and meaningful improvement in the student´s overall health and academic progress, as well as in parental involvement, teachers’ satisfaction and school inclusion. These outcomes are discussed in the light of evidence-based experimental procedures based on applied behaviour analysis and more specifically on the functional-analytic literature, which, if put in place consistently, can bring valuable positive changes in the quality of life of individuals with ASD.

Ireland after Rapid Immigration:The consequences of neglect

Essay review of:
Immigration and Schooling in the Republic of Ireland: Making a Difference?, by Dympna Devine . Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2012. 186pp. $24.95 paper. ISBN: 9780719081026.
Immigration and Social Cohesion in the Republic of Ireland, by Bryan Fanning . Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2011. 202pp. $24.95 paper. ISBN: 9780719084799.
Understanding Immigration in Ireland: State, Capital and Labour in a Global Age, by Steven Loyal . Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2011. 283pp. $24.95 paper. ISBN: 9780719078316.

Immigration and the demand for life insurance: evidence from Canada, 1911

This article analyses the determinants of the demand for life insurance using sample data from the 1911 Census of Canada. We find that immigrants' demand for life insurance was on average around 13 percentage points lower than that of native-born Canadians, with the effect varying by province of settlement. We interpret these findings as evidence suggesting a greater appetite for risk among self-selecting immigrants relative to native-born Canadians. We also uncover evidence of a slow assimilation of immigrants in terms of life insurance holdings, slower indeed than the process of assimilation in terms of earnings.