Ptolemaic Mummy Stuffings, 2: A Comic Fragment and Grammatical Text in the Yale Collection (P. CtYBR inv. 5019, 5043)

This is the second installment of a three-part project to publish a group of ten Ptolemaic papyri purchased by Yale’s Beinecke Library in 1998 (acquisition “1998b”), which came to the Beinecke as three hard wads that were apparently the stuffing from the stomach cavity of a mummified animal. This article publishes: (1) P.CtYBR inv. 5019, a fragment of line ends in iambic tetrameter catalectic meter from an unknown comedy; the format suggests that this is a further example of certain type of Ptolemaic writing exercise. (2) P.CtYBR inv. 5043, a fragmentary grammatical text of uncertain import.

Expression of the Ets transcription factor Erm is regulated through a conventional PKC signaling pathway in the Molt4 lymphoblastic cell line.

Erm, a member of the PEA3 group within the Ets family of transcription factors, is expressed in murine and human lymphocytes. Here, we show that in the human Molt4 lymphoblastic cell line, the erm gene expression is regulated by the conventional PKC (cPKC) pathway. To better characterize the molecular mechanism by which cPKC regulates Erm transcription in Molt4 cells, we tested proximal promoter deletions of the human gene, and identified a specific cPKC-regulated region between positions -420 and -115 upstream of the first exon.

Regulation of the alpha-fetoprotein promoter: Ku binding and DNA spatial conformation

This work shows that the proximal promoter of the mouse Afp gene contains a Ku binding site and that Ku binding is associated with down-regulation of the transcriptional activity of the Afp promoter. The Ku binding site is located in a segment able to adopt a peculiar structured form, probably a hairpin structure. Interestingly, the structured form eliminates the binding sites of the positive transcription factor HNF1. Furthermore, a DNAse hypersensitive site is detected in footprinting experiments done with extracts of AFP non-expressing hepatoma cells. These observations suggest that the structured form is stabilised by Ku and is associated with extinction of the gene in AFP non-expressing hepatic cells.

Epidemiological study of oesophageal and gastric cancer in south-east England

Background: This epidemiological study was carried out to establish the magnitude of the changing incidence of gastric and oesophageal cancer. Methods: Time-trend analyses of subsite-specific cancers of the oesophagus and stomach were performed using data from the Thames Cancer Registry database (1960-1996) for the South Thames Region. The changes in sex ratio and peak age of incidence are reported. Results: In the upper two-thirds of the oesophagus there was no significant change in the incidence rate, but the lower third of the oesophagus showed a marked rise for both sexes (average annual change + 0.05 for men, + 0.009 for women). For the gastric cardia, the incidence in males increased (average annual change + 0.025), while in females it remained unchanged. Cancers of the oesophagogastric junction showed a clear increase for both sexes (average annual change + 0.07 for men, + 0.009 for women). There were changes in the sex ratio and peak age of incidence for all subsite cancers for both sexes. Conclusion: Over a 37-year period the incidence of cancer of the oesophagogastric junction increased threefold, while the incidence of cancers of the other subsites of the stomach decreased. Further studies are needed to investigate the aetiology of these changes.

A regional chemostratigraphically-defined correlation framework for the late Triassic TAG-I Formation in Blocks 402 and 405a, Algeria

The Triassic Argilo-Gréseux Inférieur Formation (TAG-I) is one of the principal hydrocarbon reservoirs in the Berkine Basin of Algeria. Sedimentological studies have shown that it exhibits marked spatial and temporal facies variations on both a local field scale and a regional basinal scale. This variability, combined with a lack of diagnostic flora and fauna, makes regional correlation within the unit difficult. In turn, the lack of a consistent regional stratigraphic framework hampers the comparison of the various correlation schemes devised by operators in the basin. Contrasting the TAG-I in Blocks 402 and 405a exemplifies the problems encountered when attempting regionally to define a correlation framework for the interval. Between these two blocks, a distance of approximately 200 km, there are marked changes in the style of deposition from sand-dominated, proximal fluvial systems in the SW (Block 405a, MLN, MLC, KMD and MLNW fields) to a more distal, more clay-prone system in the NE (Block 402, ROD/BRSE/BSFN, SFNE and BSF fields). A chemostratigraphic study of the TAG-I in these two blocks has allowed a four-fold correlation framework to be defined, where each chemostratigraphic package has distinctive geochemical features. Chemostratigraphic Package 10, the oldest unit, lies above the Hercynian Unconformity, but beneath a geochemically identifiable hiatal surface. Chemostratigraphic Package 20 lies above the hiatal surface but is separated from the overlying packages by a mineralogical change identifiable in both claystone and sandstone geochemistry. Chemostratigraphic Packages 30 and 40 are chemically somewhat similar, but are separated by a regional event interpreted as a period of dolocrete and lacustrine development. By combining the geochemical differentiation of the units and recognition of their stratal boundaries, it is possible to define a correlation for the TAG-I between Blocks 402 and 405a. The proposed correlation between the two blocks suggests that the northern parts of Block 405a may have been occupied by a spur or subsidiary channel from the main SW–NE-trending fluvial system, resulting in one of the chemically defined packages being demonstrably absent in the MLNW, MLN, KMD and MLC fields when compared with the other areas of the study.

Coordinated Rhythms Of Digestion Absorption And Excretion In Mytilus-Edulis (Bivalvia Mollusca)

Sequential alternation of extracellular digestion in the stomach and intracellular digestion in the diverticula appears widespread among bivalves. The present study documents some physiological consequences of such processes in Mytilus edulis L. collected during 1981 from Whitsand Bay, Cornwall, England. Pronounced temporal fluctuations in faecal deposition are described that relate, in terms of amplitude and period, to both sinusoidal rhythmicity established for ammonia excretion and changes in the morphology of digestive tubules. Although at least partially synchronised among replicate groups of mussels, these cycles bore no consistent relationship with exogenous influences. Hourly fluctuation in the net absorption efficiency for nitrogen, as evidenced by the mean percentage ±2 SE, measured over 24 h sampling periods, was considerable (16.0±53.7, 49.3±10.9 and 52.8±6.6 for mussels acclimated in March, June and October, respectively). This variation in absorption derived from an inverse relationship between the percentage nitrogen within faeces and the rate of faecal egestion. Accordingly, peaks of faecal deposition presumably represented the pulsed remnants of intracellular digestion. Co-ordinated rhythms of digestion, absorption and excretion were thus evident in M. edulis. These processes displayed seasonally dependent periodicities of approximately 8, 3 and 4 h in March, June and October, respectively. It was concluded that, at least for M. edulis, this previously unquantified rhythmicity of physiological processes warrants careful consideration during assays commonly undertaken in the complication of nutrient and energy budgets.

Can the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) be used to infer sardine diet?

Knowledge on the impact of climate variability in the diet of planktivorous fish is limited by the laborious work involved in stomach content analysis, impractical for large scale studies. Routine measurements of plankton such as the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey provide valuable information of the temporal variation of phyto- and zooplankton prey availability for higher trophic levels. Sardines are a world-wide distributed and commercially important planktivorous fish, at the basis of the pelagic marine food web. Being predominantly non-selective filter-feeders, their diets closely correspond to the water plankton species and a significant relationship was recently found between Sardina pilchardus feeding intensity and remotely sensed chlorophyll alpha . Data of sardine stomach prey composition and CPR were obtained during 2003 for the same location off the west coast of Portugal, an area characterised by strong seasonality of plankton abundance and composition, mainly governed by upwelling events. Phyto- and zooplankton prey in sardine stomachs were identified to the lowest possible taxa and their numerical and volumetric abundance was registered, as well as their contribution to the prey carbon content. The seasonal variation of the abundance and composition of sardine diet was then compared to the abundance and composition of the water plankton obtained with the CPR at the same time and for the same area where the fish were collected, in order to evaluate if CPR data can be used to proxy sardine prey availability and diet composition at large temporal scales.

A synthesis of large-scale patterns in the planktonic prey of larval and juvenile cod (Gadus morhua)

Data from 40 published studies of the diet composition of larval and juvenile cod (Gadus morhua) from around the northern North Atlantic were summarized to assess generic patterns in ontogenetic and regional variability in the key prey. The results showed that larvae at the northern edge of the latitudinal range of cod depend primarily on development stages of the copepod Calanus finmarchicus, whilst those at the southern edge depend on Para- and Pseudocalanus species. Juvenile cod preyed on a wider range of taxa than larvae, but euphausiids were the main target prey. Analysis of regional variations in the relative abundances of C. finmarchicus and Para/Pseudocalanus spp. in the plankton, as estimated by the continuous plankton recorder (CPR) surveys, showed a similar geographical pattern to the larval cod stomach contents. Comparison of CPR data from the 1960s and 70s with data from the 1990s showed that the boundary between C. finmarchicus and Para/Pseudocalanus spp. dominance has shifted northwards on both sides of the Atlantic, whilst the abundance of euphausiids in the southern cod stock regions has declined. The results are discussed in relation to regional differences in the response of cod stocks to climate variability.

Ecological Relations Between the Herring and the Plankton off The North-East Coast of England

I. 430 plankton samples, which were taken by several herring drifters using the Continuous Plankton Recorder in the Shields fishing area during the summer seasons of 1931 to 1933, are analysed to show the main changes in the plankton during those seasons. 2. A comparison is made between the proportions of the different zooplankton organisms found in the plankton and the proportions of these recorded by Savage (1937) in the stomachs of herring obtained from drifters working in the same area and during the same time. The comparisons are made for 29 ten-day periods in the seasons 1931 to 1933, and in addition, for 6 ten-day periods relating to a single drifter which obtained both plankton and stomach samples at the same time in 1932. 3. The comparisons in 2 provide evidence that the herring feeds by selecting certain organisms by individual acts of capture and not by swimming open-mouthed to strain out the plankton indiscriminately: (a) Calanus and Temora in the stomachs either correspond fairly closely to the proportions in the plankton or they may be in very much higher proportions. The latter is always true regarding Anomalocera. (b) Acartia, Oithona, Cladocera and Lamellibranch larvae are always in larger proportions in the plankton than in the stomachs; this applies also to Centropages with two insignificant exceptions. (c) There is a close correspondence between the numbers of Limacina and Sagitta in the plankton and stomachs in the latter half of the 1931 season, but not during 1932 and 1933, when the numbers in the stomachs were insignificant ; during the former period there was a great scarcity of Calanus in the plankton.

Bacterial symbiosis in Syssitomya pourtalesiana Oliver, 2012 (Galeommatoidea: Montacutidae), a bivalve commensal with the deep-sea echinoid Pourtalesia.

For the first time, bacterial symbiosis is recognized in the bivalve family Montacutidae of the superfamily Galeommatoidea. The ctenidial filaments of Syssitomya pourtalesiana Oliver, 2012 are extended abfrontally and a dense layer of bacteriocyte cells cover the entire surface behind a narrow ciliated frontal zone. The bacteria are extracellular and held within a matrix of epithelial extensions and microvilli. There is no cuticular layer (glycocalyx) covering the bacteria as in many thyasirid symbioses. The bacteriocytes hold more than one morphotype of bacteria, but bacilli, 1–3 μm in length, dominate. Scanning electron microscopy observations show a surface mat of filamentous bacteria over the extreme abfrontal surfaces. Filter feeding was confirmed by the presence of food particles in the stomach and the bivalve is presumed to be mixotrophic. Syssitomya is commensal and lives attached to the anal spines of the deep-sea echinoid Pourtalesia. In this position, echinoid feeding currents and echinoid faecal material may supply the bacteria with a variety of nutrient materials including dissolved organic matter.

CYSTATIN RELATED EPIDIDYMAL SPERMATOGENIC PROTEIN RESIDES IN THE OUTER DENSE FIBRES AND LIKELY TRANSIENTLY ASSOCIATES WITH THE SURFACE OF EPIDIDYMAL MOUSE SPERMATOZOA

Cystatin Related Epididymal Spermatogenic protein (CRES) is expressed in both the testis and epididymis and found associated with spermatozoa. It appears as non-glycosylated (14 and 12 kDa) and glycosylated isoforms (19 and 17 kDa). The role of CRES is enigmatic and dependent on localization of its isoforms, which is the objective of this study. The initial approach was to investigate testicular and epididymal origins of these isoforms by immunohistochemistry and immunogold cytochemistry. To further pinpoint CRES localization we then selectively extracted and fractionated epididymal spermatozoa in order to find by immunoblotting which sperm fractions contained CRES isoforms. Immunohistochemical analysis of mouse spermatogenesis showed that CRES was expressed in the tail cytoplasm of elongating spermatids from step 9-16, with a pattern reminiscent of outer dense fibre (ODF) proteins. Ultrastructural immunocytochemistry revealed that the immunogold label was concentrated over growing ODFs and mitochondrial sheath in the testes which persisted in spermatozoa through the epididymis. Sequential extractions of isolated sperm tails with Triton X-100-dithiothreitol (DTT) to remove the mitochondrial sheath, whose extract contained an unrelated 66 kDa immunoreactive band, followed by either sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-DTT or urea-DTT to solubilise accessory fibres of the tail revealed a 14 kDa immunoreactive band associated with the ODF. In addition, Western blots revealed glycosylated and non-glycosylated CRES isoforms in nonyl phenoxylpolyethoxylethanol (NP40) extracts of the caput, but not cauda, sperm. Immunohistochemical analysis of the caput and cauda epithelium showed that CRES is secreted by the Golgi apparatus of the ii initial segment, fills the proximal caput lumen, and disappears by mid caput. Western blots of caput and cauda tissue and luminal fluid revealed 14 and 19 kDa immunoreactive bands in caput tissues and luminal fluid, but not in the cauda. This study concludes that there are two origins of CRES, one arising in the testis and the other in the epididymis. Testicular CRES is ionically and covalently associated with the ODF while epididymal CRES is detergent soluble and is most likely associated temporarily with the surface of caput epididymal sperm.

A Density Functional Theory Study on the Active Center of Fe-Only Hydrogenase: Characterization and Electronic Structure of the Redox States

We have carried out extensive density functional theory (DFT) calculations for possible redox states of the active center in Fe-only hydrogenases. The active center is modeled by [(H(CH(3))S)(CO)(CN(-))Fe(p)(mu-DTN)(mu-CO)Fe(d)(CO)(CN(-))(L)](z) (z is the net charge in the complex; Fe(p)= the proximal Fe, Fe(d) = the distal Fe, DTN = (-SCH(2)NHCH(2)S-), L is the ligand that bonds with the Fed at the trans position to the bridging CO). Structures of possible redox states are optimized, and CO stretching frequencies are calculated. By a detailed comparison of all the calculated structures and the vibrational frequencies with the available experimental data, we find that (i) the fully oxidized, inactive state is an Fe(II)-Fe(II) state with a hydroxyl (OH(-)) group bonded at the Fe(d), (ii) the oxidized, active state is an Fe(II)-Fe(l) complex which is consistent with the assignment of Cao and Hall (J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123, 3734), and (iii) the fully reduced state is a mixture with the major component being a protonated Fe(l)-Fe(l) complex and the other component being its self-arranged form, Fe(II)-Fe(II) hydride, Our calculations also show that the exogenous CO can strongly bond with the Fe(II)-Fe(l) species, but cannot bond with the Fe(l)-Fe(l) complex. This result is consistent with experiments that CO tends to inhibit the oxidized, active state, but not the fully reduced state. The electronic structures of all the redox states have been analyzed. It is found that a frontier orbital which is a mixing state between the e(g) of Fe and the 2pi of the bridging CO plays a key role concerning the reactivity of Fe-only hydrogenases: (1) it is unoccupied in the fully oxidized, inactive state, half-occupied in the oxidized, active state, and fully occupied in the fully reduced state; (ii) the e(g)-2pi orbital is a bonding state, and this is the key reason for stability of the low oxidation states, such as Fe(l)-Fe(l) complexes; and (iii) in the e(g)-2pi orbital more charge accumulates between the bridging CO and the Fe(d) than between the bridging CO and the Fe(p), and the occupation increase in this orbital will enhance the bonding between the bridging CO and the Fe(d), leading to the bridging-CO shift toward the Fe(d).

Characterization of Glucocorticoid Receptor Promoter Methylation in Breast Cancer

Epidemiological studies have identified psychological stress as a significant risk factor in breast cancer. The stress response is regulated by the HPA axis in the brain and is mediated by glucocorticoid receptor (GR) signalling. It has been found that early life events can affect epigenetic programming of GR, and methylation of the GR promoter has been reported in colorectal tumourigenesis. Decreased GR expression has also been observed in breast cancer. In addition, it has been previously demonstrated that unliganded GR can serve as a direct activator of the BRCA1 promoter in mammary epithelial cells. We propose a model whereby methylation of the GR promoter in the breast significantly lowers GR expression, resulting in insufficient BRCA1 promoter activation and an increased risk of developing cancer. Antibody-based methylated DNA enrichment was followed by qPCR analysis (MeDIP-qPCR) in a novel assay developed to detect locus-specific methylation levels. It was found that 13% of primary breast tumours were hypermethylated at the GR proximal promoter whereas no methylation was detected in normal tissue. RT-PCR and 5’ RACE analysis identified exon 1B as the predominant alternative first exon in the breast. Tumours methylated near exon 1B had decreased GR expression compared to unmethylated samples, suggesting that this region is important for transcriptional regulation of GR. It was also determined that GR and BRCA1 expression was decreased in breast tumour compared to normal tissue. Furthermore, the relative expression of GR and BRCA1 measured by qRT-PCR was correlated in normal tissue but this association was not found in tumour tissue. From this, it appears that lower GR levels with associated decreased BRCA1 expression in tissues may be a predisposing factor for breast cancer. Based on these results we propose a role for GR as a potential tumour suppressor gene in the breast due to its association with BRCA1, also a tumour suppressor gene, as well as its consistently decreased expression in breast tumours and methylation of its proximal promoter in a subset of cancer patients.

Fyn kinase initiates complementary signals required for IgE-dependent mast cell degranulation

FcRI activation of mast cells is thought to involve Lyn and Syk kinases proximal to the receptor and the signaling complex organized by the linker for activation of T cells (LAT). We report here that FcRI also uses a Fyn kinase-dependent pathway that does not require Lyn kinase or the adapter LAT for its initiation, but is necessary for mast cell degranulation. Lyn-deficiency enhanced Fyn-dependent signals and degranulation, but inhibited the calcium response. Fyn-deficiency impaired degranulation, whereas Lyn-mediated signaling and calcium was normal. Thus, FcRI-dependent mast cell degranulation involves cross-talk between Fyn and Lyn kinases.

Kit-positive interstitial cells in the rabbit urethra: structural relationships with nerves and smooth muscle.

OBJECTIVE: To identify interstitial cells (ICs) in the wall of the rabbit urethra using antibodies to the Kit receptor, and to examine their location, morphology and relationship with nerves and smooth muscle cells (SMCs), as studies of enzymatically isolated cells from the rabbit urethra have established that there are specialized cells that show spontaneous electrical activity and have morphological properties of ICs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Urethral tissues from rabbits were fixed, labelled with antibodies and examined with confocal microscopy. Some specimens were embedded in paraffin wax and processed for histology. Histological sections from the most proximal third and mid-third region of rabbit urethra were stained with Masson's Trichrome to show their cellular arrangement. RESULTS: Sections from both regions had outer longitudinal and inner circular layers of SM, and a lamina propria containing connective tissue and blood vessels; the lumen was lined with urothelial cells. The mid-third region had a more developed circular SM layer than the most-proximal samples, and had extensive inner longitudinal SM bundles in the lamina propria. Labelling with anti-Kit revealed immunopositive cells within the wall of the rabbit urethra, in the circular and longitudinal layers of the muscularis. Double-labelling with an antibody to SM myosin showed Kit-positive cells on the boundary of the SM bundles, orientated parallel to the axis of the bundles. Others were in spaces between the bundles and often made contact with each other. Kit-positive cells were either elongated, with several lateral branches, or stellate with branches coming from a central soma. Similar cells could be labelled with vimentin antibodies. Their relationship with intramural nerves was examined by double immunostaining with an anti-neurofilament antibody. There were frequent points of contact between Kit-positive cells and nerves, with similar findings in specimens double-immunostained with anti-neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS). CONCLUSION: Kit-positive ICs were found within the SM layers of the rabbit urethra, in association with nerves, on the edge of SM bundles and in the interbundle spaces. The contact with nNOS-containing neurones might imply participation in the nitrergic inhibitory neurotransmission of the urethra. PMID: 17212607 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]