With the launch of the Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS) in 2006, the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) took the initiative to implement the first global-scale systematic acquisition strategy for ...satellite sensors at fine and medium (2.5–20m) spatial resolution. Comprising all three sensors on ALOS (PALSAR, PRISM, AVNIR-2), the plan was designed to serve all ALOS user categories and aimed at producing spatially and temporally consistent baseline coverages over the planet on a repetitive basis, to accommodate systematic global-scale, fine-resolution, monitoring of the environment. Unlike the common background missions defined for most fine-resolution Earth Observation satellites, the observation strategy was implemented as a top-level foreground mission with a priority second only to that of special observation requests and emergency observations and sensor calibration.
While the ALOS mission regrettably ended in April 2011, the global acquisition strategy nevertheless produced a comprehensive and homogeneous global archive in which consistent time-series of data are available for any arbitrary land area on Earth (excluding Antarctica >77.5° South latitude, which could not be reached by the sensors). Clouds and haze inevitably constituted limitations for the optical sensors, while for the PALSAR instrument, two cloud-free and near-gap free (~95%) global coverages were achieved annually during the 4.5years in operations. Previously, such uniform data archives existed only for coarse-resolution sensors such as AVHRR, MERIS and MODIS. The ALOS BOS supported a variety applications from local to global scales, ranging from structural deformation, monitoring of wetlands regional inundation patterns and mapping of forest extent and changes over nations and continents at spatial resolutions as fine as 10m.
The Advanced Land Observing Satellite 2 (ALOS-2) was launched on May 24, 2014. Equipped with an enhanced L-band SAR sensor (PALSAR-2), ALOS-2 resumes the global wall-to-wall acquisitions to assure continuity and consistency with JAXA’s global mission objectives and unique L-band SAR archive created by ALOS PALSAR.
•First global acquisition strategy implemented for a mid-resolution SAR mission•Continental wall-to-wall observation planning prevents fragmented data archives•75-80% average acquisition success rate achieved for the ALOS mission•Follow-on mission (ALOS-2) will also feature systematic acquisition strategy•Global strategic planning now accepted approach for many near-future missions
tob is a member of antiproliferative family genes. Mice lacking tob are prone to spontaneous formation of tumors. The occurrence rate of diethylnitrosamine-induced liver tumors is higher in tob(-/-) ...mice than in wild-type mice. tob(-/-)p53(-/-) mice show accelerated tumor formation in comparison with single null mice. Expression of cyclin D1 mRNA is increased in the absence of Tob and is reduced by Tob. Tob acts as a transcriptional corepressor and suppresses the cyclin D1 promoter activity through an interaction with histone deacetylase. Levels of tob mRNA are often decreased in human cancers, implicating tob in cancer development.
tob is a member of an emerging family of genes with antiproliferative function. Tob is rapidly phosphorylated at Ser 152, Ser 154, and Ser 164 by Erk1 and Erk2 upon growth-factor stimulation. ...Oncogenic Ras-induced transformation and growth-factor-induced cell proliferation are efficiently suppressed by mutant Tob that carries alanines but not glutamates, mimicking phosphoserines, at these sites. Wild-type Tob inhibits cell growth when the three serine residues are not phosphorylated but is less inhibitory when the serines are phosphorylated. Because growth of Rb-deficient cells was not affected by Tob, Tob appears to function upstream of Rb. Intriguingly, cyclin D1 expression is elevated in serum-starved tob(-/-) cells. Reintroduction of wild-type Tob and mutant Tob with serine-to-alanine but not to glutamate mutations on the Erk phosphorylation sites in these cells restores the suppression of cyclin D1 expression. Finally, the S-phase population was significantly increased in serum-starved tob(-/-) cells as compared with that in wild-type cells. Thus, Tob inhibits cell growth by suppressing cyclin D1 expression, which is canceled by Erk1- and Erk2-mediated Tob phosphorylation. We propose that Tob is critically involved in the control of early G(1) progression.
Tob is a member of the Tob/BTG family, a novel class of anti-proliferative proteins. To investigate the involvement of
tob as a tumor suppressor gene in human lung cancer, we analyzed the expression ...of
tob mRNA and protein in lung cancer tissue and adjacent normal lung tissue. Immunohistochemical analysis using anti-Tob antibody showed decreased expression of Tob in 72% (31/43) of lung cancer tissues. Furthermore, 95% (19/20) of squamous cell carcinoma patients showed an apparent decrease in Tob in cancer tissues, associated with smoking status. The phosphorylated form of Tob, an inactive form of Tob, was detected in 76% (16/21) of cancer tissues of adenocarcinoma patients, but not in normal alveolar epithelial cells. Either a decrease in Tob expression or an accumulation of phosphorylated Tob was observed from early clinical stages, even in bronchial dysplasia, a premalignant lesion of squamous cell carcinoma. The above findings suggest that the disruption of anti-proliferative Tob plays a distinct part in the early stage of lung carcinogenesis.
Fibre single crystals of K3Sr2RNb10O30 (R = La, Nd, Eu, Gd, Sm) have been successfully grown using the μ-pulling down method. Single crystal X-ray diffraction technique has confirmed that all ...isolated compounds crystallize with the tetragonal tungsten bronze structure. The elemental analyses of Nd- and Eucrystals using EDX has evidenced the presence of some inclusions corresponding to the composition KNb3O8. The presence of such compound in the matrix of the grown fibres could be interpreted as a revelation of the quaternary equilibrium involved during the crystal growth. Dielectric and Raman investigations within a wide temperature range –150 °C; 400 °C, tend to confirm the existence of the same thermal anomalies. Although these anomalies are found at almost the same temperatures, the nature and the mechanisms of the so-revealed phase transitions are not yet totally evidenced.
Fibre single crystals of K3Sr2RNb10O30 (R = La, Nd, Eu, Gd, Sm) have been successfully grown using the μ-pulling down method. Single crystal X-ray diffraction technique has confirmed that all isolated compounds crystallize with the tetragonal tungsten bronze structure. The elemental analyses of Nd- and Eucrystals using EDX has evidenced the presence of some inclusions corresponding to the composition KNb3O8. The presence of such compound in the matrix of the grown fibres could be interpreted as a revelation of the quaternary equilibrium involved during the crystal growth. Dielectric and Raman investigations within a wide temperature range –150 °C; 400 °C, tend to confirm the existence of the same thermal anomalies. Although these anomalies are found at almost the same temperatures, the nature and the mechanisms of the so-revealed phase transitions are not yet totally evidenced.
Background
tob is a member of a gene family with anti‐proliferative function. Over‐expression of Tob in NIH3T3 cells results in the suppression of cell proliferation. The growth suppression is ...hampered by the presence of activated ErbB2 kinase. The molecular mechanisms by which Tob suppresses cell growth and by which ErbB2 abrogates Tob function remain to be elucidated.
Results
We show that Tob is phosphorylated on serines and threonines, but not tyrosines, by a kinase(s) that associates with Tob in the lysates of various cells, including ErbB2‐over‐expressed cells. We also show that a 95 kDa kinase associates with Tob in vitro. The autophosphorylation activity of this kinase co‐chromatographes with Tob‐phosphorylating activity, suggesting that the 95 kDa kinase phosphorylates Tob. Among the known kinases with molecular mass around 95 kDa, p90rsk1 associates with Tob in vitro and in vivo, and phosphorylates Tob at least in vitro. Therefore, it is likely that p90rsk1 represents the 95 kDa kinase and is involved in the regulation of Tob function through phosphorylation.
Conclusion
p90rsk1 associates with and phosphorylates Tob. Because p90rsk1 is activated downstream of receptor tyrosine kinases, we propose that Tob function is at least in part under the control of growth factor‐stimulated tyrosine kinases through its phosphorylation by p90rsk1.
Tob inhibits bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling by interacting with receptor-regulated Smads in osteoblasts. Here we provide evidence that Tob also interacts with the inhibitory Smads 6 and ...7. A yeast two-hybrid screen identified Smad6 as a protein interacting with Tob. Tob co-localizes with Smad6 at the plasma membrane and enhances the interaction between Smad6 and activated BMP type I receptors. Furthermore, we have isolated
Xenopus Tob2, and show that it cooperates with Smad6 in inducing secondary axes when expressed in early
Xenopus embryos. Finally, Tob and Tob2 cooperate with Smad6 to inhibit endogenous BMP signaling in
Xenopus embryonic explants and in cultured mammalian cells. Our results provide both in vitro and in vivo evidence that Tob inhibits endogenous BMP signaling by facilitating inhibitory Smad functions.
Crystallization was examined for glasses having chemical composition of 2(Ca,Sr,Ba)O-TiO2-2SiO2 in which the CaO/SrO/BaO molar ratio varied. Powdered glass samples were pelleted into disks and ...sintered at 950 C for 2 h. The major phase precipitated in the sintered samples was (Ca,Sr,Ba)2TiSi2O8 and minor phase of perovskite such as CaTiO3 or SrTiO3 increased with CaO content in the samples containing > 40 mol% of CaO in total CaO+SrO+BaO. Three regions having different slopes were found in linear relationships between SrO mol% and exothermal peak temperature on DSC curves or d002 values determined by powder XRD method. The major phase precipitated in each region was a solid solution containing a different amount of CaO, SrO, BaO and that these compositions varied depending on SrO content in the sample. The micro-crystalline structure, which could be useful in fabricating a dielectric dense body, was observed for samples containing 30-70 mol% of SrO. 7 refs.
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