We describe the identification and characterization of circular intronic long noncoding RNAs in human cells, which accumulate owing to a failure in debranching. The formation of such circular ...intronic RNAs (ciRNAs) can be recapitulated using expression vectors, and their processing depends on a consensus motif containing a 7 nt GU-rich element near the 5′ splice site and an 11 nt C-rich element close to the branchpoint site. In addition, we show that ciRNAs are abundant in the nucleus and have little enrichment for microRNA target sites. Importantly, knockdown of ciRNAs led to the reduced expression of their parent genes. One abundant such RNA, ci-ankrd52, largely accumulates to its sites of transcription, associates with elongation Pol II machinery, and acts as a positive regulator of Pol II transcription. This study thus suggests a cis-regulatory role of noncoding intronic transcripts on their parent coding genes.
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•Circular intronic RNAs accumulate in human cells owing to escape from debranching•Their processing depends on RNA motifs near 5′ splice site and branchpoint•ciRNAs regulate parent gene expression by modulating elongation Pol II activity
Riassunto Le circolari amministrative sono state ampiamente utilizzate quali strumenti normativi per disciplinare la crisi della pandemia. Si tratta di atti interni all’apparato della pubblica ...amministrazione, che indirettamente sono in grado di condizionare anche i terzi soggetti che entrano con essa in rapporto.
Riassunto Le circolari amministrative sono state ampiamente utilizzate quali strumenti normativi per disciplinare la crisi della pandemia. Si tratta di atti interni all’apparato della pubblica ...amministrazione, che indirettamente sono in grado di condizionare anche i terzi soggetti che entrano con essa in rapporto.
The health and wellness food sector grew 98% from 2009 to 2014 in Brazil, the world's fourth-biggest market. The trend has reached supermarket circulars, which recently started to feature whole ...sections advertising health and wellness-enhancing foods. This study identified food items advertised in circulars' specific sections of two Brazilian supermarket chains (one regional, one national) during a 10-week period. Foods were classified according to degree of food processing and presence/type of claims on their front-of-pack (FoP) labels. Comparison between groups of Unprocessed/Minimally Processed foods vs. Ultra-processed foods and presence/type of claims employed Pearson chi-square test. From the 434 alleged health and wellness-enhancing foods advertised, around half (51.4%) were classified as Ultra-processed. Presence of reduced and increased nutrient-content claims was significantly higher in labels of Ultra-processed foods. Most frequent claims addressed sugar and fibre content. Brazilian supermarket circulars were found to be promoting the sale of Ultra-processed foods in their health and wellness sections, leading to a situation that can mislead the consumer and bring negative health outcomes.
Abstract Background Supermarkets use sales circulars to highlight specific foods, usually at reduced prices. Resulting purchases help form the set of available foods within households from which ...individuals and families make choices about what to eat. Objective The purposes of this study were to determine how closely foods featured in weekly supermarket sales circulars conform to dietary guidance and how diet quality compares with that of the US population's intakes. Design Food and beverage items (n=9,149) in 52 weekly sales circulars from a small Midwestern grocery chain in 2009 were coded to obtain food group and nutrient and energy content. Healthy Eating Index-2010 (HEI-2010) total and component scores were calculated using algorithms developed by the National Cancer Institute. HEI-2010 scores for the US population aged 2+ years were estimated using data from the 2009-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. HEI-2010 scores of circulars and population intakes were compared using Student’s t tests. Results Mean total (42.8 of 100) HEI-2010 scores of circulars were lower than that of the US population (55.4; P <0.001). Among individual components, Total Protein Foods was the only one for which 100% of the maximum score was met by both circulars and the population. The scores were also similar between the circulars and population for Whole Grains (22%; P =0.81) and Seafood and Plant Proteins (70% to 74%; P =0.33). Circular scores were lower than those of the population for Total and Whole Fruits, Total Vegetables and Greens and Beans, Dairy, Sodium, and Empty Calories ( P <0.001); they were higher only for Fatty Acids ( P =0.006) and Refined Grains ( P <0.001). Conclusions HEI-2010 total scores for these sales circulars were even lower than US population scores, which have been shown repeatedly to reflect low diet quality. Supermarkets could support improvements in consumer diets by weekly featuring foods that are more in concordance with food and nutrient recommendations.
Fighting corruption has been a signature theme in the governance of China since Xi Jinping became General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CCCPC) in 2012. Among the ...extensive attention from academic and policy discourse to this unprecedented anti-corruption effort in CPC’s history, there are studies that take the one-sided view that the effort under way is not anti-corruption in its strict sense as it relies on the Party mechanism rather than the legal system, scripted, and calculated for the narrow self-interest of factional power enhancement. Reviewing contemporary fundamental anti-corruption discourses, anchored in critical discourse analysis, and assisted by 134 circulars of intra-Party disciplinary punishments of corrupt high-ranking officials (“tigers”,
dalaohu
), this interdisciplinary study reveals that, by contrast, China adopts an integrated approach to corruption, which incorporates republican and liberal-rationalist beliefs and values. Specifically, it is characterized by CCCPC as leadership, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection as political agency, both following a mentality of the rule of law, and by the coordination between intra-Party disciplinary rules and state laws. This approach is appropriate because it conceptualizes corruption by targeting the main feature of the corruption-related problem. This study contributes from a discoursal perspective to the understanding of China’s anti-corruption in the Xi Jinping Era.
Potassium use efficiency (KUE) in faba bean production is often low, and the luxury of fertilization has negative environmental impacts. The current study aims to reduce the recommended dose of ...potassium (K) for faba bean by potassium solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and humic acid (HA). The studied treatments were 50 and 100% of K recommended dose with or without PSB and 40 kg of HA ha
−1
. The studied treatments were applied to faba bean ((
Vicia faba
L., cv. Giza 843) plants grown in sandy loam soils for two successive seasons. In this study, the maximum KUE (40%) was obtained in the soil treated with HA and PSB while the lowest one (14%) was found in the case of the full recommended dose of mineral form. Humic acid and PSB that were applied to the plants fertilized with 50% of the recommended dose gave the maximum growth and yield. Humic acid and PSB increased the soil cation exchange capacity (CEC) by 6% and the soil organic matter (SOM) by 12%. Chlorophyll and carbohydrates in the leaves were increased by 36 and 50%, respectively, above the control, as results of HA and PSB application. Adding half of K requirements for faba bean in a mineral form with 40 kg of HA and PSB led to 14% and 19% increases in the seed and straw yield compared to the full mineral fertilization without bacterial inoculation. Humic acid and potassium solubilizing bacteria can be used to improve soil quality and increase the availability and uptake of nutrients, and thus increase the yield of faba bean plants. The experimental results from our 2-year research on faba bean grown on sandy loam soils establish a deductive scientific basis for using bio-fertilizers and organic materials to produce cleaner food and better environment conditions.
To examine the proportion of healthier and less healthy food promotions in circulars of major Belgian supermarket chains.
Food promotions were collected from all circulars over 1 year from the five ...largest Belgian supermarket chains. Foods promoted were classified according to the World Health Organization Europe nutrient profile model categories and the level and purpose of processing as per the NOVA classification. In addition, promotional characters (i.e. cartoons, licensed characters, celebrities) and premium offers within the promotions were analysed.
In total, 15,271 food promotions were analyzed. The most frequently promoted foods in circulars were processed meat, poultry and fish (11.8%); fresh and frozen fruit, vegetables and legumes (9.5%); soft drinks and sweetened beverages (9.0%); fresh and frozen meat, poultry, fish and eggs (8.6%); cakes, sweet biscuits and pastries (8.1%); ready-made and convenience foods (8.0%); chocolate and sugar confectionery; energy bars and sweet toppings (7.7%) and cheeses (5.7%). About 52.2% of food promotions across all circulars were for ultra-processed foods, with considerable variation across chains (42.9-61.6%). Promotional characters and premium offers were found within 5.3 and 19.5% of promotions respectively. For all chains, circular covers were healthier compared to entire circulars, with a lower proportion of ultra-processed foods and a higher proportion of fresh fruit and vegetables promoted.
Food promotions in circulars were most frequently for ultra-processed foods, with considerable variation across chains. Circular covers were healthier than entire circulars. Policies to reduce less healthy food promotions could contribute to improving the healthiness of supermarket food purchases.
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