Blood glucose monitoring has been established as a valuable tool in the management of diabetes. Since maintaining normal blood glucose levels is recommended, a series of suitable glucose biosensors ...have been developed. During the last 50 years, glucose biosensor technology including point-of-care devices, continuous glucose monitoring systems and noninvasive glucose monitoring systems has been significantly improved. However, there continues to be several challenges related to the achievement of accurate and reliable glucose monitoring. Further technical improvements in glucose biosensors, standardization of the analytical goals for their performance, and continuously assessing and training lay users are required. This article reviews the brief history, basic principles, analytical performance, and the present status of glucose biosensors in the clinical practice.
•Recent studies on cell disruption and lipid extraction from microalgae are reviewed.•Cell-wall compositions and characteristics of important microalgae are investigated.•Various mechanical and ...non-mechanical approaches have been applied.•Integrative methods based on biological/physicochemical backgrounds are required.
The microalgae-based biorefinement process has attracted much attention from academic and industrial researchers attracted to its biofuel, food and nutraceutical applications. In this paper, recent developments in cell-disruption and lipid-extraction methods, focusing on four biotechnologically important microalgal species (namely, Chlamydomonas, Haematococcus, Chlorella, and Nannochloropsis spp.), are reviewed. The structural diversity and rigidity of microalgal cell walls complicate the development of efficient downstream processing methods for cell-disruption and subsequent recovery of intracellular lipid and pigment components. Various mechanical, chemical and biological cell-disruption methods are discussed in detail and compared based on microalgal species and status (wet/dried), scale, energy consumption, efficiency, solvent extraction, and synergistic combinations. The challenges and prospects of the downstream processes for the future development of eco-friendly and economical microalgal biorefineries also are outlined herein.
Tinnitus is a common condition in adults; however, the pathophysiology of tinnitus remains unclear, and no large population-based study has assessed the associated risk factors. The aim of this study ...was to analyze the prevalence and associated risk factors of tinnitus.
We conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, with 19,290 participants ranging in age from 20 to 98 years old, between 2009 and 2012. We investigated the prevalence of tinnitus using a questionnaire and analyzed various possible factors associated with tinnitus using simple and multiple logistic regression analysis with complex sampling.
The prevalence of tinnitus was 20.7%, and the rates of tinnitus associated with no discomfort, moderate annoyance, and severe annoyance were 69.2%, 27.9%, and 3.0%, respectively. The prevalence of tinnitus and the rates of annoying tinnitus increased with age. The adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of tinnitus was higher for females, those with a smoking history, those reporting less sleep (≤ 6 h), those with more stress, those in smaller households, those with a history of hyperlipidemia osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, depression, thyroid disease, an abnormal tympanic membrane, unilateral hearing loss, bilateral hearing loss, noise exposure from earphones, noise exposure at the workplace, noise exposure outside the workplace, and brief noise exposure. Additionally, unemployed individuals and soldiers had higher AORs for tinnitus. The AOR of annoying tinnitus increased with age, stress, history of hyperlipidemia, unilateral hearing loss, and bilateral hearing loss.
Tinnitus is very common in the general population and is associated with gender, smoking, stress, sleep, hearing loss, hyperlipidemia, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, depression, and thyroid disease history.
Deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) remove ubiquitin (Ub) from Ub-conjugated substrates to regulate the functional outcome of ubiquitylation. Here we report the discovery of a new family of DUBs, which ...we have named MINDY (motif interacting with Ub-containing novel DUB family). Found in all eukaryotes, MINDY-family DUBs are highly selective at cleaving K48-linked polyUb, a signal that targets proteins for degradation. We identify the catalytic activity to be encoded within a previously unannotated domain, the crystal structure of which reveals a distinct protein fold with no homology to any of the known DUBs. The crystal structure of MINDY-1 (also known as FAM63A) in complex with propargylated Ub reveals conformational changes that realign the active site for catalysis. MINDY-1 prefers cleaving long polyUb chains and works by trimming chains from the distal end. Collectively, our results reveal a new family of DUBs that may have specialized roles in regulating proteostasis.
Display omitted
•MINDY is a new family of DUBs consisting of FAM63A, FAM63B, FAM188A, and FAM188B•MINDY DUBs are highly selective at cleaving K48-linked polyubiquitin•Catalytic domain of MINDY-1 adopts a distinct fold with no homology to any known DUB•Human MINDY-1 trims ubiquitin chains from the distal end
Abdul Rehman et al. discover a new family of deubiquitinating enzymes called MINDY. This structurally distinct family of DUBs is highly selective at cleaving K48-linked polyubiquitin chains.
Vitamin A and carotenoids are fat-soluble micronutrients that play important role as powerful antioxidants modulating oxidative stress and cancer development. Breast cancer is the most common ...malignancy in women. As the risk of breast cancer is dependent on various lifestyle factors such as dietary modifications, there is increasing interest surrounding the anti-cancerous properties of vitamin A and carotenoids. Despite the suggested protective roles of vitamin A and carotenoids in breast cancer development, their clinical application for the prevention and treatment of breast cancer is limited. In this narrative review, we discuss the roles of vitamin A and carotenoids along with the evaluation method of vitamin A status. We also exhibit the association of genetic variations involved in metabolism of vitamin A and carotenoids with cancers and other diseases. We demonstrate the epidemiological evidence for the relationship of vitamin A and carotenoids with breast cancer risk, their effects on cancer mechanism, and the recent updates in clinical practice of vitamin A or carotenoids as a potential therapeutic agent against breast cancer. This review provides insight into the preventive and therapeutic roles of vitamin A and carotenoids in breast cancer development and progression.
We investigated the correlation between the flavonoid content and NO production inhibitory activity of fruit peel extracts using 20 citrus plants. The contents of seven flavonoids (naringin, ...naringenin, hesperidin, hesperetin, rutin, nobiletin, and tangeretin) were determined by HPLC analysis. Each citrus peel extract varied in flavonoid content, but the contents of nobiletin and tangeretin, which were contained in all 20 fruit peels, showed a positive and significant correlation with each other (r=0.879, p<0.0005 for immature fruit peels; r=0.858, p<0.0005 for mature fruit peels). All citrus peel extracts dose-dependently inhibited LPS-induced NO production in RAW 264.7 cells. This inhibitory effect was significantly and positively correlated with the content of nobiletin and tangeretin. Nobiletin showed a more potent NO production inhibitory activity (IC50=26.5 μM) compared to tangeretin (IC50=136.6 μM). This result supports the premise that nobiletin-rich citrus may provide protection against disease resulting from excessive NO production.
Intergroup threat harms attitudes toward the outgroup, leading to greater levels of prejudice and outgroup derogation (Rothgerber, 1997). Two experiments were conducted to examine (1) if perspective ...taking mitigates the negative influence of threat on explicit and implicit intergenerational attitudes and, if so, (2) whether this buffering effect would be stronger for participants who embodied an elderly person in an immersive virtual environment (IVE) compared to those who engaged in a traditional perspective taking exercise via mental simulation (MS). When intergroup threat was presented without intergroup contact (Study 1), the negative effect of threat on ageism dissipated when participants engaged in a perspective taking exercise. Differential effects were found depending on the perspective taking medium. However, when participants were exposed to a concrete and experiential intergroup threat (Study 2), neither modality of perspective taking (IVE and MS) buffered negative intergenerational attitudes.
•The presence and type of threat moderates the effects of perspective taking.•The modality of perspective taking influenced its benefits in certain contexts.•The benefits of immersive virtual environments vs. imagination are compared.•Reading an article describing the elderly as a financial burden increased ageism.•Ostracism by elderly virtual humans in a virtual environment increased ageism.
As access to smartphones and emerging technologies has become ubiquitous in our daily lives and in language learning, technology-mediated social interaction has become common in teaching and ...assessing L2 speaking. The changing ecology of L2 spoken interaction provides language educators and testers with opportunities for renewed test design and the gathering of context-sensitive validity evidence of interactive speaking assessment. First, I review the current research on interactive speaking assessment focusing on commonly used test formats and types of validity evidence. Second, I discuss recent research that reports the use of artificial intelligence and technologies in teaching and assessing speaking in order to understand how and what evidence of interactive speaking is elicited. Based on the discussion, I argue that it is critical to identify what features of interactive speaking are elicited depending on the types of technology-mediated interaction for valid assessment decisions in relation to intended uses. I further discuss opportunities and challenges for future research on test design and eliciting validity evidence of interactive speaking using technology-mediated interaction.
Summary
Background
The association between NUDT15 polymorphisms and thiopurine‐induced leucopenia is well known.
Aim
To investigate the association between NUDT15 polymorphisms and time‐to‐leucopenia ...in paediatric patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) receiving azathioprine and to determine the relationship between NUDT15 polymorphisms and 6‐thioguanine nucleotide (6‐TGN) levels.
Methods
This retrospective observational study included Korean paediatric patients with IBD who were treated with azathioprine and underwent NUDT15 and TPMT genotyping. Azathioprine doses were adjusted by regular thiopurine metabolite monitoring. Factors associated with time‐to‐leucopenia and the relationship between NUDT15 polymorphisms and 6‐TGN levels were analysed.
Results
Among the 167 patients included, leucopenia was observed in 16% (19/119), 44% (20/45) and 100% (3/3) of the NUDT15 normal, intermediate and poor metabolisers respectively (P < 0.001). NUDT15 polymorphism was significantly associated with time‐to‐leucopenia (HR = 5.26, 95% CI = 2.74‐10.09, P < 0.001). There was a positive association between 6‐TGN levels and leucopenia among the NUDT15 intermediate/TPMT normal metabolisers (median 361.3 vs 263.8 pmol/8 × 108 RBC, P = 0.013). The most accurate 6‐TGN cut‐off level associated with leucopenia was 308.2 pmol/8 × 108 RBC (AUC = 0.742, 95% CI = 0.569‐0.915, sensitivity 80.0%, specificity 72.7%, P < 0.001) in this subgroup. When the specificity was set to <15%, the 6‐TGN cut‐off level was 167.1 pmol/8 × 108 RBC (sensitivity 93.3%, specificity 13.6%).
Conclusions
NUDT15 polymorphisms were associated with time‐to‐leucopenia during azathioprine treatment in Korean paediatric patients with IBD. In order to reduce the development of thiopurine‐induced leucopenia (<15%) in NUDT15 intermediate metabolisers, adjustment of azathioprine doses should be based on a lower 6‐TGN target level (<167.1 pmol/8 × 108 RBC).
This qualitative study reports an investigation of the nature of interactional competence at various levels of achievement in the context of role-play speaking assessment. The focal point of this ...study is on how examinees jointly accomplish the interactional work involved in proposal sequences in role-play interaction. Based on a conversation analysis of a corpus of role-play interaction, I argue that distinct sequential organizations and interactional features found across examinees’ levels serve as critical validity evidence for assessing interactional competence. Various shift markers and stepwise transitions were present in higher-level examinees when they initiated and shifted actions in role-play interaction. However, lower-level examinees’ opening turns were typically forwarded without establishing a shared understanding relevant to an upcoming action. When the examinees responded to various proposal sequences, coherent and sufficient topic organizations were recurrent in higher-level performances. The examinees, regardless of levels, managed to close the role-play interaction well. I discuss the implications of the demonstrated link between the recurrent interactional features and examinees’ interactional competence for future research into speaking assessment and teaching.
PDF
