1,721,013 research outputs found

    Sequential protein expression and selective labeling for in-cell NMR in human cells

    Get PDF
    In-cell NMR is a powerful technique to investigate proteins in living human cells at atomic resolution. Ideally, when studying functional processes involving protein-protein interactions by NMR, only one partner should be isotopically labeled. Here we show that constitutive and transient protein expression can be combined with protein silencing to obtain selective protein labeling in human cells.We established a human cell line stably overexpressing the copper binding protein HAH1. A second protein (human superoxide dismutase 1, SOD1) was overexpressed by transient transfection and isotopically labeled. A silencing vector containing shRNA sequences against the HAH1 gene was used to decrease the rate of HAH1 synthesis during the expression of SOD1. The levels of HAH1 mRNA and protein were measured as a function of time following transfection by RT-PCR and Western Blot, and the final cell samples were analyzed by in-cell NMR.SOD1 was ectopically expressed and labeled in a time window during which HAH1 biosynthesis was strongly decreased by shRNA, thus preventing its labeling. In-cell NMR spectra confirmed that, while both proteins were present, only SOD1 was selectively labeled and could be detected by (1)H-(15)N heteronuclear NMR.We showed that controlling protein expression by specifically silencing a stably expressed protein is a useful strategy to obtain selective isotope labeling of only one protein. This approach relies on established techniques thus permitting the investigation of protein-protein interactions by NMR in human cells

    New insights into the crosstalk between endocannabinoids and sphingosine-1-phosphate

    No full text
    This review aims at highlighting the interplay between the endocannabinoids (eCBs) anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) signaling. The eCBs and S1P are bioactive compounds that exemplify a paradigm of crosstalk among lipid signals, with profound implications for physiological processes and disease pathogenesis. Crosscommunication between eCBs and S1P occurs through multiple mechanisms: (i) receptor heterodimerization and coregulation, (ii) mutual metabolic modulation, and (iii) integrated regulation of downstream effectors. The latter emerged as a key mechanism underlying the bidirectional interactions between eCBs and S1P, with functional overlaps that regulate several processes, including inflammation, vascular function, and neuronal activity. In addition, cannabis-derived compounds (such as cannabidiol) can influence eCBs and S1P signaling, calling for further research into their therapeutic exploitation. Overall, the dynamic interplay between endogenous eCBs and S1P—as well as with exogenous cannabidiol—described here offers a compelling example of the complexity of interactions among bioactive lipids. A deeper mechanistic understanding of these relationships could pave the way to novel strategies in drug design and development, emphasizing the importance of integrated approaches in the study of bioactive lipid biochemistry

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

    Get PDF
    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

    Get PDF
    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

    Get PDF
    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

    Get PDF
    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods

    Author Index

    No full text
    Nao informado

    koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist

    No full text
    We have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
    corecore