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Authenticity is now being used to describe things as diverse as politicians, wallets and holiday packages, and claims to authenticity have become increasingly marketable. Media sources from magazines to social media blogs are all inundated with a persisting, recurring message: that tapping into the "real you" will be the liberating force allowing you to live a happy and successful life. This paper draws on a social constructionist theoretical framework and discourse analytic method to critically analyse three interconnected discourses of personal authenticity (as success, change and work) explored in 10 marketing campaigns prominent in South African media. The constructions found in these media are important not just as reflections of current subject positions available in a particular context, but also in the (re)construction of these particular identities and the (re)production of particular social systems. More specifically, in this case, by closely tying authenticity to notions of success, work and change, these discourses produce "good neoliberal subjects"- ambitious, self-regulated, proactive and productive citizens committed to personal progress and contributing to a "functioning" society. In other words, through these discourses, individuals' personal aspirations (e.g. self-improvement or happiness) become inextricably linked with capitalist modes of being (work and consumption). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cases of suicidal hanging are a common death referred for medico-legal autopsy throughout the world. Although some advocate using postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) without traditional invasive autopsy (TIA) to investigate such deaths, others reject this approach. There is currently limited evidence to guide practice. In this context, the TIA reports and PMCT images of 50 cases of suspected suicidal hanging during an 11-month period were reviewed. The reviewers were blinded to the findings of the other modality. A Cohen's Kappa coefficient (K) was calculated to assess agreement between TIA and PMCT across a range of pertinent findings. This analysis demonstrated perfect agreement for identification of a ligature (K = 1.00) and a strong level of agreement for identification of a ligature suspension point (K = 0.832) but only a minimal level of agreement for overall ligature mark (K = 0.223). PMCT demonstrated a weak level of agreement for fractures of hyoid bone (K = 0.555) and thyroid cartilage (K = 0.538). Three probable fractures not identified at TIA were identified on PMCT. TIA was shown to be superior in the identification of intramuscular and laryngeal fracture–related haemorrhage/bruising whereas PMCT was superior to TIA in identifying body gas deposition. There was overall good correlation between the natural disease and trauma identified elsewhere in the body during the TIA and PMCT. The study demonstrates that PMCT can assist the investigation of suspected suicidal hangings. However, the accuracy of many findings is limited, and if it is used as an alternative to the TIA, potentially pertinent findings, such as fractures of the laryngeal cartilages, could be missed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From 19th century romanticism to contemporary self-help culture, a popular philosophical thread has asserted, in apparent opposition to the rise of consumer culture, that it is better to focus on who you "really" are, rather than what you have. This paper uses a qualitative research design, social constructionist theoretical framework, and discourse analytic method, to critically discuss the discursive constructions of authenticity deployed by 15 South African artisanal/craft brands. This exploration highlights the tension between a purportedly critical version of authenticity- ostensibly offering an alternative to materialist hierarchies of social status and the manipulations of marketing (James, 2007) – and the increasing appearance of these discourses in lifestyle and marketing media. Here authenticity is offered precisely through personalised consumer options and participation in the dominant regime of consumption. The paper highlights the role that these contradictory discursive articulations play in the production of particular subject positions and social relationships. It hopes to extend the current literature by exploring these issues in a developing country, characterised by inequality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the deaths of Mlungisi Nxumalo and Lucky Sefali barely registered in the media and public consciousness, they can be read as an exemplar of South African violence. The more closely we examine this incident, the more difficult it becomes to distinguish between those fighting for justice, and those undermining it. The imagined boundaries between law-abiding citizen and criminal become unclear, as does the distinction between the use of force to protect citizens, and the use of violence to damage the social fabric. This leads to a critique of the conventional attributions of criminality and ideas about effective criminal justice, and instead reframes the problem of violence as one of the constructions of certain kinds of subjects, persons for whom the normalised exercise of various forms of unrecognised or legitimated violence is part of the texture of everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Healthiness is constructed, in Western culture, as a moral ideal or supervalue. This paper will interrogate the assumption that health and the pursuit of healthiness is always and unquestionably positive, by exploring how discourses of health and freedom interact to reinforce the current inequalities and detract from social transformation. Method: Twenty young South African adults were interviewed about their understandings and experiences of health. These discussions were analysed using Foucauldian discourse analysis. Results: Participants constructed healthiness as facilitating the experience of freedom, while at the same time being dependent on a personal orientation towards freedom (as opposed to merely submitting to dominant health authorities). Freedom discourses also played a role in connecting health to neoliberal discourses idealizing economic productivity and hard work. Participants were able to construct a self that is active, productive, valuable, hopeful, and self-assured when talking about health using discourses of freedom. However, these discourses also functioned to moralise and idealise healthiness, which contributed to blaming poor health on its sufferers. Conclusion: Health/freedom discourses can further reinforce the neoliberal value of individual responsibility by constructing self-improvement and self-work as the solution to ill-health, thereby contributing to victim-blaming and weakening support for public health interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypothesis: In the care of acute myocardial infarction, ticagrelor attenuates post-ischemic myocardial damage and inhibits platelet activity to a greater extent than clopidogrel. Methods: Scholarly articles published in the last 10 years were compiled from a PubMed MeSH search focusing on acute coronary infarction and the antiplatelet therapies clopidogrel and ticagrelor. The databases used were PubMed, Google Scholar, Dynamed, and EBSCOhost. Eight articles were chosen based on subject matter related to the hypothesis, including cardioprotective effects, mortality benefits, platelet reactivity, angiographic effects, and electrocardiography changes. Results: Evidence from randomized clinical trials demonstrates that ticagrelor reduces infarct size, prevents remodeling, and reduces mortality rate after acute myocardial infarction to a greater extent than clopidogrel. However, some angiography studies show no difference between the two treatment regimes. Two articles show that ticagrelor is more effective in treating individuals with high platelet reactivity (HPR). In addition, there is some evidence of increased dyspnea and significant bleeding with ticagrelor. Discussion: Although there is growing evidence that ticagrelor is the better antiplatelet drug post-acute coronary infarction, more research needs to be done to determine the situations in which ticagrelor provides the optimal treatment regime in regards to cardioprotective effects, antiplatelet effects and an overall decrease in mortality. Conclusion: Ticagrelor was found to be superior to clopidogrel in relation to cardioprotective effects, mortality, and antiplatelet activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores young South African women's constructions of the relationship between love and physical attractiveness. How these discourses are facilitated by an emerging South African consumer culture and the proliferation of mass media images which has accompanied this cultural change will also be discussed. This research took place among South African women between the ages of 18 and 25. Data was collected using focus groups and semistructured interviews and was analysed using discourse analysis. One of the common ideas structuring the young women's speech in the interviews and focus groups was the importance of physical attractiveness in romantic relationships both as a prerequisite for feelings of sexual desire and for subjective experiences of self-worth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to understand the risks of vicarious trauma and possibilities of resilience among volunteers at an organisation that supports survivors of intimate-partner violence. The analysis identifies the dynamics of the organisation and the risk of vicarious traumatisation that the volunteers faced. The participants explored the personal self-care techniques they found effective and the organisational support available. The findings indicate that there was some degree of recognition of the risk by individual support workers, and also some attempts by the organisation to offer support, but these were undermined by a prevailing stigma among volunteers associated with admitting and showing vulnerability and inadequacy. Such denialism has a negative impact on both volunteers and organisational support structures, and also indirectly affects the clients seeking support. This analysis supports the importance of dealing with vicarious traumatisation in the training of volunteers and makes recommendations for the ongoing functioning of organisations, in order to facilitate effective recognition, non-stigmatised acceptance, and management of vicarious traumatisation among crisis support workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We previously showed inhibition of Kir2 inward rectifier K+ channels expressed in Xenopus oocytes by the mitochondrial agents carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (FCCP) and sodium azide. Mutagenesis studies suggested that FCCP may act via phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) depletion. This mechanism could be reversible in intact cells but not in excised membrane patches which preclude PIP2 regeneration. This prediction was tested by investigating the reversibility of the inhibition of Kir2.2 by FCCP in intact cells and excised patches. We also investigated the effect of FCCP on Kir2.2 expressed in human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells. Kir2.2 current, expressed in Xenopus oocytes, increased in inside-out patches from FCCP-treated and untreated oocytes. The fraction of total current that increased was 0.79 ± 0.05 in control and 0.89 ± 0.03 in 10 µM FCCP-treated (P > .05). Following “run-up,” Kir2.2 current was re-inhibited by “cramming” inside-out patches into oocytes. Therefore, run-up reflected not reversal of inhibition by FCCP, but washout of an endogenous inhibitor. Kir2.2 current recovered in intact oocytes within 26.5 h of FCCP removal. Injection of oocytes with 0.1 U apyrase completely depleted ATP (P < .001) but did not inhibit Kir2.2 and inhibited Kir2.1 by 35% (P < .05). FCCP only partially reduced [ATP] (P < .001), despite inhibiting Kir2.2 by 75% (P < .01) but not Kir2.1. FCCP inhibited Kir2.2 expressed in HEK cells. The recovery of Kir2.2 from inhibition by FCCP requires intracellular components, but direct depletion of ATP does not reproduce the differential inhibitory effect of FCCP. Inhibition of Kir2.2 by FCCP is not unique to Xenopus oocytes. J. Cell. Physiol. 219: 8–13, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study, following Camperio-Ciani, Corna, and Capiluppi [(), Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Series B, Biological Sciences, 271, 2217–2221] aimed to examine the familial history of male homosexuality, and test the so-called “fertile female” hypothesis for this trait in a contemporary British sample. Using a comparative survey design, we found that white (comprising those of Anglo-European descent) and non-white (comprising ethnic “Blacks, “South Asians,” “East Asians,” “Hispanics,” and “Others”) homosexual men ( n = 147) had a significant excess of maternal but not paternal line male homosexual relatives compared to heterosexual men ( n = 155). We also found significantly elevated fecundity of maternal aunts of white homosexual men compared to white heterosexual men, whereas non-white heterosexual men showed elevated fecundities of almost every class of relative compared to non-white homosexual men. No significant excess of older brothers was found in homosexual compared to heterosexual men, irrespective of ethnic grouping. These data were discussed in relation to possible population-related factors in evolutionary explanations for human male homosexuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An 18-month study investigating the implementation of a Canadian anti-homophobia school policy found that such policies need to address homophobic ideas, institutional forms of homophobia and heterosexism, and individual expressions of homophobia. Teacher development is identical as an area in which Canadian policy implementation can be improved. More resources are needed to support the complex negotiations that educators must undertake when their professional and personal commitments to equity and human rights education collide with their own and others' personal and community religious beliefs about homosexuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Cultured cerebellar granule neurons (CGN) are commonly used to assess neurotoxicity, but are routinely maintained in supraphysiological (25mM) extracellular K+ concentrations [K+]o. We investigated the effect of potassium channel blockade on survival of CGN derived from Swiss-Webster mice in supraphysiological (25mM) and physiological (5.6mM) [K+]o. CGN were cultured for 5 days in 25mM K+, then in 5.6mM K+ or 25mM K+ (control). Viability, assayed 24h later by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazolyl-2)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) reduction and by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release, was ∼50% in 5.6mM K+ versus 25mM K+ (p <.001). Potassium channel blockers, 2mM 4-aminopyridine (4-AP), 2mM tetraethylammonium (TEA) or 1mM Ba2+, individually afforded limited protection in 5.6mM K+. However, survival in 5.6mM K+ with a combination of 4-AP, TEA and Ba2+ was similar to survival in 25mM K+ without blockers (p <.001 versus 5.6mM K+ alone). CGN survival in 25mM K+ was attenuated 25% by 2μM nifedipine (p >.001), but nifedipine did not attenuate neuroprotection by K+ channel blockers. Together, these results suggest that the survival of CGN depends on the K+ permeability of the membrane rather than the activity of a particular type of K+ channel, and that the mechanism of neuroprotection by K+ channel blockers is different from that of elevated [K+]o. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Current HIV-prevention work indicates that simply providing HIV-related information plays a limited role in changing sexual practices, and instead stresses the need to address the social and cultural forces shaping individual behaviour. The aim of this study was thus to explore the social influences that shape women's sexual behaviour with specific attention given to discourses of gender and HIV/AIDS. Material was generated through seven focus group discussions with black women living in a pen-urban area in Durban, and was interpreted using discourse analysis. The study clarified the ways in which women are not necessarily in a position to make purely rational, individual decisions about safe sex, since these decisions are intimately linked to social constructions of sexuality and the power relations that operate in cultures. It identified specific cultural practices linked to the organisation of gender roles and how these influence safe sex practices. The analysis then examined the implications of these findings for future HIV/AIDS education interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines a conceptual model of the freeze/thaw conditioning process. Transformation of difficult-to-dewater residuals into a slurry of granular particles; Effects of freezing and thawing on surface water; Colloidal particles comprising the floc formed by dehydration.

Identifies lipid-contacting residues in the Kir2.1, inward rectifier potassium channel, as those which tolerate mutation to tryptophan which has a large hydrophobic side chain. Mutagenesis and in vitro transcription; Oocyte preparation; Electrophysiology.

Presents information results of an experiment aimed to give a better understanding of conditioning water treatment residuals by the freeze/thaw process. Methodology of the experiments; Results of the experiments; Discussion on the results.

Discusses the results of the feasibility study on freeze/thaw conditioning of a sulfite pulp mill waste activated sludge (WAS). Difference between pulp mill and domestic WAS; Technology suited to the pulp industry.

Examines the anaerobic expanded bed reactor (AEBR), a possible choice for the anaerobic treatment of low-strength domestic wastewater. Materials and methods; Details on AEBR system; Analysis for the monitoring of the performance of the anaerobic process; Results and discussion.

Describes the process of floc fragmentation at the freezing interface. Interactions between flocs and the ice/water interface; Effect of freezing rate on interface morphology and indirect effects on floc migration and fragmentation; Transition between slow and intermediate freezing; Composition of the interface formed by fast freezing.

A correction to the article "Maternal Inheritance and Familial Fecundity Factors in Male Homosexuality" is presented.

Lipids influence powerfully the function of ion channels and transporters in two well-documented ways. A few lipids act as bona fide second messengers by binding to specific sites that control channel and transporter gating. Other lipids act nonspecifically by modifying the physical environment of channels and transporters, in particular the protein-membrane interface. In this short review, we first consider lipid signaling from this traditional viewpoint, highlighting innumerable Journal of General Physiology publications that have contributed to our present understanding. We then switch to our own emerging view that much important lipid signaling occurs via the formation of membrane domains that influence the function of channels and transporters within them, promote selected protein-protein interactions, and control the turnover of surface membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is promoted by inappropriate use and is a greater burden for low to middle income countries (LMIC) than high income countries (HIC). OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aimed to compare the awareness of inappropriate use related to AMR among medical doctors from LMIC and HIC using published knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) studies. METHODS: Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines, sequential systematic literature search of PubMed and Web of Science databases for articles published since inception up to June 1, 2022 for KAP studies involving medical doctors. Using fifteen KAP items related to promoting AMR, data on proportion of participants responding affirmatively was extracted and reported using means, ranges and 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: Forty-two studies met the inclusion criteria and involved 13,089 medical doctors from 11HIC and 21LMIC. All were cross-sectional studies, 71.4% involved non-probability sampling and 78.6% were of satisfactory quality. Knowledge items showed mean proportion of more medical doctors responding correctly. Similar affirmation trends were observed for attitude and prescribing practice items. Awareness appeared similar between medical doctors of the economic groups, except for a greater interest in training for LMIC (95.4%; 95%CI 93.0%, 97.9%) versus HIC (81.7%; 95%CI 65.6%, 97.9%). Countries with poor proportions were identified in both economic groups. CONCLUSION: For identified studies, trends suggest good awareness among medical doctors of the known inappropriate use and perceived threat of AMR, as well as prescribing practices to reduce the risk of AMR. Trends were similar across HIC and LMIC; however, countries with evidence of poor awareness exist in both economic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opinion. Discusses the aspect of undirectional freezing waste-activated sludge. Reference to the impact of electrolytes on freezing and thawing; Indication of results; Notation of references; Suggestion regarding attributed benefits to migration.

Comments on several issues in environmental engineering. Call for civil engineers to remain unified; Concerns in environmental engineering; Challenge faced by civil environmental engineering educators.

Presents research which studied menopause as a non-adaptive by-product of life-history patterns. Human menopause and evolutionary adaptation; Study of olive baboons and African lions; Age-specific changes in reproductive performance characteristic of menopause; Menopause due to senescence.

Focuses on the results of a series of optimization exercises in which the costs of the anaerobic expanded bed reactor as an expansion alternative for organically overloaded treatment plants are compared with costs for more conventional remedies of municipal wastewater. Unit processes of primary clarification; Gravity thickening and anaerobic digestion; Vacuum filtration.

Oesophagostomum sp. is a parasitic nematode that frequently infects wild chimpanzees. Although nodular lesions are commonly associated with infection, some wild chimpanzee populations seem to tolerate Oesophagostomum nodular lesions while those at Gombe and other sites suffer from associated morbidity and mortality. From August 2004 to December 2013, we examined demographic (i.e., age, sex) and individual correlates (i.e., fecal consistency, Oesophagostomum egg production) to Oesophagostomum‐associated pathology in 14 individually recognized chimpanzees at Gombe Stream National Park, Tanzania. In addition, we characterized Oesophagostomum‐associated pathology in 14 individual sympatric primates including baboons, colobus, and cercopithecid monkeys. In five chimpanzees, there was no evidence of any significant underlying disease aside from oesophagostomiasis to explain the thin condition or diarrhea. All five of these chimpanzees had moderate to numerous parasitic nodules. In general, nodules were more numerous in older chimpanzees. Three of four chimpanzees with the highest average Oesophagostomum egg counts in feces collected during the year prior to their death had numerous parasitic nodules at necropsy. In contrast, the four chimpanzees with the lowest egg counts had only moderate numbers of nodules. No association (P = 0.74) was noted between frequency of diarrhea in the year prior to death and the number of nodules noted at necropsy. Nodules were also present in all baboons examined documenting pathology associated with Oesophagostomum infection in wild baboons. In contrast, no lesions were noted in colobus or cercopithecid monkeys, although it is uncertain if they are infected as no fecal studies have been completed in these species to date at Gombe. Sequence of DNA isolated from nodules in chimpanzees matched (99%) Oesophagostomum stephanostomum. Further research is needed to identify the types of Oesophagostomum causing lesions in baboons and to determine if baboons suffer from these infections. Am. J. Primatol. 80:e22572, 2018. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new and versatile class of HNO donors, the (hydroxylamino)pyrazolone (HAPY) series of HNO donors utilizing pyrazolone (PY) leaving groups, is described. HNO, the smallest N-based aldehyde equivalent, is used as a reagent along with a variety of PY compounds to synthesize the desired HAPY donors in what can be considered an N-selective HNO-aldol reaction in up to quantitative yields. The bimolecular rate constant of HNO with PY in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer at 37 °C can reach 8 x 105 M-1 s-1. In 1H NMR experiments, the HAPY compounds generate HNO quantitatively (trapped as a phosphine aza-ylide) with half-lives spanning 3 orders of magnitude (minutes to days) under physiologically relevant conditions. B3LYP/6-31G* calculations confirm the energetically favorable reactions between HNO and the PY enol and enolate, whereas HNO release is expected to occur through the oxyanion (OHN-PY) of each HAPY compound. HNO has been shown to provide functional support to failing hearts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are single-stranded non-coding RNAs that negatively regulate target gene expression through mRNA cleavage or translational repression. There is mounting evidence that they play critical roles in heart disease. The expression of known miRNAs in the heart has been studied at length by microarray and quantitative PCR but it is becoming evident that microRNA isoforms (isomiRs) are potentially physiologically important. It is well known that left ventricular (patho)physiology is influenced by transmural heterogeneity of cardiomyocyte phenotype, and this likely reflects underlying heterogeneity of gene expression. Given the significant role of miRNAs in regulating gene expression, knowledge of how the miRNA profile varies across the ventricular wall will be crucial to better understand the mechanisms governing transmural physiological heterogeneity. To determinine miRNA/isomiR expression profiles in the rat heart we investigated tissue from different locations across the left ventricular wall using deep sequencing. We detected significant quantities of 145 known rat miRNAs and 68 potential novel orthologs of known miRNAs, in mature, mature* and isomiR formation. Many isomiRs were detected at a higher frequency than their canonical sequence in miRBase and have different predicted targets. The most common miR-133a isomiR was more effective at targeting a construct containing a sequence from the gelsolin gene than was canonical miR-133a, as determined by dual-fluorescence assay. We identified a novel rat miR-1 homolog from a second miR-1 gene; and a novel rat miRNA similar to miR-676. We also cloned and sequenced the rat miR-486 gene which is not in miRBase (v18). Signalling pathways predicted to be targeted by the most highly detected miRNAs include Ubiquitin-mediated Proteolysis, Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase, Regulation of Actin Cytoskeleton, Wnt signalling, Calcium Signalling, Gap junctions and Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy. Most miRNAs are not expressed in a gradient across the ventricular wall, with exceptions including miR-10b, miR-21, miR-99b and miR-486. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gene targeting by microRNAs is important in health and disease. We developed a functional assay for identifying microRNA targets and applied it to the K+ channel Kir2.1 [KCNJ2 (potassium inwardly-rectifying channel, subfamily J, member 2)] which is dysregulated in cardiac and vascular disorders. The 3UTR (untranslated region) was inserted downstream of the mCherry red fluorescent protein coding sequence in a mammalian expression plasmid. MicroRNA sequences were inserted into the pSM30 expression vector which provides enhanced green fluorescent protein as an indicator of microRNA expression. HEK (human embryonic kidney)-293 cells were co-transfected with the mCherry-3UTR plasmid and a pSM30-based plasmid with a microRNA insert. The principle of the assay is that functional targeting of the 3UTR by the microRNA results in a decrease in the red/green fluorescence intensity ratio as determined by automated image analysis. The method was validated with miR-1, a known down-regulator of Kir2.1 expression, and was used to investigate the targeting of the Kir2.1 3'UTR by miR-212. The red/green ratio was lower in miR-212-expressing cells compared with the non-targeting controls, an effect that was attenuated by mutating the predicted target site. miR-212 also reduced inward rectifier current and Kir2.1 protein in HeLa cells. This novel assay has several advantages over traditional luciferase-based assays including larger sample size, amenability to time course studies and adaptability to high-throughput screening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inward rectifier potassium channels of the Kir2 subfamily are important determinants of the electrical activity of brain and muscle cells. Genetic mutations in Kir2.1 associate with Andersen-Tawil syndrome (ATS), a familial disorder leading to stresstriggered periodic paralysis and ventricular arrhythmia. To identify the molecular mechanisms of this stress trigger, we analyze Kir channel function and localization electrophysiologically and by time-resolved confocal microscopy. Furthermore, we employ a mathematical model of muscular membrane potential. We identify a novel corticoid signaling pathway that, when activated by glucocorticoids, leads to enrichment of Kir2 channels in the plasma membranes of mammalian cell lines and isolated cardiac and skeletal muscle cells. We further demonstrate that activation of this pathway can either partly restore (40% of cases) or further impair (20% of cases) the function of mutant ATS channels, depending on the particular Kir2.1 mutation. This means that glucocorticoid treatment might either alleviate or deteriorate symptoms of ATS depending on the patient's individual Kir2.1 genotype. Thus, our findings provide a possible explanation for the contradictory effects of glucocorticoid treatment on symptoms in patients with ATS and may open new pathways for the design of personalized medicines in ATS therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HL-1 is a line of immortalized cells of cardiomyocyte origin that are a useful complement to native cardiomyocytes in studies of cardiac gene regulation. Several types of ion channel have been identified in these cells, but not the physiologically important inward rectifier K+ channels. Our aim was to identify and characterize inward rectifier K+ channels in HL-1 cells. External Ba2+ (100 µM) inhibited 44 ± 0.05% (mean ± s.e.m., n = 11) of inward current in whole-cell patch-clamp recordings. The reversal potential of the Ba2+-sensitive current shifted with external [K+] as expected for K+-selective channels. The slope conductance of the inward Ba2+-sensitive current increased with external [K+]. The apparent Kd for Ba2+ was voltage dependent, ranging from 15 µM at -150 mV to 148 µM at -75 mV in 120 mM external K+. This current was insensitive to 10 µM glybenclamide. A component of whole-cell current was sensitive to 150 µM 4,4′-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2′-disulfonic acid (DIDS), although it did not correspond to the Ba2+-sensitive component. The effect of external 1 mM Cs+ was similar to that of Ba2+. Polymerase chain reaction using HL-1 cDNA as template and primers specific for the cardiac inward rectifier Kir2.1 produced a fragment of the expected size that was confirmed to be Kir2.1 by DNA sequencing. In conclusion, HL-1 cells express a current that is characteristic of cardiac inward rectifier K+ channels, and express Kir2.1 mRNA. This cell line may have use as a system for studying inward rectifier gene regulation in a cardiomyocyte phenotype. J. Cell. Physiol. 225: 751-756, 2010. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Miombo woodlands and associated habitats provide a vital resource for both humans and chimpanzees in western Tanzania. A baseline survey was conducted to determine the perceived relative value of different woody species to local people in the six villages adjacent to Gombe National Park. This area also provides direct comparison of tree utilization by humans and chimpanzees since it has been the site of a long-term behavioral study on chimpanzees. Four hundred and fifty-two people, all over 30 years old, were interviewed and asked to select the 10 trees that they considered to be the most important in their everyday lives: 77% of the 4520 responses (represented by 260 species) were native and 23% (represented by 35 species) were exotic trees. In this study, particular focus was paid to the 25 tree species most frequently listed. Of these trees, 19 (representing 50% of all responses) were native, and 6 were exotic. There was a marked difference in the choices, especially with respect to native trees, by men and women. Many of the trees highly prized by humans are also of great importance in the diet of chimpanzees. It is recommended that a major effort be made to maintain the usage and availability of native trees outside the park boundary, which, in conjunction with the balanced planting of exotics for meeting local needs, should contribute to protecting the biodiversity of Gombe and the local ethnobotanical heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

N- and C-terminal cytoplasmic domains of inwardly rectifying K (Kir) channels control the ion-permeation pathway through diverse interactions with small molecules and protein ligands in the cytoplasm. Two new crystal structures of the cytoplasmic domains of Kir2.1 (Kir2.1L) and the G protein-sensitive Kir3.1 (Kir3.1S) channels in the absence of PIP2 show the cytoplasmic ion-permeation pathways occluded by four cytoplasmic loops that form a girdle around the central pore (G-loop). Significant flexibility of the pore-facing G-loop of Kir2.1L and Kir3.1S suggests a possible role as a diffusion barrier between cytoplasmic and transmembrane pores. Consistent with this, mutations of the G-loop disrupted gating or inward rectification. Structural comparison shows a di-aspartate cluster on the distal end of the cytoplasmic pore of Kir2.1L that is important for modulating inward rectification. Taken together, these results suggest the cytoplasmic domains of Kir channels undergo structural changes to modulate gating and inward rectification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the role of endoplastic reticulum (ER) export signals in the plasma membrane. Control of surface potassium channel numbers and channel localization; Effect of the transfer of ER export signals to other channels or receptor; Limitation of the ER export of membrane proteins.

Presents cases of extrapyramidal symptoms associated with quetiapine. 31-year-old man with chronic paranoid schizophrenia who complained of stiffness in his arms and legs two weeks after taking quetiapine; 46-year-old woman with mild cogwheel rigidity of both elbows and wrists after taking quetiapine for the same condition; 37-year-old man with schizoaffective disorder who shows typical parkinsonian tremor of both hands after taking quetiapine.