Can Our Group Survive? An Investigation of the Evolution of Mixed‐Mode Groups

Applying an ecological and evolutionary perspective, this study examines the evolution and the sustainability of “mixed‐mode groups,” a type of voluntary association created and organized online to interact physically in geographically defined ways. Meetup.com is a website that facilitates the creation and coordination of mixed‐mode groups. Analysis of interviews with 34 Meetup group organizers and a longitudinal analysis of 100 randomly selected Meetup groups revealed the evolutionary processes at the group and population level, respectively. Specifically, the ecological factor of population density, the demographic factor of group age, the group's profit orientation, experience of leadership change and shared leadership, and external ties played decisive roles in predicting group survival. Implications of the findings for theoretical and practical contributions are discussed.     

Lignosulfonates: effects on plant growth and survival and migration through the soil profile

The effects of Lignosite^#rm lignosulfonate, a refined lignosulfonate product that is obtained from the sulfite pulping process, on growth and survival of plants were investigated. Following applications of 0, 7500, 15,000 and 22,500 cm³#shm² to 32 plots within a forest plantation, the following were monitored: (1) live aboveground biomass of vascular plants, (2) growth of Douglar fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and (3) lignosulfonate migration through the soil profile. Live aboveground biomass of woody vegetation was not affected, and that of herbaceous plants was significantly decreased only at the two greatest application rates. Growth of the Douglas fir trees was not significantly affected. Lignosulfonates disappeared from the soil profile at the same rate regardless of initial concentration. Although it is not practical to use this material as a herbicide in western Washington, land application of lignosulfonates may be environmentally more attractive than traditional disposal methods.     

Family Growth and Survival Response to Two Simulated Water Temperature Environments in the Sea Urchin Strongylocentrotus intermedius

Heat tolerance is a target trait in the selective breeding of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus intermedius, as it plays an important role in the survival and growth of cultured S. intermedius during summer. We investigated family growth and survival response to two temperature treatments to evaluate the genotype by temperature interaction (GEI) in the family selection of S. intermedius. Sea urchins from 11 families were exposed to two simulated water temperature environments—high temperature (HE) and control temperature (CE)—for 12 months, with each experiment divided into four periods (P1, stress-free period I; P2, stress-full high period; P3, stress-response period; and P4, stress-free period II) based on the temperature changes and the survival. Test diameter (TD), body weight (BW), and survival rate (SR) in HE and CE were measured monthly. Effects of family, temperature, and family-temperature interaction on TD, BW, SR, and specific growth rate (SGR) for BW were examined. In CE, BW differed significantly between families in P2, P3, and P4, while TD differed significantly between families in P3 and P4 (p < 0.05). In HE, family had significant effects on BW in P4, and on TD in P3 and P4, while temperature had significant effects on SR, TD, and BW in P3 and P4 (p < 0.05). GEI effects were not significant for TD or BW; however, family ranking changes revealed the existence of GEI in SR. The GEI results indicate the necessity of applying family selection in CE and HE for SR, but not for TD or BW. These results may provide a guide for aquaculture and selective breeding of S. intermedius under temperature pressure.     

基于染色体畸变的细胞存活模型研究

为评估质子和重离子的辐射生物效应,建立了基于染色体畸变的细胞存活机理模型。开发了纳剂量生物物理蒙特卡罗模拟程序（NASIC）的DNA损伤修复模块,用于模拟不同射线类型、不同传能线密度（LET）辐射所致细胞核内染色体畸变产额。在分析辐射所致染色体畸变产额规律的基础上,建立了基于染色体畸变的细胞存活机理模型,并根据细胞存活实验数据拟合模型参数。以V79细胞为例,对于X射线和不同LET的质子,细胞存活分数的模型计算值与实验数据符合得很好,相关系数为0.985 3。采用⁴He离子的实验数据对模型及参数进行了验证,模型计算值与实验数据的相关系数为0.931 1。可见,模型能较好地区分不同射线类型、不同LET辐射在细胞致死效应上的差异。     

Primary Founder Mutations in the PRKDC Gene Increase Tumor Mutation Load in Colorectal Cancer

The clonal composition of a malignant tumor strongly depends on cellular dynamics influenced by the asynchronized loss of DNA repair mechanisms. Here, our aim was to identify founder mutations leading to subsequent boosts in mutation load. The overall mutation burden in 591 colorectal cancer tumors was analyzed, including the mutation status of DNA-repair genes. The number of mutations was first determined across all patients and the proportion of genes having mutation in each percentile was ranked. Early mutations in DNA repair genes preceding a mutational expansion were designated as founder mutations. Survival analysis for gene expression was performed using microarray data with available relapse-free survival. Of the 180 genes involved in DNA repair, the top five founder mutations were in PRKDC (n = 31), ATM (n = 26), POLE (n = 18), SRCAP (n = 18), and BRCA2 (n = 15). PRKDC expression was 6.4-fold higher in tumors compared to normal samples, and higher expression led to longer relapse-free survival in 1211 patients (HR = 0.72, p = 4.4 × 10⁻³). In an experimental setting, the mutational load resulting from UV radiation combined with inhibition of PRKDC was analyzed. Upon treatments, the mutational load exposed a significant two-fold increase. Our results suggest PRKDC as a new key gene driving tumor heterogeneity.     

Galanin Receptors (GalR1, GalR2, and GalR3) Expression in Colorectal Cancer Tissue and Correlations to the Overall Survival and Poor Prognosis of CRC Patients

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second most common cause of cancer in women and the third in men. The postoperative pathomorphological evaluation of patients with CRC is extremely important for future therapeutic decisions. Although our previous studies demonstrated high galanin (GAL) presence within tumor tissue and an elevated concentration of GAL in the serum of CRC patients, to date, there is a lack of data regarding GAL receptor (GalR) protein expression in CRC cells. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of all three types of GalRs (GalR1, GalR2 and GalR3) within epithelial cells of the human colon and CRC tissue with the use of the immunohistochemical method and to correlate the results with the clinical-pathological data. We found stronger immunoreactivity of GalR1 and GalR3 in CRC cells compared to epithelial cells of the unchanged mucosa of the large intestine. No differences in the GalR2 protein immunoreactivity between the studied tissues were noted. We also found that the increased immunoexpression of the GalR3 in CRC tissue correlated with the better prognosis and longer survival (p < 0.0079) of CRC patients (n = 55). The obtained results suggest that GalR3 may play the role of a prognostic factor for CRC patients. Based on data from the TCGA-COAD project deposited in the GDC Data Portal, we also found that GalR mRNA in cancer samples and the adjacent normal tissue did not correlate with immunoexpression of the GalR proteins in CRC cells and epithelial cells of the unchanged mucosa.     

Radio-resistance induced by nitric oxide to heavy ion irradiation in A172 human glioma cells

To investigate effects of nitric oxide on cellular radio-sensitivity, three human glioma cell lines, i.e. A172, A172 transfected green fluorescence protein (EGFP) gene (EA172) and A172 transfected inducible nitric oxide synthesis (iNOS) gene (iA172), were irradiated by 12C6 ions to 0, 1 or 2Gy. Productions of nitric oxide and glutathione (GSH) in A172, EA172 and iA172 were determined by chemical methods, cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry at the 24th hour after irradiation, and survival fraction of the cells was measured by colorimetric MTT assay at the 5th day after irradiation. The results showed that the concentrations of nitric oxide and GSH in iA172 were significantly higher than in A172 and EA172; the G2/M stage arrest induced by the 12C6 ion irradiation was observed in A172 and EA172 but not in iA172 at the 24th hour after exposure; and the survival fraction of iA172 was higher than that of EA172 and iA172. Data suggest that the radio-sensitivity of the A172 was reduced after the iNOS gene transfection. The increase of GSH production and the change of cellular signals such as the cell cycle control induced by nitric oxide may be involved in this radio-resistance.     

The Chromatin Architectural Protein CTCF Is Critical for Cell Survival upon Irradiation-Induced DNA Damage

CTCF is a nuclear protein initially discovered for its role in enhancer-promoter insulation. It has been shown to play a role in genome architecture and in fact, its DNA binding sites are enriched at the borders of chromatin domains. Recently, we showed that depletion of CTCF impairs the DNA damage response to ionizing radiation. To investigate the relationship between chromatin domains and DNA damage repair, we present here clonogenic survival assays in different cell lines upon CTCF knockdown and ionizing irradiation. The application of a wide range of ionizing irradiation doses (0–10 Gy) allowed us to investigate the survival response through a biophysical model that accounts for the double-strand breaks’ probability distribution onto chromatin domains. We demonstrate that the radiosensitivity of different cell lines is increased upon lowering the amount of the architectural protein. Our model shows that the deficiency in the DNA repair ability is related to the changes in the size of chromatin domains that occur when different amounts of CTCF are present in the nucleus.     

Viability and Resistance of Lactobacilli Isolated from Cocoa Fermentation to Simulated Gastrointestinal Digestive Steps in Soy Yogurt

To study the potential probiotic characteristics such as decrease of pH, microbial viability, and tolerance to simulated digestive steps of fermented soy beverage (“soy yogurt”) produced with lactobacilli isolated from cocoa fermentation (Lactobacillus fermentum TcUESC01 and Lactobacillus plantarum TcUESC02) during fermentation and refrigerated storage. The sensory acceptance of the yogurts was also tested. Samples of soy yogurt produced with L. fermentum TcUESC01 or L. plantarum TcUESC02 were collected during fermentation (0, 4, 8, and 12 h) and refrigerated storage (1, 9, 18, and 27 d), and submitted to pH and bacterial viability determinations. Tolerance to simulated digestion steps was done with refrigerated storage samples at 9 °C. Simulated digestion was performed in 3 successive steps: exposure to pepsin‐HCl solution, bile shock, and simulated small intestinal juice. During storage, a decrease in pH and lactobacillus viability was observed. L. fermentum TcUESC01 showed to be more resistant than L. plantarum TcUESC02 to simulated gastrointestinal digestion. All soy yogurts showed acceptable hedonic scores (greater than 5 in a 9‐point hedonic scale ranging from “like extremely” to “dislike extremely”) in sensory evaluation for flavor, aroma, color, consistency, and overall impression. L. plantarum TcUESC02 and, especially, L. fermentum TcUESC01 showed potential probiotic characteristics when considering pH, cell viability, and tolerance to simulated digestive steps and did not affect the sensory characteristics when supplemented to soy yogurt during storage.     

分布式网络雷达的生存能力

网络雷达是为应对现代复杂战争环境提出的一种新型雷达。给出了网络雷达的发现概率和生存概率,并将两者联系起来建立了相关的数学模型,以评价网络雷达的生存能力。