Fusion between a myogenic cell in the satellite cell position and undamaged adult myofibre segments

In this report we demonstrate for the first time that differentiating myogenic cells, geographically located between the plasmalemma and external lamina of myofibres in the satellite cell position³, can fuse directly with the plasmalemma of undamaged segments of mature myofibres.     

Carbon tetrachloride modulates the rat hepatic microsomal UDP-glucuronyl transferase activity and membrane fluidity

Summary Modulations in rat hepatic microsomal UDP-glucuronyl transferase activity have been observed during carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) poisoning, with a large decrease in the enzyme cooperativity and increase in the membrane fluidity, occurring 30 min after administration. The results strengthen the possibility that an increase in microsomal membrane fluidity may be an early key event in liver injury induced by CCl₄.Acknowledgments. This work was supported by funds of the University of Athens.     

Forecasting Daily and Monthly Exchange Rates with Machine Learning Techniques

In this paper we propose and test a forecasting model on monthly and daily spot prices of five selected exchange rates. In doing so, we combine a novel smoothing technique (initially applied in signal processing) with a variable selection methodology and two regression estimation methodologies from the field of machine learning (ML). After the decomposition of the original exchange rate series using an ensemble empirical mode decomposition (EEMD) method into a smoothed and a fluctuation component, multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS) are used to select the most appropriate variable set from a large set of explanatory variables that we collected. The selected variables are then fed into two distinctive support vector machines (SVR) models that produce one‐period‐ahead forecasts for the two components. Neural networks (NN) are also considered as an alternative to SVR. The sum of the two forecast components is the final forecast of the proposed scheme. We show that the above implementation exhibits a superior in‐sample and out‐of‐sample forecasting ability when compared to alternative forecasting models. The empirical results provide evidence against the efficient market hypothesis for the selected foreign exchange markets. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Informational Content of the Term Spread in Forecasting the US Inflation Rate: A Nonlinear Approach

The difficulty in modelling inflation and the significance in discovering the underlying data‐generating process of inflation is expressed in an extensive literature regarding inflation forecasting. In this paper we evaluate nonlinear machine learning and econometric methodologies in forecasting US inflation based on autoregressive and structural models of the term structure. We employ two nonlinear methodologies: the econometric least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and the machine‐learning support vector regression (SVR) method. The SVR has never been used before in inflation forecasting considering the term spread as a regressor. In doing so, we use a long monthly dataset spanning the period 1871:1–2015:3 that covers the entire history of inflation in the US economy. For comparison purposes we also use ordinary least squares regression models as a benchmark. In order to evaluate the contribution of the term spread in inflation forecasting in different time periods, we measure the out‐of‐sample forecasting performance of all models using rolling window regressions. Considering various forecasting horizons, the empirical evidence suggests that the structural models do not outperform the autoregressive ones, regardless of the model's method. Thus we conclude that the term spread models are not more accurate than autoregressive models in inflation forecasting. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stem cell therapy in stroke

Recent work has focused on cell transplantation as a therapeutic option following ischemic stroke, based on animal studies showing that cells transplanted to the brain not only survive, but also lead to functional improvement. Neural degeneration after ischemia is not selective but involves different neuronal populations, as well as glial and endothelial cell types. In models of stroke, the principal mechanism by which any improvement has been observed, has been attributed to the release of trophic factors, possibly promoting endogenous repair mechanisms, reducing cell death and stimulating neurogenesis and angiogenesis. Initial human studies indicate that stem cell therapy may be technically feasible in stroke patients, however, issues still need to be addressed for use in human subjects. Received 23 June 2008; received after revision 24 September 2008; accepted 30 September 2008     

Dissecting the genomic complexity underlying medulloblastoma

Medulloblastoma is an aggressively growing tumour, arising in the cerebellum or medulla/brain stem. It is the most common malignant brain tumour in children, and shows tremendous biological and clinical heterogeneity. Despite recent treatment advances, approximately 40% of children experience tumour recurrence, and 30% will die from their disease. Those who survive often have a significantly reduced quality of life. Four tumour subgroups with distinct clinical, biological and genetic profiles are currently identified. WNT tumours, showing activated wingless pathway signalling, carry a favourable prognosis under current treatment regimens. SHH tumours show hedgehog pathway activation, and have an intermediate prognosis. Group 3 and 4 tumours are molecularly less well characterized, and also present the greatest clinical challenges. The full repertoire of genetic events driving this distinction, however, remains unclear. Here we describe an integrative deep-sequencing analysis of 125 tumour-normal pairs, conducted as part of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) PedBrain Tumor Project. Tetraploidy was identified as a frequent early event in Group 3 and 4 tumours, and a positive correlation between patient age and mutation rate was observed. Several recurrent mutations were identified, both in known medulloblastoma-related genes (CTNNB1, PTCH1, MLL2, SMARCA4) and in genes not previously linked to this tumour (DDX3X, CTDNEP1, KDM6A, TBR1), often in subgroup-specific patterns. RNA sequencing confirmed these alterations, and revealed the expression of what are, to our knowledge, the first medulloblastoma fusion genes identified. Chromatin modifiers were frequently altered across all subgroups. These findings enhance our understanding of the genomic complexity and heterogeneity underlying medulloblastoma, and provide several potential targets for new therapeutics, especially for Group 3 and 4 patients.     

Fusion between a myogenic cell in the satellite cell position and undamaged adult myofibre segments.

In this report we demonstrate for the first time that differentiating myogenic cells, geographically located between the plasmalemma and external lamina of myofibres in the satellite cell position, can fuse directly with the plasmalemma of undamaged segments of mature myofibres.     

Inhibition of vasopressin-induced morbid effects on the rat kidney by pindolol and propranolol

Zusammenfassung Intraperitoneal injiziertes Vasopressin (einmal täglich während 3 Tagen) führt bei Ratten besonders im Nierenrindenmark-Grenzgebiet zu ischämischen Veränderungen. Pindolol und Propanolol als sogenannte Blockersubstanz, hemmt, bzw, verhindert diese Veränderungen.