Variant between CPT1B and CHKB associated with susceptibility to narcolepsy

Narcolepsy (hypocretin deficiency), a sleep disorder characterized by sleepiness, cataplexy and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep abnormalities, is tightly associated with HLA-DRB1*1501 (M17378) and HLA-DQB1*0602 (M20432). Susceptibility genes other than those in the HLA region are also likely involved. We conducted a genome-wide association study using 500K SNP microarrays in 222 Japanese individuals with narcolepsy and 389 Japanese controls, with replication of top hits in 159 Japanese individuals with narcolepsy and 190 Japanese controls, followed by the testing of 424 Koreans, 785 individuals of European descent and 184 African Americans. rs5770917, a SNP located between CPT1B and CHKB, was associated with narcolepsy in Japanese (rs5770917[C], odds ratio (OR) = 1.79, combined P = 4.4 x 10(-7)) and other ancestry groups (OR = 1.40, P = 0.02). Real-time quantitative PCR assays in white blood cells indicated decreased CPT1B and CHKB expression in subjects with the C allele, suggesting that a genetic variant regulating CPT1B or CHKB expression is associated with narcolepsy. Either of these genes is a plausible candidate, as CPT1B regulates beta-oxidation, a pathway involved in regulating theta frequency during REM sleep, and CHKB is an enzyme involved in the metabolism of choline, a precursor of the REM- and wake-regulating neurotransmitter acetylcholine.     

Three classical Cepheid variable stars in the nuclear bulge of the Milky Way

The nuclear bulge is a region with a radius of about 200 parsecs around the centre of the Milky Way. It contains stars with ages ranging from a few million years to over a billion years, yet its star-formation history and the triggering process for star formation remain to be resolved. Recently, episodic star formation, powered by changes in the gas content, has been suggested. Classical Cepheid variable stars have pulsation periods that decrease with increasing age, so it is possible to probe the star-formation history on the basis of the distribution of their periods. Here we report the presence of three classical Cepheids in the nuclear bulge with pulsation periods of approximately 20?days, within 40 parsecs (projected distance) of the central black hole. No Cepheids with longer or shorter periods were found. We infer that there was a period about 25 million years ago, and possibly lasting until recently, in which star formation increased relative to the period of 30-70 million years ago.     

Screening of functionalized self-assembling peptide nanofiber scaffolds with angiogenic activity for endothelial cell growth

Promotion of angiogenesis in tissue engineering is of vital significance to the survival of transplants,which leads the way of tissue regeneration.In this study,we screened six short peptides with potentially angiogenic activities to functionalize self-assembling peptide nanofiber scaffolds RADA16-I(Ac-(RADA)_4-CONH_2).Fluorescence microscopy images of endothelial cells morphology on peptide scaffolds exhibited good cell attachments and Survivals on these six functionalized peptide scaffolds, especially ...     

(+)-Curcuphenol and dehydrocurcuphenol, novel sesquiterpenes which inhibit H,K-ATPase, from a marine sponge Epipolasis sp

Two H,K-ATPase inhibitors and an inactive related compound have been isolated from a marine sponge Epipolasis sp. They are aromatic sesquiterpene alpha-curcumenes.     

Hepatic and renal neutral angiotensinases

Résumé L'activité de l'angiotensinase neutre contenue dans le suc des cellules hépatiques est inhibée par EDTA ou par PCMS, mais restituée par addition d'ion de calcium ou de composés thioliques. Ces propriétés ressemblent à celles de l'angiotensinase érythrocytaire, mais diffèrent de celles de l'angiotensinase microsomale d'origine rénale laquelle ne nécessite pas la présence de groupes sulfhydryles.     

Bioactive marine metabolites. VIII. Isolation of an antimicrobial blue pigment from the bryozoanBugula dentata

Summary An antimicrobial blue pigment, which is identical with a tetrapyrrole from a bacterium, was isolated from the bryozoanBugula dentata.