Genome-wide atlas of gene expression in the adult mouse brain

Molecular approaches to understanding the functional circuitry of the nervous system promise new insights into the relationship between genes, brain and behaviour. The cellular diversity of the brain necessitates a cellular resolution approach towards understanding the functional genomics of the nervous system. We describe here an anatomically comprehensive digital atlas containing the expression patterns of approximately 20,000 genes in the adult mouse brain. Data were generated using automated high-throughput procedures for in situ hybridization and data acquisition, and are publicly accessible online. Newly developed image-based informatics tools allow global genome-scale structural analysis and cross-correlation, as well as identification of regionally enriched genes. Unbiased fine-resolution analysis has identified highly specific cellular markers as well as extensive evidence of cellular heterogeneity not evident in classical neuroanatomical atlases. This highly standardized atlas provides an open, primary data resource for a wide variety of further studies concerning brain organization and function.     

Seed dispersal, seed entrapment, and seedling recruitment in a temporally variable desert playa

Natural establishment of seedlings in desert playas with temporally variable precipitation hinges on many factors, including seed production, seed dispersal, seed entrapment, seed germination, and seedling survival. We investigated natural seed dispersal patterns and the effects of surface texture, wind barriers, resource availability (water and nutrients), and protection from herbivory on seedling establishment in a desert playa. We hypothesized that the seed rain would be consistent throughout the year and that seedling establishment would improve in resource-amended plots with barriers to wind dispersal. Contrary to our hypotheses, seed flux peaked seasonally during the winter, and fertilization had no consistent effect on seedling establishment. Seed availability for dispersal correlated with precipitation in the previous water year, whereas seedling recruitment was greatest when current-year precipitation during the spring germination and summer seedling growth periods was high. Gravel and barrier surface treatments contained more surviving seedlings than other surface treatments. Comparison with plots located outside of herbivore exclosures, however, showed that greater seedling presence in gravel plots may be due somewhat to protection from herbivory provided by the gravel, rather than simply to the greater seed-trapping quality of the gravel. With abundant seed availability, application of surface treatments, like coarse gravel, combined with increased seasonal water availability could lead to improved shrub establishment from seed in desert playas.     

Association of a functional variant downstream of TNFAIP3 with systemic lupus erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, MIM152700) is an autoimmune disease characterized by self-reactive antibodies resulting in systemic inflammation and organ failure. TNFAIP3, encoding the ubiquitin-modifying enzyme A20, is an established susceptibility locus for SLE. By fine mapping and genomic re-sequencing in ethnically diverse populations, we fully characterized the TNFAIP3 risk haplotype and identified a TT>A polymorphic dinucleotide (deletion T followed by a T to A transversion) associated with SLE in subjects of European (P = 1.58 × 10(-8), odds ratio = 1.70) and Korean (P = 8.33 × 10(-10), odds ratio = 2.54) ancestry. This variant, located in a region of high conservation and regulatory potential, bound a nuclear protein complex composed of NF-κB subunits with reduced avidity. Further, compared with the non-risk haplotype, the haplotype carrying this variant resulted in reduced TNFAIP3 mRNA and A20 protein expression. These results establish this TT>A variant as the most likely functional polymorphism responsible for the association between TNFAIP3 and SLE.     

Multiple newly identified loci associated with prostate cancer susceptibility

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer affecting males in developed countries. It shows consistent evidence of familial aggregation, but the causes of this aggregation are mostly unknown. To identify common alleles associated with prostate cancer risk, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) using blood DNA samples from 1,854 individuals with clinically detected prostate cancer diagnosed at 相似文献   

Learning,Politics and the OR/MS Guild

This paper is about how the medieval guild represents a metaphor that offers insights into the management science/operational research (OR/MS), including systems, academic practitioner community of practice. Within that community of practice different approaches to the process of OR/MS, forms of learning and politics/power can be distinguished that can be related to the different levels within the medieval guild.