Methylation of the CDH1 promoter as the second genetic hit in hereditary diffuse gastric cancer

Aberrant promoter methylation and the associated loss of gene expression is a common accompaniment of human cancers. Nonetheless, it has been challenging to demonstrate in any given tumour that methylation of a specific gene was causal and not consequent to malignant transformation. In this regard, our attention was drawn to the genesis of gastric cancers in individuals with hereditary diffuse gastric cancer (HDGC). These individuals harbour germline mutations in the gene encoding E-cadherin, CDH1, but their cancers have consistently demonstrated absence of loss of heterozygosity at the CDH1 locus. These findings suggested the hypothesis that CDH1 promoter methylation might function as the 'second genetic hit' in the genesis of these cancers.     

Karyotypic data for five species of anguid lizards

Zusammenfassung Die Chromosomensätze von 5 Eidechsenarten der Familie Aguidae, davon vier vom GenusGerrhonotus und eine vom GenusDiploglossus werden beschrieben.D. costatus ist 2n=36 mit 12 grossen metazentrischen Chromosomen und 24 Mikrochromosomen.G. multicarinatus ist 2n=48,G. paucicarinatus 2n=46 undG. coeruleus 2n=38. Diese 3 Arten haben einen identischen «nombre fondamentale» von 48 und alle haben 26 Mikrochromosomen.G. monticolus besitzt 2n=30. Die Anzahl der Mikrochromosomen ist auf 12 reduziert.     

Non-adaptive origins of interactome complexity

The boundaries between prokaryotes, unicellular eukaryotes and multicellular eukaryotes are accompanied by orders-of-magnitude reductions in effective population size, with concurrent amplifications of the effects of random genetic drift and mutation. The resultant decline in the efficiency of selection seems to be sufficient to influence a wide range of attributes at the genomic level in a non-adaptive manner. A key remaining question concerns the extent to which variation in the power of random genetic drift is capable of influencing phylogenetic diversity at the subcellular and cellular levels. Should this be the case, population size would have to be considered as a potential determinant of the mechanistic pathways underlying long-term phenotypic evolution. Here we demonstrate a phylogenetically broad inverse relation between the power of drift and the structural integrity of protein subunits. This leads to the hypothesis that the accumulation of mildly deleterious mutations in populations of small size induces secondary selection for protein-protein interactions that stabilize key gene functions. By this means, the complex protein architectures and interactions essential to the genesis of phenotypic diversity may initially emerge by non-adaptive mechanisms.     

用脸谱图对太子河本溪市区段河流沉积物中重金属污染进行评价的研究

本文将沉积学原理及国际上新发展的两种重金属污染评价方法与多变量的图表示法——脸谱图相结合,对太子河本溪市区段河道沉积物中重金属的污染状况及潜在生态危害进行了综合性的评价研究。从脸谱图上可以直观地看出各采样点重金属的污染情况和潜在生态危害程度。从研究结果可以看出,太子河本溪市区段河道沉积物中重金属的污染是很严重的。