砂土速率相关黏性特性的有限元分析

根据复杂加载条件下饱和砂土排水平面应变压缩试验,分析了砂土的速率相关的黏性特性.试验发现砂土存在显著的加载速率效应、蠕变变形和应力松弛,并且在应变速率突变、蠕变或应力松弛之后,以新的应变速率重新加载时呈现出高刚度行为.针对砂土的变形强度特性提出了一种非线性有限元计算方法,砂土本构关系采用了三要素弹黏塑性本构模型.将有限元计算结果与试验结果进行比较,表明建议的有限元计算方法不仅可以较为精确地模拟砂土的平均应力-应变关系,同时也可以模拟包含变应变速率加载、蠕变加载、应力松弛加载的全过程黏塑特性.     

ITPKC functional polymorphism associated with Kawasaki disease susceptibility and formation of coronary artery aneurysms

Kawasaki disease is a pediatric systemic vasculitis of unknown etiology for which a genetic influence is suspected. We identified a functional SNP (itpkc_3) in the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate 3-kinase C (ITPKC) gene on chromosome 19q13.2 that is significantly associated with Kawasaki disease susceptibility and also with an increased risk of coronary artery lesions in both Japanese and US children. Transfection experiments showed that the C allele of itpkc_3 reduces splicing efficiency of the ITPKC mRNA. ITPKC acts as a negative regulator of T-cell activation through the Ca2+/NFAT signaling pathway, and the C allele may contribute to immune hyper-reactivity in Kawasaki disease. This finding provides new insights into the mechanisms of immune activation in Kawasaki disease and emphasizes the importance of activated T cells in the pathogenesis of this vasculitis.     

Phosphorylation by aurora kinase A induces Mdm2-mediated destabilization and inhibition of p53

Aurora kinase A (also called STK15 and BTAK) is overexpressed in many human cancers. Ectopic overexpression of aurora kinase A in mammalian cells induces centrosome amplification, chromosome instability and oncogenic transformation, a phenotype characteristic of loss-of-function mutations of p53. Here we show that aurora kinase A phosphorylates p53 at Ser315, leading to its ubiquitination by Mdm2 and proteolysis. p53 is not degraded in the presence of inactive aurora kinase A or ubiquitination-defective Mdm2. Destabilization of p53 by aurora kinase A is abrogated in the presence of mutant Mdm2 that is unable to bind p53 and after repression of Mdm2 by RNA interference. Silencing of aurora kinase A results in less phosphorylation of p53 at Ser315, greater stability of p53 and cell-cycle arrest at G2-M. Cells depleted of aurora kinase A are more sensitive to cisplatin-induced apoptosis, and elevated expression of aurora kinase A abolishes this response. In a sample of bladder tumors with wild-type p53, elevated expression of aurora kinase A was correlated with low p53 concentration. We conclude that aurora kinase A is a key regulatory component of the p53 pathway and that overexpression of aurora kinase A leads to increased degradation of p53, causing downregulation of checkpoint-response pathways and facilitating oncogenic transformation of cells.     

An ordered mesoporous organosilica hybrid material with a crystal-like wall structure

Surfactant-mediated synthesis strategies are widely used to fabricate ordered mesoporous solids in the form of metal oxides, metals, carbon and hybrid organosilicas. These materials have amorphous pore walls, which could limit their practical utility. In the case of mesoporous metal oxides, efforts to crystallize the framework structure by thermal and hydrothermal treatments have resulted in crystallization of only a fraction of the pore walls. Here we report the surfactant-mediated synthesis of an ordered benzene-silica hybrid material; this material has an hexagonal array of mesopores with a lattice constant of 52.5 A, and crystal-like pore walls that exhibit structural periodicity with a spacing of 7.6 A along the channel direction. The periodic pore surface structure results from alternating hydrophilic and hydrophobic layers, composed of silica and benzene, respectively. We believe that this material is formed as a result of structure-directing interactions between the benzene-silica precursor molecules, and between the precursor molecules and the surfactants. We expect that other organosilicas and organo-metal oxides can be produced in a similar fashion, to yield a range of hierarchically ordered mesoporous solids with molecular-scale pore surface periodicity.     

Cell cycle progression by the repression of primary cilia formation in proliferating cells

In most cell types, primary cilia protrude from the cell surface and act as major hubs for cell signaling, cell differentiation, and cell polarity. With the exception of some cells ciliated during cell proliferation, most cells begin to disassemble their primary cilia at cell cycle re-entry. Although the role of primary cilia disassembly on cell cycle progression is still under debate, recent data have emerged to support the idea that primary cilia exert influence on cell cycle progression. In this review, we emphasize a non-mitotic role of Aurora-A not only in the ciliary resorption at cell cycle re-entry but also in continuous suppression of cilia regeneration during cell proliferation. We also summarize recent new findings indicating that forced induction/suppression of primary cilia can affect cell cycle progression, in particular the transition from G0/G1 to S phase. In addition, we speculate how (de)ciliation affects cell cycle progression.     

Requirement of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate for alpha-actinin function.

Inositol phospholipid turnover is enhanced during mitogenic stimulation of cells by growth factors and the breakdown of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdInsP2) may be important in triggering cell proliferation. PtdInsP2 also binds actin-binding proteins to regulate their activity, but it is not yet understood how this control is achieved. The protein alpha-actinin from striated muscle contains large amounts of endogenous PtdInsP2, whereas that from smooth muscle has only a little but will bind exogenously added PtdInsP2. In vitro alpha-actinin binds to F-actin and will crosslink actin filaments, increasing the viscosity of F-actin solutions. We report here that alpha-actinin from striated muscle is an endogenous PtdInsP2-bound protein and that the specific interaction between alpha-actinin and PtdInsP2 regulates the F-actin-gelating activity of alpha-actinin. Although the F-actin-gelating activity of alpha-actinin from smooth muscle is much reduced compared with that from striated muscle, exogenous PtdInsP2 can enhance the activity of smooth muscle alpha-actinin to the level seen in striated muscles. These results show that PtdInsP2 is present in striated muscle alpha-actinin and that it is necessary for alpha-actinin to realize its maximum gelating activity.     

Aldolase C is localized in neuroendocrine cells

To elucidate the localization of the subunit C of aldolase (aldolase C) in peripheral neuroendocrine cells, we made an immunohistochemical study with monospecific antibodies against human aldolase C. Aldolase C was found to be localized in various types of neuroendocrine cells; in the pituitary gland, thyroid, pancreas, adrenal gland, bronchus, and gastrointestinal tract.     

基于修正塑性功函数的砂土硬软化本构模型

基于与应力路径无关的修正塑性功函数,提出了一个新的可以考虑砂土变形强度应力路径效应的弹塑性硬化-软化本构模型.模型所采用的与应力路径不相关的修正塑性硬化函数是基于砂土多应力路径平面应变压缩试验结果、经过数学拟合而得到的.文中建议的本构模型属于等向硬化-软化、考虑非关联流动的弹塑性模型.有限元计算结果与室内试验结果比较表明,该模型不仅可以较好地模拟砂土变形强度的应力路径效应,同时也可以模拟砂土变形强度的应力水平依存性、强度的固有结构性各向异性、初始空隙比依存性,以及砂土伴随剪切破坏的软化效应.     

Site-specific phosphorylation induces disassembly of vimentin filaments in vitro

Intermediate filaments are a major component of the cytoskeleton of eukaryotic cells. Although there appear to be at least five distinct classes of these filaments, cells of mesenchymal origin and most cells in culture contain the intermediate filament composed of the subunit protein vimentin. Vimentin exists in a nonphosphorylated as well as in a phosphorylated form, and there is increased phosphorylation of this protein when the filament undergoes marked redistribution in various cells. The role of phosphorylation on assembly-disassembly and organization of the vimentin filament has remained obscure. We report here a stable and purified system allowing biochemical examination of vimentin filament assembly and disassembly. Using this in vitro system, we carried out stoichiometrical phosphorylations, using purified protein kinases. We obtained evidence for site-specific, phosphorylation-dependent disassembly of the vimentin filament.