Recognition Marker Research Articles

Detailed features of palisade vessels as a marker of the esophageal mucosa revealed by magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging

The palisade vessels present at the distal end of the esophagus are considered to be a landmark of the esophagogastric junction and indispensable for diagnosis of columnar-lined esophagus on the basis of the Japanese criteria. Here we clarified the features of normal palisade vessels at the esophagogastric junction using magnifying endoscopy. We prospectively studied palisade vessels in 15 patients undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy using a GIF-H260Z instrument (Olympus Medical Systems Co., Tokyo, Japan). All views of the palisade vessels were obtained at the maximum magnification power in the narrow band imaging mode. We divided the area in which palisade vessels were present into three sections: the area from the squamocolumnar junction (SCJ) to about 1 cm orad within the esophagus (Section 1); the area between sections 1 and 3 (Section 2); and the area from the upper limit of the palisade vessels to about 1 cm distal within the esophagus (Section 3). In each section, we analyzed the vessel density, caliber of the palisade vessels, and their branching pattern. The vessel density in Sections 1, 2, and 3 was 9.1 ± 2.1, 8.0 ± 2.6, and 3.3 ± 1.3 per high-power field (mean ± standard deviation [SD]), respectively, and the differences were significant between Sections 1 and 2 (P= 0.0086) and between Sections 2 and 3 (P < 0.0001). The palisade vessel caliber in Sections 1, 2, and 3 was 127.6 ± 52.4 µm, 149.6 ± 58.6 µm, and 199.5 ± 75.1 µm (mean ± SD), respectively, and the differences between Sections 1 and 2, and between Sections 2 and 3, were significant (P < 0.0001). With regard to branching form, the frequency of branching was highest in Section 1, and the 'normal Y' shape was observed more frequently than in Sections 2 and 3. Toward the oral side, the frequency of branching diminished, and the frequency of the 'upside down Y' shape increased. The differences in branching form were significant among the three sections (P < 0.0001). These results indicate that the density of palisade vessels is highest near the SCJ, and that towards their upper limit they gradually become more confluent and show an increase of thickness. Within a limited area near the SCJ, observations of branching form suggest that palisade vessels merge abruptly on the distal side. We have demonstrated that palisade vessels are a useful marker for endoscopic recognition of the lower esophagus.

Analysis of Mannose 6-Phosphate Uncovering Enzyme Mutations Associated with Persistent Stuttering

GlcNAc-1-phosphodiester-N-acetylglucosaminidase ("uncovering enzyme" (UCE); EC 3.1.4.45) is a Golgi enzyme that mediates the second step in the synthesis of the mannose 6-phosphate lysosomal targeting signal on acid hydrolases. Recently, three mutations (two missense and one deletion/frameshift) in the NAGPA gene that encodes UCE have been identified in individuals with persistent stuttering. We now demonstrate that each mutation leads to lower cellular UCE activity. The p.R328C mutation impairs folding in the endoplasmic reticulum, resulting in degradation of a significant portion by the proteasomal system. The p.H84Q mutation also impairs folding and, in addition, decreases the specific activity of the enzyme that folds sufficiently to traffic to the Golgi. The p.F513SfsX113 frameshift mutation adds 113 amino acids to the C terminus of the cytoplasmic tail of the protein, including a VWLL sequence that causes rapid degradation via the proteasomal system. These biochemical findings extend the genetic data implicating mutations in the NAGPA gene in the persistent stuttering phenotype.

Lysosomal Storage Causes Cellular Dysfunction in Mucolipidosis II Skin Fibroblasts

Mucolipidosis II (ML-II) is a fatal inherited metabolic disease caused by deficiency of GlcNAc-phosphotransferase, which plays a role in generating the mannose 6-phosphate recognition marker on lysosomal enzymes. In ML-II, many lysosomal acid hydrolases are mistargeted out of cells, and lysosomes become filled with undigested substrates, which explains inclusion cell disease as an alternative name for this disease. In this study, we revealed various cellular phenotypes in ML-II skin fibroblasts. We quantitated phospholipid and cholesterol within cells and showed ~2-fold accumulation in ML-II as compared with normal cells. Lysosomal pH of ML-II cells was higher than that of normal cells (5.29 ± 0.08 versus 4.79 ± 0.10, p < 0.001). The proliferated lysosomes in ML-II cells were accumulated ~3-fold in amount as compared with normal cells. Intracellular logistics including endocytosis and mannose 6-phosphate receptor recycling were impaired in ML-II cells. To confirm whether these ML-II cellular phenotypes derive from deficient lysosomal acid hydrolases within lysosomes, we performed supplementation of lysosomal enzymes using a partially purified total enzyme mixture, which was derived from the conditioned culture medium of normal skin fibroblasts after NH(4)Cl treatment. This supplementation corrected all of the previously described ML-II phenotypes. In addition, the autophagic and mitochondrial impairment that we have previously reported improved, and inclusion bodies disappeared on electron micrography following total lysosomal enzyme supplementation. Our results indicate that various cellular phenotypes in ML-II are caused by the deficiency of many lysosomal enzymes and massive accumulation of undigested substrates.

A Discursive Approach to Recognition in the Practicum

This article is part of a larger research project on professional development, and more specifically the emergence of “professional knowledge” among pre-service teachers. The intent here is to analyze recognition phenomena in supervisory discussions. We consider recognition of pre-service teachers’ discourse as a condition for the emergence of professional knowledge. What “recognition markers” do evaluators seize from this discourse to decode its content and meaning, to adjust and influence it? How do these markers contribute (or fail to contribute) to establishing “shared communicative spaces”? Our analyses show that the emergence of these shared communicative spaces involves tensions that reveal (or fail to reveal) forms of recognition. These forms of recognition affect the shaping of pre-service teachers’ professional knowledge, as well as components of pre-service teachers’ identity that also influence the elaboration of professional knowledge.

What Do We Really Know about How CD4 T Cells Control Mycobacterium tuberculosis?

What Do We Really Know about How CD4 T Cells Control Mycobacterium tuberculosis?

Transformative Linguistic Styles in Divorce Mediation

The purpose of this study is to test the influence of the transformative mediation (TM) linguistic markers of empowerment and recognition on mediation outcome. The linguistic structure of the word usage in 20 divorce mediation cases was analyzed with the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count program. Overall empowerment and recognition linguistic markers for husbands and wives were compiled and analyzed to determine the differences in linguistic usage between disputants. While some linguistic markers differed in the hypothesized direction, others remained relatively static. Husbands and wives in settled mediations had higher levels of linguistic synchrony for positive empowerment markers than husbands and wives in unsettled mediations. Findings were partially supportive of the role that language reflective of the TM model plays in helping disputants reach a settlement. The implications of current findings for future research are also discussed.

QUICK DETERMINATION OF CRYSTAL SIZE DISTRIBUTIONS OF ROCKS BY MEANS OF A COLOR SCANNER

An acquisition and analysis method based on a commercial, low-cost, high-resolution film scanner is presented. It allows to collect data from standard rock thin sections with a resolution up to 9.4 μm per pixel. Common and general purpose facilities (scanner + PC + image analysis software) may thus be transformed in an appropriate tool for quantitative textural analysis of rocks. The procedure implies the acquisition of four images with crossed polarizers and one parallel light image. Crystal boundaries are extracted from fields in crossed polarizers, while markers for mineral recognition are obtained thresholding the parallel light image. The method is tested for fresh rocks with simple mineralogy (harzburgites and marbles) with no more than three phases, all exhibiting well distinct optical properties. Image processing is performed developing procedures with VISILOG 5.2 package. 2-D size data from binary images are converted to 3-D size data applying stereological corrections. 3-D data are reported in bi-logarithmic diagrams, plotting the crystal number density versus characteristic lengths. The harzburgite samples show a scale invariance of size distributions of olivine while mosaic equant marbles exhibit a different size distribution pattern, without scale invariance and a relative maximum.

The Influence of Writing Experiences on Holistic Processing in Chinese Character Recognition

Holistic processing has been shown to be a behavioral marker of face recognition and object recognition in experts. In contrast, Hsiao and Cottrell (2009) showed that reduced holistic processing is a marker of visual expertise in Chinese character recognition. Here we tested Chinese-literates who can read and write Chinese characters (Writers) and literates whose reading performance far exceeded their writing ability (Limited-writers). We found that Writers perceived Chinese characters less holistically than Limited-writers. In addition to Hsiao and Cottrell's (2009) findings, our study further showed that such reduction in holistic processing can be explained by writing experience in Chinese. This result may be because Chinese Writers exhibit a better awareness of the orthographic components of Chinese characters than Limited-writers due to their writing experience. This study also showed that Limited-writers are better at recognizing a character embedded in a word of a familiar font than when it is alone or of an unfamiliar font, suggesting that their reading performances depend on both the context and font familiarity. This study is also the first to report on the Chinese reading population that has far poorer writing performance than reading performance.

Post-translational Modifications of the γ-Subunit Affect Intracellular Trafficking and Complex Assembly of GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase

GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase plays a key role in the generation of mannose 6-phosphate, a recognition marker essential for efficient transport of lysosomal hydrolases to lysosomes. The enzyme complex is composed of six subunits (α(2)β(2)γ(2)). The α- and β-subunits are catalytically active, whereas the function of the γ-subunit is still unclear. We have investigated structural properties, localization, and intracellular transport of the human and mouse γ-subunits and the molecular requirements for the assembly of the phosphotransferase complex. The results showed that endogenous and overexpressed γ-subunits were localized in the cis-Golgi apparatus. Secreted forms of γ-subunits were detectable in media of cultured cells as well as in human serum. The γ-subunit contains two in vivo used N-glycosylation sites at positions 88 and 115, equipped with high mannose-type oligosaccharides. (35)S pulse-chase experiments and size exclusion chromatography revealed that the majority of non-glycosylated γ-subunit mutants were integrated in high molecular mass complexes, failed to exit the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), and were rapidly degraded. The substitution of cysteine 245 involved in dimerization of γ-subunits impaired neither ER exit nor trafficking through the secretory pathway. Monomeric γ-subunits failed, however, to associate with other GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase subunits. The data provide evidence that assembly of the GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase complex takes place in the ER and requires dimerization of the γ-subunits.

Image cytometric nuclear texture features in inoperable head and neck cancer: a pilot study

BackgroundImage cytometry can measure numerous nuclear features which could be considered a surrogate end-point marker of molecular genetic changes in a nucleus. The aim of the study was to analyze image cytometric nuclear features in paired samples of primary tumor and neck metastasis in patients with inoperable carcinoma of the head and neck.Materials and methods.Image cytometric analysis of cell suspensions prepared from primary tumor tissue and fine needle aspiration biopsy cell samples of neck metastases from 21 patients treated with concomitant radiochemotherapy was performed. Nuclear features were correlated with clinical characteristics and response to therapy.ResultsManifestation of distant metastases and new primaries was associated (p<0.05) with several chromatin characteristics from primary tumor cells, whereas the origin of index cancer and disease response in the neck was related to those in the cells from metastases. Many nuclear features of primary tumors and metastases correlated with the TNM stage.ConclusionsA specific pattern of correlation between well-established prognostic indicators and nuclear features of samples from primary tumors and those from neck metastases was observed. Image cytometric nuclear features represent a promising candidate marker for recognition of biologically different tumor subgroups.

Análisis mutacional de GNPTAB para el diagnóstico molecular de mucolipidosis tipo II (I-cell disease). Descripción de dos nuevas mutaciones sin sentido asociadas con la enfermedad

Introduction Mucolipidosis type II alpha/beta (MLII or I-cell disease) (MIM 252500) is a rare inborn lysosomal hydrolase trafficking disorder caused by the deficient activity of N-acetylglucosaminyl 1-phospho (NAcGlc-1-P) transferase, the enzyme responsible for the initial step in the generation of the mannose 6-phosphate recognition marker. NAcGlc-1-P-transferase is a multimeric enzyme composed of 3 polypeptide subunits (α, β and γ) encoded by 2 different genes. The gene encoding for the α/β subunits ( GNPTAB), located on chromosome 12q23.3, is altered in MLII. To date, at least 20 missense/nonsense GNPTAB mutations have been described and incriminated in this autosomal recessive disorder. In this study, we characterized the molecular defect of a new case of MLII, presenting important skeletal abnormalities. Material and methods The activity of lysosomal hydrolases in the patient's fibroblasts, plasma and cell culture medium was determined using appropriate fluorogenic substrates. All exons, as well as exon-intron boundaries, of the GNPTAB gene were sequenced after PCR amplification of the patient's genomic DNA. GNPTAB exon 11 was also studied by enzyme restriction analysis in the whole family. Results In the patient's fibroblasts, a residual activity of lysosomal hydrolases averaging 14% of control values was found, while a 32 and 9-fold increase in the activity of these enzymes was detected in plasma and the fibroblast culture medium, respectively. Two novel nonsense disease-associated GNPTAB mutations, c.1383C > A (p.Cys461X) and c.3410T > A (p.Leu1136X) were identified, the patient being a compound heterozygote. Conclusions Characterization of the GNPTAB molecular defects in a new case of MLII and the identification of two novel nonsense mutations facilitated the prenatal diagnosis of this disease in the patient's family.

Failure of repetition suppression and memory encoding in aging and Alzheimer’s disease

The suppression of neural activity in the medial temporal lobe (MTL) has been suggested as a marker of successful recognition of familiarity in healthy subjects, but to be impaired in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this study, we investigated whether the ability to suppress MTL activity during repeated exposure to face-name pairs was related to the ability to successfully encode novel associations in 90 individuals ranging from healthy young and older subjects to mildly impaired elderly and AD patients. Activity in the anterior MTL during Repeated stimuli was inversely related to performance in post-scan associative recognition for the Novel face-name pairs. In a subset (n=60) of subjects undergoing more detailed neuropsychological testing, greater MTL Repeated activity was correlated with worse word-list delayed recall performance. Failure of response suppression to familiar information may be a sensitive marker of MTL dysfunction and memory impairment in aging and prodromal AD.

Words with and without internal structure: What determines the nature of orthographic and morphological processing?

Recent studies suggest that basic effects which are markers of visual word recognition in Indo-European languages cannot be obtained in Hebrew or in Arabic. Although Hebrew has an alphabetic writing system, just like English, French, or Spanish, a series of studies consistently suggested that simple form-orthographic priming, or letter-transposition priming are not found in Hebrew. In four experiments, we tested the hypothesis that this is due to the fact that Semitic words have an underlying structure that constrains the possible alignment of phonemes and their respective letters. The experiments contrasted typical Semitic words which are root-derived, with Hebrew words of non-Semitic origin, which are morphologically simple and resemble base-words in European languages. Using RSVP, TL priming, and form-priming manipulations, we show that Hebrew readers process Hebrew words which are morphologically simple similar to the way they process English words. These words indeed reveal the typical form-priming and TL priming effects reported in European languages. In contrast, words with internal structure are processed differently, and require a different code for lexical access. We discuss the implications of these findings for current models of visual word recognition.

A Fascination with Sugars

We now recognize that a large number of membrane and soluble proteins contain covalently linked oligosaccharides that exhibit a vast array of structures and participate in a wide variety of biological processes. Nowhere is this better illustrated than the mannose 6-phosphate (Man-6-P) recognition system that mediates the trafficking of newly synthesized acid hydrolases to lysosomes in higher eukaryotes. The Asn-linked high-mannose oligosaccharides of these hydrolases facilitate folding of the nascent proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum via interaction with lectin-type chaperones and after phosphorylation in the Golgi, function as ligands for binding to Man-6-P receptors, a critical step in their transport to lysosomes. Failure to synthesize the Man-6-P recognition marker results in a serious lysosomal storage disease, one of a growing number of genetic conditions, termed congenital disorders of glycosylation, that result from faulty glycan biosynthesis.

Remarkable coexistence of multiple cytotypes of the Gymnadenia conopsea aggregate (the fragrant orchid): evidence from flow cytometry.

One of the prerequisites for polyploid research in natural systems is knowledge of the geographical distribution of cytotypes. Here inter- and intrapopulational ploidy diversity was examined in the Gymnadenia conopsea aggregate in central Europe and potential explanations and evolutionary consequences of the observed spatial patterns investigated. DAPI flow cytometry supplemented by confirmatory chromosome counts was used to determine ploidy in 3581 samples of the G. conopsea aggregate from 43 populations. The fine-scale spatial pattern of cytotype distribution (intra- and interploidy associations) was analysed with univariate and bivariate K-functions. Gymnadenia tissues undergo a progressively partial endoreplication, which accounts for about 60 % and 75 % of the total genome in G. conopsea and G. densiflora, respectively. Flow cytometric profiles are therefore species-specific and can be used as a marker for rapid and reliable species recognition. Two majority (4x, 8x) and three minority (6x, 10x, 12x) cytotypes were found, often in mixed-ploidy populations (harbouring up to all five different ploidy levels). The scarcity of the minority cytotypes (about 2·7 %) suggests the existence of strong pre- or postzygotic mating barriers. Spatial structure was observed in plots of populations with the highest cytotype variation, including clumping of individuals of the same ploidy and negative association between tetra- and octoploids. The remarkable ploidy coexistence in the G. conopsea aggregate has reshaped our perception of intrapopulational ploidy diversity under natural conditions. This system offers unique opportunities for studying processes governing the formation and establishment of polyploids and assessing the evolutionary significance of the various pre- and postzygotic mating barriers that maintain this ploidy mixture.

Muir-Torre Syndrome: Association of Sebaceous Gland Neoplasms With Colorectal Cancer; The Need For Aggressive Colonoscopic Surveillance

Purpose: Muir-Torre syndrome (MTS) is a rare autosomal dominant disease consisting of sebaceous gland neoplasms associated with internal malignancies, especially colorectal cancer. Published studies show sebaceous neoplasms preceded or were concurrent with the visceral cancer diagnosis in 41% of patients. The purpose of our study is to assess significance of aggressive colonoscopy surveillance in patients identified with sebaceous gland neoplasms.Table: [1500]Methods: Retrospective review was performed at Unity Health System for the period between Jan 05 to Jun 07 to identify the patients who had positive sebaceous gland neoplasm proven by histopathology. Data collection included demographic characteristics, type of skin lesion, colonoscopy findings, any family history of gastrointestinal neoplasm, along with any further tumors in these patients. Results: Total 6 patients were identified to have sebaceous carcinoma, 2 patients with sebaceous adenoma and 1 patient with keratoacanthoma with sebaceous differentiation. Further data is tabulated as below. 5 out of total 9, i.e., 56% of the patients had significant positive findings on colonoscopy where further therapeutic intervention was needed. Out of above 5 patients, 2 patients who were found to have colorectal cancer were young, 2 patients had very large adenomatous polyps and 1 patient had multiple hyperplastic polyps. In 3 patients with non-significant colonoscopy findings, other malignancies like adenocarcinoma of breast, adenocarcinoma of lung and Non Hodgkin's lymphoma were noted. Conclusion: Sebaceous tumors (Sebaceous adenomas, sebaceous carcinomas and sebaceous epithelioms) and kerantoacanthomas with sebaceous differentiation may be the markers for MTS and recognition of these lesions warrants investigation for associated visceral malignancy, most commonly colorectal, but also uterine, upper GI tract, lung and bladder. Colorectal carcinoma being most common visceral malignancy associated with MTS (53% of cases), colonoscopic surveillance is mandatory at initial evaluation and at every one to three year intervals irrespective of age and gender. If MTS is positive, family members should also be screened for colorectal cancer starting from much younger age group.

Shell Shock, Trauma, and the First World War: The Making of a Diagnosis and Its Histories

During the First World War, thousands of soldiers were treated for "shell shock," a condition which encompassed a range of physical and psychological symptoms. Shell shock has most often been located within a "genealogy of trauma," and identified as an important marker in the gradual recognition of the psychological afflictions caused by combat. In recent years, shell shock has increasingly been viewed as a powerful emblem of the suffering of war. This article, which focuses on Britain, extends scholarly analyses which question characterizations of shell shock as an early form of post-traumatic stress disorder. It also considers some of the methodological problems raised by recasting shell shock as a wartime medical construction rather than an essentially timeless manifestation of trauma. It argues that shell shock must be analyzed as a diagnosis shaped by a specific set of contemporary concerns, knowledges, and practices. Such an analysis challenges accepted understandings of what shell shock "meant" in the First World War, and also offers new perspectives on the role of shell shock in shaping the emergence of psychology and psychiatry in the early part of the twentieth century. The article also considers what relation, if any, might exist between intellectual and other histories, literary approaches, and perceptions of trauma as timeless and unchanging.

Proteolytic Processing of the γ-Subunit Is Associated with the Failure to Form GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase Complexes and Mannose 6-Phosphate Residues on Lysosomal Enzymes in Human Macrophages

GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase is a Golgi-resident 540-kDa complex of three subunits, alpha(2)beta(2)gamma(2), that catalyze the first step in the formation of the mannose 6-phosphate (M6P) recognition marker on lysosomal enzymes. Anti-M6P antibody analysis shows that human primary macrophages fail to generate M6P residues. Here we have explored the sorting and intracellular targeting of cathepsin D as a model, and the expression of the GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase complex in macrophages. Newly synthesized cathepsin D is transported to lysosomes in an M6P-independent manner in association with membranes whereas the majority is secreted. Realtime PCR analysis revealed a 3-10-fold higher GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase subunit mRNA levels in macrophages than in fibroblasts or HeLa cells. At the protein level, the gamma-subunit but not the beta-subunit was found to be proteolytically cleaved into three fragments which form irregular 97-kDa disulfide-linked oligomers in macrophages. Size exclusion chromatography showed that the gamma-subunit fragments lost the capability to assemble with other GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase subunits to higher molecular complexes. These findings demonstrate that proteolytic processing of the gamma-subunit represents a novel mechanism to regulate GlcNAc-1-phosphotransferase activity and the subsequent sorting of lysosomal enzymes.

Can Triaxial Accelerometry Accurately Recognize Inclined Walking Terrains?

The standard method for the analysis of body accelerations cannot accurately estimate the energy expenditure (EE) of uphill or downhill walking. The ability to recognize the grade of the walking surface will most likely improve upon the accuracy of the EE estimates for daily physical activities. This paper investigates the benefits of automatic gait analysis approaches including step-by-step gait segmentation and heel-strike recognition of the accelerometry signal in classifying various gradients. Triaxial accelerometry signals were collected from 12 subjects, performing walking on seven different gradient surfaces: 1) 92 m of 0(°) flat ground; 2) 85 m of ±2.70(°) inclined ramp; 3) 24 m of ±9.86(°) inclined ramp; and 4) 6-m pitch line of ±28.03(°) rake of stairway. Validity studies performed on a group of randomly selected healthy subjects showed high agreement scores between the automated heel-strike recognition markers, manual gait annotation markers, and video-based gait-segmentation markers. Thirteen subset features were found using a subset-selection search procedure from 57 extracted features which maximize the classification accuracy, performed with a Gaussian mixture model classifier, as estimated using sixfold cross-validation. An overall walking pattern-recognition accuracy of 82.46% was achieved on seven different inclined terrains using the 13 selected features. This system should, therefore, improve the accuracy of daily EE estimates with accurate measures on terrain inclinations.

Levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and soluble cell adhesion molecules serves as early markers for recognition of diseases severity in patients with dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever

Levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and soluble cell adhesion molecules serves as early markers for recognition of diseases severity in patients with dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever