Missing Portion Research Articles

Shape Recovery of a Levitated Aspherical Droplet From 2D Image Information

This paper presents an image processing technique in order to predict the shape of a levitated aspherical droplet. The technique is of great importance to containerless materials processing. A majority of the electromagnetic levitation techniques utilizes two cameras at right angles to observe both transversal and frontal views. This allows obtaining two images of the droplet at instant time. In many cases, the portion of the frontal image is missing due to the heating coil. The newly developed technique allows restoration of the missing portion of the image information. The through image can be reconstructed by combining the recovered shapes. A special computer program is generated to simulate a normalized volume of the droplet.

Proximodistal patterning during limb regeneration

Regeneration is an ability that has been observed extensively throughout metazoan phylogeny. Amongst vertebrates, the urodele amphibians stand out for their exceptional capacity to regenerate body parts such as the limb. During this process, only the missing portion of the limb is precisely replaced—amputation in the upper arm results in regeneration of the entire limb, while amputation at the wrist produces a hand. Limb regeneration occurs through the formation of a local proliferative zone called the blastema. Here, we examine how proximodistal identity is established in the blastema. Using cell marking and transplantation experiments, we show that distal identities have already been established in the earliest stages of blastemas examined. Transplantation of cells into new environments is not sufficient to respecify cell identity. However, overexpression of the CD59, a cell surface molecule previously implicated in proximodistal identity during limb regeneration, causes distal blastema cells to translocate to a more proximal location and causes defects in the patterning of the distal elements of the regenerate. We suggest a model for the limb regeneration blastema where by 4 days post-amputation the blastema is already divided into distinct growth zones; the cells of each zone are already specified to give rise to upper arm, lower arm, and hand.

Aflatoxin Biosynthesis Cluster Gene cypA Is Required for G Aflatoxin Formation

Aspergillus flavus isolates produce only aflatoxins B1 and B2, while Aspergillus parasiticus and Aspergillus nomius produce aflatoxins B1, B2, G1, and G2. Sequence comparison of the aflatoxin biosynthesis pathway gene cluster upstream from the polyketide synthase gene, pksA, revealed that A. flavus isolates are missing portions of genes (cypA and norB) predicted to encode, respectively, a cytochrome P450 monooxygenase and an aryl alcohol dehydrogenase. Insertional disruption of cypA in A. parasiticus yielded transformants that lack the ability to produce G aflatoxins but not B aflatoxins. The enzyme encoded by cypA has highest amino acid identity to Gibberella zeae Tri4 (38%), a P450 monooxygenase previously shown to be involved in trichodiene epoxidation. The substrate for CypA may be an intermediate formed by oxidative cleavage of the A ring of O-methylsterigmatocystin by OrdA, the P450 monooxygenase required for formation of aflatoxins B1 and B2.

Metabolic Modifications of Birch Leaf Phenolics by an Herbivorous Insect: Detoxification of Flavonoid Aglycones via Glycosylation

The metabolic modifications of birch (Betula pubescens Ehrh.) leaf phenolics in the digestive tract of its major defoliator, larvae of the autumnal moth Epirrita autumnata, were studied. The main phenolic acids of birch, i.e. chlorogenic and p-coumaroylquinic acids, were isomerised in the alkaline digestive tract. Moreover, only 16 to 92% of the ingested amounts of chlorogenic acid were found in the faeces of individual larvae; the missing portion is possibly being used in the formation of reactive o-quinones. Water-soluble flavonoid glycosides were mostly excreted unaltered. In contrast, lipophilic flavonoid aglycones were not excreted as such, but as glycosides after being detoxified by E. autumnata via glycosylation. When the larvae were fed with leaf-painted acacetin and kaempferide, i.e. two naturally occurring birch leaf flavonoid aglycones, acacetin-7-O-glucoside and kaempferide-3-O-glucoside appeared in larval faeces as major metabolites. However, the efficiency of aglycone glycosylation varied-, ranging from 17 to 33%, depending on the aglycone and its dietary level. There was also large variation in the efficiency of glycosylation--from 2 to 57%--among individual larvae. These results demonstrate a compound-specific metabolism of phenolic compounds, leading to different phenolic profiles in the insect gut compared to its leaf diet.

STAT1 binds to the herpes simplex virus type 1 latency-associated transcript promoter.

The authors hypothesized that environmental stimuli induce cytokines that act through an intracellular cascade, which includes signal transducers and activators of transcription (STATs), to change herpes simplex virus (HSV) gene expression, thereby inducing viral reactivation. The HSV type 1 (HSV-1) latency-associated transcript (LAT) gene regulates viral reactivation within neurons via an unknown mechanism. HSV-1 deletion mutants that are missing key portions of the LAT gene, particularly the 3' region of the LAT promoter, do not reactivate normally in vivo. The authors hypothesized that STAT transcription factors may bind in this region to regulate viral reactivation. Electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) experiments were performed by incubating mouse trigeminal ganglion (TG) nuclear extracts with each of three overlapping sequences representing the 3' region of the HSV-1 LAT promoter (referred to as oligos L1, L2, and L3). The ganglionic nuclear extracts bound specifically to oligos L1 and L3, but not L2. Oligos L1 and L3 contain predicted STAT binding sequences whereas L2 does not. Specific binding to oligo L3 (including the TATA box sequence) was supershifted by incubating with anti-STAT1 antibodies, but not by incubating with anti-STAT3 or anti-STAT5a antibodies. Specific L3 binding was reduced by competing with excess unlabeled STAT1 consensus sequences. These results indicate that STAT1, probably as part of a complex, is capable of binding to the LAT promoter on or near the TATA box. Further studies are required to determine if STAT1 is required for LAT expression in vivo. This work supports the hypothesis that interferons act through STAT1 to regulate the expression of HSV-1 LAT.

Bacterioclastic Action of a Bis-Quaternary Ammonium Compound against Escherichia coli

It has been reported that the bactericidal action of bis-quaternary ammonium compounds (bis-QACs) is little influenced by the molecular hydrophobicity. of the drug or environmental conditions such as temperature or pH. In order to clarify the mode of bactericidal action of bis-QACs against Escherichia coli, the bacterioclastic action of 4, 4'-(1, 6-hexamethylenedithio) bis (1-octylpyridinium bromide) (4DTBP-6, 8) was investigated. It was suggested that 4DTBP-6, 8, which invaded the bacterial cell, induced the leakage of ATP and the inhibition of the respiratory enzymes, and resulted in cell death. Subsequently, over 2μg/ml of4DTBP-6, 8 caused an increase in the turbidity of the cell suspension, and the bactericidal activity of 4DTBP-6, 8 was extremely increased with the increase of its concentration (over 2μg/ml). It indicated that 4DTBP-6, 8 has an ability to induce a rapid and abundant secretion of the turbid materials from the cells and that such bacterioclastic ability is connected to its potent bactericidal activity. In addition, it was suggested that the first stage of bacterioclastic action of 4DTBP-6, 8 was the leakage of magnesium ion (Mg2+), and the leakage of the outer membrane pore protein E and lipopolysaccharides followed it. The formation of blebs and holes on the bacterial cell surface was revealed by scanning electron microscopic investigation. Transmission electron micrographs of the cells treated with 4DTBP-6, 8 showed the destruction of peptidoglycan and large missing portions of intercellular materials. Judging from these results, as the mechanism of the bacterioclastic action of bis-QACs, it is suggested that the cationic parts of bis-QACs electrically interact with the cationic parts of Mg2+ on the bacterial surface, then bis-QACs invade the cell membrane by displacement reaction with Mg2+, and rapidly destroy the bacterial cell surface structure.

Primary Leiomyosarcoma of the Inferior Vena Cava and Interposition of a Bovine Pericardial Graft

Primary leiomyosarcoma of the inferior vena cava (IVC) is a rare disease with fewer than 220 cases reported in the literature. Symptoms usually develop late in the course of the disease delaying the diagnosis and worsening the prognosis. Curative treatment consists of total surgical resection of the tumour with interposition grafting for the missing portion of the IVC. The reported 5 year survival rate ranges from 37 to 53%.We report a case of a 58-year-old female with primary leiomyosarcoma of the juxtarenal IVC diagnosed incidentally on abdominal ultrasound. After further investigation by computerised tomography angiography (CTA), the tumour was removed completely with clear surgical margins. Bovine pericardium was used as an interposition graft for the resected portion of IVC. Some advantages of using this material for venous bypass include its versatile diameter options, malleability, minimal needle hole ooze and less potential for infection in comparison to synthetic grafts [Vasc. Endovasc. Surg. 37 (2003) 225]. Further research is needed regarding the patency rate, late infection and overall success.We believe a high index of suspicion is crucial for the early diagnosis of this disease. An aggressive surgical approach is necessary for optimal survival.

K-t BLAST and k-t SENSE: dynamic MRI with high frame rate exploiting spatiotemporal correlations.

Dynamic images of natural objects exhibit significant correlations in k-space and time. Thus, it is feasible to acquire only a reduced amount of data and recover the missing portion afterwards. This leads to an improved temporal resolution, or an improved spatial resolution for a given amount of acquisition. Based on this approach, two methods were developed to significantly improve the performance of dynamic imaging, named k-t BLAST (Broad-use Linear Acquisition Speed-up Technique) and k-t SENSE (SENSitivity Encoding) for use with a single or multiple receiver coils, respectively. Signal correlations were learned from a small set of training data and the missing data were recovered using all available information in a consistent and integral manner. The general theory of k-t BLAST and k-t SENSE is applicable to arbitrary k-space trajectories, time-varying coil sensitivities, and under- and overdetermined reconstruction problems. Examples from ungated cardiac imaging demonstrate a 4-fold acceleration (voxel size 2.42 x 2.52 mm(2), 38.4 fps) with either one or six receiver coils. k-t BLAST and k-t SENSE are applicable to many areas, especially those exhibiting quasiperiodic motion, such as imaging of the heart, the lungs, the abdomen, and the brain under periodic stimulation.

Coexpression of complementary fragments of ClC-5 and restoration of chloride channel function in a Dent's disease mutation.

The human hereditary disorder Dent's disease is linked to loss-of-function mutations of the chloride channel ClC-5. Many of these mutations involve insertion of premature stop codons, resulting in truncation of the protein. We determined whether the functional activity of ClC-5 could be restored by coexpression of the truncated protein (containing the NH2-terminal region) with its complementary "missing" COOH-terminal region. Split channel constructs for ClC-5, consisting of complementary N and C protein regions, were created at an arbitrary site in the COOH-terminal region (V655) and at four Dent's disease mutation sites (R347, Y617, R648, and R704). Coexpression of complementary fragments for the split channel at V655 produced currents with anion and pH sensitivity similar to those of wild-type ClC-5. Channel activity was similarly restored when complementary split channel constructs made for Dent's mutation R648 were coexpressed, but no ClC-5 currents were found when split channels for mutations R347, Y617, or R704 were coexpressed. Immunoblot and immunofluorescence studies of COS-7 cells revealed that N or C protein fragments could be transiently expressed and detected in the plasma membrane, even in split channels that failed to show functional activity. The results suggest that ClC-5 channel activity can be restored for specific Dent's mutations by expression of the missing portion of the ClC-5 molecule.

The cytoplasmic tails of infectious bronchitis virus E and M proteins mediate their interaction

Virus-like particle (VLP) formation by the coronavirus E and M proteins suggests that interactions between these proteins play a critical role in coronavirus assembly. We studied interactions between the infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) E and M proteins using in vivo crosslinking and VLP assembly assays. We show that IBV E and M can be crosslinked to each other in IBV-infected and transfected cells, indicating that they interact. The cytoplasmic tails of both proteins are important for this interaction. We also examined the ability of the mutant and chimeric E and M proteins to form VLPs. IBV M proteins that are missing portions of their cytoplasmic tails or transmembrane regions were not able to support VLP formation, regardless of their ability to be crosslinked to IBV E. Interactions between the E and M proteins and the membrane bilayer are likely to play an important role in VLP formation and virus budding.

Identification and characterisation of a novel human isoform of Arp2/3 complex subunit p16‐ARC/ARPC5. T.H. Millard, B. Behrendt, S. Launay, K. Fütterer, L.M. Machesky, Cell Motil.Cytoskeleton (2003) 54(1):81–90.

AbstractThe original article to which this Erratum refers was published in Cell Motility and the Cytoskeleton 54(1) 81–90Figure 1 was incorrectly printed in the article. The missing portions of the sequence are herein reprinted with the accompanying legend.In the legend accompanying Figure 7, the residues referred to as "blue" appear in purple in the figure.

On “3‐D inversion of gravity and magnetic data with depth resolution” (Maurizio Fedi and Antonio Rapolla, GEOPHYSICS, 64, 452–461).

We have read with great interest the paper entitled “3D inversion of gravity and magnetic data with depth resolution” by Fedi and Rapolla. We realize that many discussions we had with one of the authors had not resolved our differences and, therefore, we are writing this comment to document out concerns regarding the authors’ conclusion that the upward-continued gravity or magnetic data contain extra information and provide depth resolution. As is well known in potential-field theory, the fields produced by the subsurface source at any two nonintersecting observational surfaces are linearly related to each other and one contains no more information than does the other. Furthermore, the field on the observational surface above the source can be reproduced by an infinite number of equivalent sources below that surface. As a consequence, gravity or magnetic data do not provide any information about the subsurface structure unless the source is assumed to have certain restrictive properties. No amount of upward continuation will create any new information and, consequently, the addition of upward-continued data will not resolve the depth distribution of the source. In practical applications, when the data are available in a small area and/or when the data are coursely sampled, then exact numerical continuation is not possible to perform. In such circumstances, independently-measured data at a different level will provide extra information that is not contained in the data at the original level. The maximum amount of additional information that any upper-level data can supply is that which is contained in the missing portion of the data map at the lower level. Fedi and Rapolla provide two examples which they claim support their hypothesis that data along the vertical direction are needed to obtain depth resolution and, furthermore, that upward-continued data serve this purpose. As is shown below, both results arise …

Construction of expression-ready cDNA clones for KIAA genes: manual curation of 330 KIAA cDNA clones.

We have accumulated information on protein-coding sequences of uncharacterized human genes, which are known as KIAA genes, through cDNA sequencing. For comprehensive functional analysis of the KIAA genes, it is necessary to prepare a set of cDNA clones which direct the synthesis of functional KIAA gene products. However, since the KIAA cDNAs were derived from long mRNAs (> 4 kb), it was not expected that all of them were full-length. Thus, as the first step toward preparing these clones, we evaluated the integrity of protein-coding sequences of KIAA cDNA clones through comparison with homologous protein entries in the public database. As a result, 1141 KIAA cDNAs had at least one homologous entry in the database, and 619 of them (54%) were found to be truncated at the 5' and/or 3' ends. In this study, 290 KIAA cDNA clones were tailored to be full-length or have considerably longer sequences than the original clones by isolating additional cDNA clones and/or connected parts of additional cDNAs or PCR products of the missing portion to the original cDNA clone. Consequently, 265, 8, and 17 predicted CDSs of KIAA cDNA clones were increased in the amino-, carboxy-, and both terminal sequences, respectively. In addition, 40 cDNA clones were modified to remove spurious interruption of protein-coding sequences. The total length of the resultant extensions at amino- and carboxy-terminals of KIAA gene products reached 97,000 and 7,216 amino acid residues, respectively, and various protein domains were found in these extended portions.

"I Could Never Really Leave the South": Regionalism and the Transformation of Richard Wright's American Hunger

When published in 1945, Black Boy constituted a cannily truncated version of Richard Wright's original autobiography, American Hunger (1993). In the year leading up to the publication of this text, Wright was called upon to revise his narrative to satisfy not only his publisher, but also the Book-of-the-Month Club, which wanted to make his work a selection. In exchange, Wright was led to alter his conclusion and even to delete the section describing his experiences in the North after leaving the South. These changes effectively blunted Wright's broader critique of American race relations and confined Black Boy to a regional narrative of childhood and adolescence. This publishing experience may provide a literary corollary for his personal speculation at the end of Black Boy that deep down, I knew that I could never really leave the South (284). It was not until 1977, after Wright's death, that the missing portion of his autobiography would appear in print. Reexamining the publication history of American Hunger is in order because the scholarship on this subject is inconclusive and lacking in detail. Neither Wright's biographer, Michel Fabre, nor the editors of the Library of America edition of Black Boy,

Application of apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry to the determination of the sense and amount of vertical fault displacement at the Chuquicamata porphyry copper deposit, Chile

Chuquicamata is the world's largest porphyry copper deposit, notwithstanding the fact that a portion of the orebody has been faulted off by postmineralization movement along the West fault. In order to locate the missing portion of the orebody in the vertical dimension, a study was designed to estimate the sense and amount of vertical displacement along this major structure by measuring the (U-Th)/He and fission-track ages of vertically distributed apatite samples from each of the crustal blocks (Fortuna and Chuquicamata Intrusive Complexes) bordering the fault. Apatite (U-Th)/He ages range from 32 to 16 Ma, whereas apatite fission-track ages range from 33 to 28 Ma, reflecting the lower closure temperature of the (U-Th)/He thermochronology method ( approximately 75 degrees vs. approximately 125 degrees C for cooling rates of approximately 10 degrees C/m.y.). The (U-Th)/He ages decrease systematically with depth in both blocks, however, the age-elevation curve for the western Fortuna block is shifted vertically with respect to the eastern Chuquicamata block, indicating that the postmineralization denudation was significantly greater to the west. The minimum vertical displacement along the West fault is estimated to be 600 + or - 100 m, implying that the missing portion of the Chuquicamata deposit should be located at a present-day elevation of at least 3,600 m. The new apatite ages, combined with previous thermochronometric data (Rb-Sr, U-Pb, Ar-Ar), reveal rapid cooling rates ( approximately 100 degrees C/m.y.) for the Chuquicamata deposit following emplacement at about 35 Ma, thereby indicating that the Cu mineralization took place at a depth of less than 4 km.

Identification of four alternatively spliced isoforms of chicken casein kinase I alpha that are all expressed in diverse cell types.

Casein kinase I (CKI) is a family of widely expressed protein kinases. It is previously shown in mammalian tissues that CKIalpha exists as two or three alternatively spliced isoforms (Rowles et al.,1991; Zhang et al., 1996; Kuret et al., 1997). We now report that four alternatively spliced isoforms of CKIalpha are expressed in many chicken cells and tissues. A partial cDNA clone was isolated from a chicken brain library, using a probe derived from a bovine CKIalpha cDNA. The translated sequence of this clone was 100% identical to the bovine homolog containing the 'L' insert, with the addition of 12 amino acids just before the C terminus that had previously been reported in human and Xenopus CKIalpa. After completing the missing portion of the coding sequence by 5' RACE (rapid amplification of cDNA ends), full-length cDNA was PCR amplified from chicken brain cDNA, yielding four different products. These were cloned and sequenced and found to correspond to the four CKIalpha isoforms: CKIalpha, CKIalphaL, CKIalphaS and CKILalphaLS, where 'S' is the insert consisting of the 12 human/Xenopus C-terminal amino acids. Using reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction (Rt-PCR), it was shown that the four isoforms are all expressed in neurons, fibroblasts and several tissues. This represents the first demonstration that four splice variants exist and are all expressed in a single type of cell.

Age-related Changes in Human Lens Crystallins Identified by Two-dimensional Electrophoresis and Mass Spectrometry

The purpose of this study was to identify the major protein components in adult human lenses and to analyse the specific age-related changes in these proteins using two-dimensional electrophoresis, Edman sequencing, and in conjunction with the data in the accompanying manuscript, mass spectrometry. The majority of changes in the two-dimensional electrophoretic pattern of lens proteins occurred prior to 17 years of age, and included a decrease in proteins migrating to the original positions of βB1, βB3, βA3, γC and γD, and the appearance of many new species with apparent molecular weights on two-dimensional electrophoretic gels similar to βB2 and γS, but having more acidic pIs. These proteins were identified as deamidated forms of βB1 and βA3/A1 missing portions of theirN-terminal extensions. With the exception of αB, deamidation was detected in all crystallin species. These data indicated that a major fraction of the water-soluble protein of the adult human lens is composed of truncated βB1 and βA3/A1 crystallins, and that nearly all human crystallins, including the β-crystallins, are susceptible to deamidation. The results also provided the most detailed map to date of the identities of protein species on two-dimensional electrophoresis gels of adult human lenses.

Effects of tensile loading on the properties of elastic-wave propagation in a strand

Effects of tensile loading on the properties of longitudinal-mode elastic-wave propagation in a 1.52-cm-diam, seven-wire strand used for prestressed concrete structures were investigated experimentally. In an unloaded state, the wave propagation properties in strand matched those seen in individual wires comprising the strand, namely, straight center wire and helical outer wires. In the strand, however, extraneous signals were found to be produced from the propagating wave due to physical interactions between the adjacent wires. Under tensile loading, it was observed that a certain portion of the frequency components of the wave became highly attenuative and, thus, absent in the frequency spectrum of the wave. The center frequency of this missing portion, called notch frequency, was found to increase linearly with log N, where N is the applied tensile load. In addition, on both sides of the notch frequency, the wave exhibited a large dispersion in a manner similar to the behavior near a cutoff frequency. Possible causes of the observed behavior under tensile loading are discussed.

Calculation of the radiated sound field using an open Kirchhoff surface

Means of improving the accuracy of Kirchhoff integral solutions for sound fields in cases where the surface may not be completely closed are investigated. Asymptotic analysis for large temporal wave number is used to analyze time harmonic integral forms. Extension to time dependent equations is discussed briefly. Applicability to the moderate temporal wave numbers of real problems is discussed. Stationary phase arguments are used to show geometrically where good results are expected from a Kirchhoff integral . on an open surface. A similar asymptotic analysis is used to provide correction terms to partially account for the missing portion of the integral surface. The present study is restricted to the case where the mean flow is parallel to the open surface, but results are applicable to arbitrary flow situations in any number of dimensions. Two dimensional numerical examples are given to demonstrate and evaluate the method. It is found that the correction terms can dramatically reduce the error in an open surface calculation of the radiated sound field.

Crystal Structure of S-Adenosylmethionine Synthetase

Crystal Structure of S-Adenosylmethionine Synthetase