scholarly journals Sulfated and sialylated N-glycans in the echinoderm Holothuria atra reflect its marine habitat and phylogeny

2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (10) ◽  
pp. 3159-3172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorick Vanbeselaere ◽  
Chunsheng Jin ◽  
Barbara Eckmair ◽  
Iain B. H. Wilson ◽  
Katharina Paschinger
Keyword(s):  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Marine Habitat ◽  
Chemical Treatments ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Sialyl Lewis A ◽  
Holothuria Atra ◽  
High Degree

Among the earliest deuterostomes, the echinoderms are an evolutionary important group of ancient marine animals. Within this phylum, the holothuroids (sea cucumbers) are known to produce a wide range of glycoconjugate biopolymers with apparent benefits to health; therefore, they are of economic and culinary interest throughout the world. Other than their highly modified glycosaminoglycans (e.g. fucosylated chondroitin sulfate and fucoidan), nothing is known about their protein-linked glycosylation. Here we used multistep N-glycan fractionation to efficiently separate anionic and neutral N-glycans before analyzing the N-glycans of the black sea cucumber (Holothuria atra) by MS in combination with enzymatic and chemical treatments. These analyses showed the presence of various fucosylated, phosphorylated, sialylated, and multiply sulfated moieties as modifications of oligomannosidic, hybrid, and complex-type N-glycans. The high degree of sulfation and fucosylation parallels the modifications observed previously on holothuroid glycosaminoglycans. Compatible with its phylogenetic position, H. atra not only expresses vertebrate motifs such as sulfo– and sialyl–Lewis A epitopes but displays a high degree of anionic substitution of its glycans, as observed in other marine invertebrates. Thus, as for other echinoderms, the phylum- and order-specific aspects of this species' N-glycosylation reveal both invertebrate- and vertebrate-like features.

scholarly journals Morphogenesis: a focus on marine invertebrates

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiyi Lv ◽  
Qiongxuan Lu ◽  
Bo Dong
Keyword(s):  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Sea Urchins ◽  
Imaging Techniques ◽  
Marine Animal ◽  
Sea Anemones ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Fast Development ◽  
Living Tissues

AbstractMorphogenesis is a process describing how the shapes of living tissues and bodies are created during development. Living and fossil organisms exhibit enormously diverse tissue architecture and body forms, although the functions of organs are evolutionally conserved. Current knowledge reveals that relatively conserved mechanisms are applied to control development among different species. However, the regulations of morphogenesis are quite diverse in detail. Animals in the ocean display a wide range of diversity of morphology suitable for their seawater environment. Nevertheless, compared with the intensive studies on terrestrial animals, research on marine animal morphogenesis is still insufficient. The increasing genomic data and the recently available gene editing methods, together with the fast development of imaging techniques, quantitative analyses and biophysical models, provide us the opportunities to have a deeper understanding of the principles that drive the diverse morphogenetic processes in marine animals. In this review, we summarize the recent studies of morphogenesis and evolution at molecular, cellular and tissue levels, with a focus on three model marine animals, namely ascidians, sea urchins and sea anemones.

Further polyphyly of pinnotheroid crabs: the molecular phylogenetic position of the polychaete-associated Aphanodactylidae

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ling Ming Tsang ◽  
Shane T. Ahyong ◽  
Hsi-Te Shih ◽  
Peter K. L. Ng
Keyword(s):  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Histone H3 ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Monophyletic Origin ◽  
The Family ◽  
Molecular Phylogenetic ◽  
Nuclear Histone ◽  
Similar Body ◽  
High Degree

Pea crabs of the superfamily Pinnotheroidea De Haan, 1833 are known for their obligate commensal relationships with other marine invertebrates. The concomitant specialisations and adaptations of pinnotheroids have resulted in superficially similar body forms that include a high degree of structural reduction. This has confounded interpretation of their phylogenetic position in the Brachyura and interrelationships within Pinnotheroidea, though all were nevertheless believed to be united by a monophyletic origin of obligate commensalism. The family Aphanodactylidae Ahyong & Ng, 2009 was proposed for a group of genera associated with tube-dwelling polychaetes formerly classified in Pinnotheridae, and provisionally retained in the Pinnotheroidea. We investigated the phylogenetic position of Aphanodactylidae using molecular data from three markers (mitochondrial 12S and 16S rRNAs, and nuclear histone H3) covering five of the 12 described aphanodactylid species and a total of 15 thoracotreme families. We found Aphanodactylidae to be monophyletic, but widely distant from Pinnotheridae and instead most closely related to Macrophthalmidae (Ocypodoidea) and Varunidae (Grapsoidea). Therefore, the family Aphanodactylidae is corroborated, but its placement in Pinnotheroidea is rejected. Instead, the phylogenetic position of Aphanodactylidae, as clearly distant from other pinnotheroids, demonstrates that obligate commensalism has evolved independently multiple times within Thoracotremata.

scholarly journals Bioadhesion in ascidians: a developmental and functional genomics perspective

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 20140061 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberta Pennati ◽  
Ute Rothbächer
Keyword(s):  
Functional Genomics ◽  
Marine Invertebrates ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Sister Group ◽  
Model Organisms ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Adhesive Properties ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Fouling Organism ◽  
Adhesive Organs

The development of bioadhesives inspired from marine animals is a promising approach to generate new tissue-compatible medical components. A number of marine species, through their adhesive properties, also represent significant foulers that become increasingly problematic to aquaculture, shipping or local biodiversity. In order to develop more sophisticated man-made glues and/or efficient fouling resistant surfaces, it is important to understand the mechanical, structural and molecular properties of adhesive organs in selected species. Ascidians are marine invertebrates with larvae that opportunistically attach to almost any type of submerged surface to undergo metamorphosis into permanently sessile adults. Not only do they represent a globally important fouling organism, but they are becoming increasingly popular as model organisms for developmental biology. The latter is due to their phylogenetic position as the sister group to the vertebrates and their cellular and molecular accessibility for experimentation. In this paper, we review the mechanisms of larval adhesion in ascidians and draw conclusions from comparative analyses of selected species. We further discuss how knowledge from a developmental and functional genomics point of view can advance our understanding of cellular and molecular signatures and their hierarchical usage in animal adhesive organs.

Understanding Conformational Entropy in Small Molecules

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucian Chan ◽  
Garrett Morris ◽  
Geoffrey Hutchison
Keyword(s):  
Small Molecules ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Absolute Error ◽  
Low Energy ◽  
Standard Entropy ◽  
Free Energies ◽  
Conformational Entropy ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Empirical Corrections

The calculation of the entropy of flexible molecules can be challenging, since the number of possible conformers grows exponentially with molecule size and many low-energy conformers may be thermally accessible. Different methods have been proposed to approximate the contribution of conformational entropy to the molecular standard entropy, including performing thermochemistry calculations with all possible stable conformations, and developing empirical corrections from experimental data. We have performed conformer sampling on over 120,000 small molecules generating some 12 million conformers, to develop models to predict conformational entropy across a wide range of molecules. Using insight into the nature of conformational disorder, our cross-validated physically-motivated statistical model can outperform common machine learning and deep learning methods, with a mean absolute error ≈4.8 J/mol•K, or under 0.4 kcal/mol at 300 K. Beyond predicting molecular entropies and free energies, the model implies a high degree of correlation between torsions in most molecules, often as- sumed to be independent. While individual dihedral rotations may have low energetic barriers, the shape and chemical functionality of most molecules necessarily correlate their torsional degrees of freedom, and hence restrict the number of low-energy conformations immensely. Our simple models capture these correlations, and advance our understanding of small molecule conformational entropy.

Danube River Basin: Progress with the Environmental Programme

1999 ◽  
Vol 40 (10) ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Botterweg ◽  
D. W. Rodda
Keyword(s):  
River Basin ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Waste Water Treatment ◽  
Warning System ◽  
Danube River ◽  
The Black Sea ◽  
Research Activity ◽  
Global Environment Facility ◽  
Major Activity ◽  
Wide Range

An Internationally funded Programme, involving the European Commission, the Global Environment Facility managed by UN Development Programme, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, is addressing river basin problems in a unique situation. The solution of these should lead to the prevention of pollution and better water quality, protected ecosystems, sustainable water resources and more efficient sewerage and waste water treatment facilities for the 90 million population living in the region and the reduction of pollution impact on the Black Sea into which the Danube River flows. The paper introduces current Programme activities, the challenges being met and progress. Work is described for implementing a monitoring strategy, an accident emergency warning system and implementation of the 1994 Strategic Action Plan. The applied research activity is explained. The Programme is a major activity with many elements addressing a wide range of environmental problems in the catchment of a major international waterway.

Cerebellotrigeminal Dermal Dysplasia (Gómez-López-Hernández Syndrome)

2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (05) ◽  
pp. 362-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Sullo ◽  
Agata Polizzi ◽  
Stefano Catanzaro ◽  
Selene Mantegna ◽  
Francesco Lacarrubba ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
De Novo ◽  
Chromosomal Rearrangements ◽  
Number Of Patients ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Visual Problems ◽  
Neurodevelopmental Abnormalities ◽  
Clinical Triad ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Motor Handicap

Cerebellotrigeminal dermal (CTD) dysplasia is a rare neurocutaneous disorder characterized by a triad of symptoms: bilateral parieto-occipital alopecia, facial anesthesia in the trigeminal area, and rhombencephalosynapsis (RES), confirmed by cranial magnetic resonance imaging. CTD dysplasia is also known as Gómez-López-Hernández syndrome. So far, only 35 cases have been described with varying symptomatology. The etiology remains unknown. Either spontaneous dominant mutations or de novo chromosomal rearrangements have been proposed as possible explanations. In addition to its clinical triad of RES, parietal alopecia, and trigeminal anesthesia, CTD dysplasia is associated with a wide range of phenotypic and neurodevelopmental abnormalities.Treatment is symptomatic and includes physical rehabilitation, special education, dental care, and ocular protection against self-induced corneal trauma that causes ulcers and, later, corneal opacification. The prognosis is correlated to the mental development, motor handicap, corneal–facial anesthesia, and visual problems. Follow-up on a large number of patients with CTD dysplasia has never been reported and experience is limited to few cases to date. High degree of suspicion in a child presenting with characteristic alopecia and RES has a great importance in diagnosis of this syndrome.

scholarly journals Controlling Teleportation-Based Locomotion in Virtual Reality with Hand Gestures: A Comparative Evaluation of Two-Handed and One-Handed Techniques

Electronics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 715
Author(s):  
Alexander Schäfer ◽  
Gerd Reis ◽  
Didier Stricker
Keyword(s):  
Virtual Reality ◽  
Virtual Worlds ◽  
User Preferences ◽  
Interaction Techniques ◽  
Hand Gestures ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Effectiveness And Efficiency ◽  
High Degree ◽  
Additional Hardware ◽  
Comprehensive Study

Virtual Reality (VR) technology offers users the possibility to immerse and freely navigate through virtual worlds. An important component for achieving a high degree of immersion in VR is locomotion. Often discussed in the literature, a natural and effective way of controlling locomotion is still a general problem which needs to be solved. Recently, VR headset manufacturers have been integrating more sensors, allowing hand or eye tracking without any additional required equipment. This enables a wide range of application scenarios with natural freehand interaction techniques where no additional hardware is required. This paper focuses on techniques to control teleportation-based locomotion with hand gestures, where users are able to move around in VR using their hands only. With the help of a comprehensive study involving 21 participants, four different techniques are evaluated. The effectiveness and efficiency as well as user preferences of the presented techniques are determined. Two two-handed and two one-handed techniques are evaluated, revealing that it is possible to move comfortable and effectively through virtual worlds with a single hand only.

Krypton 85 myocardial blood flow: precordial scintillation versus coronary sinus sampling

1965 ◽  
Vol 209 (4) ◽  
pp. 705-710 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. Klein ◽  
Lawrence S. Cohen ◽  
Richard Gorlin
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Myocardial Blood Flow ◽  
Coronary Sinus ◽  
Human Subjects ◽  
Radioactive Decay ◽  
Empirical Correction ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Actual Flow ◽  
Flow Through ◽  
High Degree

Myocardial blood flow in human subjects was assessed by comparative simultaneous measurement of krypton 85 radioactive decay from coronary sinus and precordial scintillation. Empirical correction of postclearance background from precordial curves yielded a high degree of correlation between flows derived from the two sampling sites (r = .889, P < .001). Comparison of left and right coronary flows in nine subjects revealed similarity in flow through the two vessels over a wide range of actual flow values (r = .945, P < .001).

Historical Dynamics

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Turchin
Keyword(s):  
Religious Conversion ◽  
Synthetic Approach ◽  
Dynamical Processes ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Historical Processes ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Historical Dynamics ◽  
State Breakdown ◽  
Political Economic ◽  
High Degree

Many historical processes are dynamic. Populations grow and decline. Empires expand and collapse. Religions spread and wither. Natural scientists have made great strides in understanding dynamical processes in the physical and biological worlds using a synthetic approach that combines mathematical modeling with statistical analyses. Taking up the problem of territorial dynamics—why some polities at certain times expand and at other times contract—this book shows that a similar research program can advance our understanding of dynamical processes in history. The book develops hypotheses from a wide range of social, political, economic, and demographic factors: geopolitics, factors affecting collective solidarity, dynamics of ethnic assimilation/religious conversion, and the interaction between population dynamics and sociopolitical stability. It then translates these into a spectrum of mathematical models, investigates the dynamics predicted by the models, and contrasts model predictions with empirical patterns. The book's highly instructive empirical tests demonstrate that certain models predict empirical patterns with a very high degree of accuracy. For instance, one model accounts for the recurrent waves of state breakdown in medieval and early modern Europe. And historical data confirm that ethno-nationalist solidarity produces an aggressively expansive state under certain conditions (such as in locations where imperial frontiers coincide with religious divides). The strength of the book's results suggests that the synthetic approach advocated can significantly improve our understanding of historical dynamics.

Main approaches to treatment of hypoxia in acute respiratory distress syndrome, bacterial and viral pneumonia (part III)

2021 ◽  
pp. 38-55
Author(s):  
A. V. Vlasenko ◽  
E. A. Evdokimov ◽  
E. P. Rodionov
Keyword(s):  
Respiratory Failure ◽  
Distress Syndrome ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Viral Pneumonia ◽  
Medical Technologies ◽  
Clinical Observations ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Prevention And Treatment ◽  
High Degree

The paper summarizes data on modern approaches to the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of severe acute parenchymal respiratory failure of various origins, including ARDS due to bacterial viral pneumonia. The work is based on the data of modern well-organized studies, analysis of international clinical guidelines with a high degree of evidence, as well as the results of our own long-term experimental studies and clinical observations of the treatment of patients with ARDS of various origins, including viral pneumonia of 2009, 2016, 2020. Scientifically grounded algorithms for prevention, differential diagnosis and personalized therapy of severe acute respiratory failure using innovative medical technologies and a wide range of respiratory and adjuvant treatment methods have been formulated. The authors tried to adapt as much as possible the existing current recommendations for the daily clinical practice of anesthesiologists and resuscitators.

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