Dysregulated Spliceosome Gene Expression May Be a Common Process in Brains of Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders

Alternative splicing (AS) contributes to the increased cellular and functional tissue complexity that is substantial in the brain. AS is tightly regulated because it is critical to many biological processes. Defective splicing is observed in several neurological and psychiatric disorders. While exonic mutations usually affect the splicing of an individual RNA, mutations in the splicing factors (components of spliceosome) frequently produce widespread disruption in the processing of many precursor-mRNAs. Thus, we tested the hypotheses that expression changes of spliceosome genes may be a common process and shared splicing pathways may be involved in complex polygenic brain disorders. We searched for expression changes of spliceosome-related genes (SGs) using a transcriptome database of several brain regions in 6 neurological and psychiatric disorders, namely Alzheimer’s disease, and autism spectrum, bipolar and major depressive disorder, Parkinson’s disease, and schizophrenia. Out of 255 SGs detected in brain, 138 showed excessive, significant changes in one or more of these disorders. Dysregulation of 10 SGs was shared in 4 disorders, and they were mostly downregulated. Six associated pathways were over-represented in all 6 disorders, including the major and the minor mRNA splicing pathways and RNA metabolism. Therefore, we found that aberrations in the mRNA splicing process may be a common trajectory to many complex brain disorders involving the spliceosome complex.

HRM and Employee Significant Behavior: Explaining the Black Box through AMO Theory

The purpose of this study is to explore the employees’ perceptions towards the role of HRM policies and practices in assisting them to perform the desired behavior in contributing to the organizational goals achievement. Employees’ perceptions are explored through their actual experiences with the implementation of HRM policies and practices. Interviews were conducted with employees in five different star-rating hotels to understand contextual factors that can be observed. Different perceptions on the role of HRM policies and practices in influencing employees’ performance are reported from the interviews. Instead of acting as a medium to transmit the message of their work expectations, employees view the HRM policies and practices as a common process happening in their organization and unrelated to their work demand. Therefore, findings of this study could light a torch of awareness for organizations to give more attention to the employees’ responses and feedback to minimize their dysfunctional behaviors that are detrimental to organizational achievement. Suggestions are given to increase the employee desired behavior relevant to the organizations from the perspective of AMO theory.

Photoperiod and its relationship to sheep reproduction

Objective: To describe the seasonal variations throughout the year (day length), as one of the main environmental cues used by ewes to determine the most favorable time for breeding. Design/methodology/approach: A description of the main factors affecting ewe reproduction (photoperiod, suckling, postpartum period, nutrition, sociosexual effects) was assessed by a review of documentary information. Results: The inhibition of reproductive activity during one time of the year is a common process in most animal species to prevent births from occurring at an unfavorable time for the survival of the offspring. The seasonality of reproduction (northern latitude) allows births to occur in late winter or early spring when climatic conditions are the most favorable for the offspring development. Limitations/implications: The duration of the anestrus season (seasonal or postpartum) is influenced by the photoperiod and other factors. In Mexico, a small percentage of Criollo and Pelibuey ewes show a short duration of seasonal anestrus; that is, they show almost continuous annual reproductive activity. Therefore, to improve the reproductive efficiency of ewes, it is important to precisely determine the factors that affect their reproduction to improve management and increase the profits in the production units. Findings/Conclusions: Photoperiod is the main environmental factor regulating the annual reproductive cycle of the ewes, it occurs through very complex and varied mechanisms that communicate the visual system with the gonads through nervous and endocrine pathways.

Biodepression of Copper-Activated Pyrite with Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans in Flotation with Fresh and Seawater

Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans has been shown to be a good depressant of pyrite in freshwater and seawater flotation. However, the effect of these bacteria over copper-activated pyrite has not been studied. At the industrial scale, the activation of pyrite with copper is a common process that occurs because Cu2+ ions, released from other minerals, react with pyrite. This is a problem because Cu2+ ions facilitate the reaction of pyrite with the xanthate collectors, becoming hydrophobic and reaching the froth. In this study, microflotation experiments in a Hallimond tube were conducted to evaluate the depressant effect of A. ferrooxidans over non-activated and Cu-activated pyrite in freshwater and seawater flotation. The experiments were carried out at pH 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 and pyrite was mixed with CuSO4 at 2.5×10−5 and 5×10−5 M in order to activate its surface. Considering the results obtained in the microflotation tests, it is possible to conclude that Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans is able to depress non-activated and Cu-activated pyrite at the entire pH range studied (4–12) in freshwater. On the other hand, the use of bacteria in flotation with seawater proved to be effective to depress non-activated and Cu-activated pyrite at pH 8 and 10 with better results achieved at pH 10. At this pH, the non-activated pyrite recovery dropped from 96% to 15%, and the recovery of Cu-activated pyrite dropped from 95% to 32% when the activation was carried out at 2.5×10−5 M, and from 87% to 50% when the activation was conducted at 5×10−5 M of CuSO4. The XPS analysis showed that chalcopyrite and copper (II) hydroxide were formed on the pyrite surface when it is contacted with CuSO4.

Application of Chemical Sensors and Olfactometry Method in Ecological Audits of Degraded Areas

Mineral excavation is a common process throughout the world. The open pits remaining after the closure of a mine require well-considered and meticulous reclamation activities aimed at restoring the environmental properties of a given area. The inspections carried out in Poland indicate numerous irregularities in implementing the reclamation process. The research in this study was conducted in six measurement series and includes both chemical and olfactometry determinations by devices: multisensor portable gas detector and field olfactometer. Statistical analysis of the results obtained show high concentrations in ambient air of both chemical compounds (NH3, VOCs, H2S, CH3SH) and odour, excluding the possibility of occurrence in the pit of only waste types contained in the administrative decision on reclamation. In addition to the unpleasant odour, the listed compounds can have dangerous effects on the health and life of living organisms. This paper presents a suitable method of control and detection of irregularities in the conducted processes. The main advantage is the relatively low cost of purchasing sensors and field olfactometers compared to other devices, and the possibility to test the polluted air in situ, without the risk of chemical processes occurring during transport of gas samples to the laboratory.

Development of a Pre-Verified EPD Tool with Process Simulation Capabilities for the Aggregates Industry

This paper has two aims: to describe the current status and challenges of aggregates producers regarding the analysis and communication of environmental information of their products and to present a layout of a pre-verified tool with simulation capabilities that could assist aggregates producers with their environmental goals. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with three Swedish aggregates producers, an aggregates customer, and an expert agency. Additionally, published Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for aggregates and the EN 15804:2012 + A2:2019 were studied to reveal current practices and upcoming changes due to the updated standard. The synergies with process simulations were explored as a step towards using the EPD framework for continuous improvement of aggregates production. The interviews indicated that the main challenge for aggregates producers is the lack of easily available plant data for environmental calculations and clearly defined environmental goals at each plant. The proposed tool uses a common process flowsheet for both EPDs and simulations and has a pre-defined LCA module. The use of such a tool is expected to raise the environmental interest at aggregates plants and improve collaboration with LCA experts. Since the analysis is based on the Swedish aggregates market, the interview results are not directly generalizable to the European context.

CFD-DEM Simulation of Fluidization of Polyhedral Particles in a Fluidized Bed

Fluidization of non-spherical particles is a common process in energy industries and chemical engineering. Understanding the fluidization of non-spherical particles is important to guide relevant processes. There already have been numerous studies which investigate the behaviors of different non-spherical particles during fluidization, but the investigations of the fluidization of polyhedral particles do not receive much attention. In this study, the investigation of the fluidization of polyhedral particles described by the polyhedron approach is conducted with a numerical CFD-DEM method. Experiments of the fluidization of three kinds of polyhedral particles are conducted under the same condition with corresponding simulations to validate the accuracy of our CFD-DEM model. The results indicate that our CFD-DEM model with the polyhedron approach can predict the behaviors of polyhedral particles with reasonable accuracy. Fluidization behaviors of different polyhedral particles are also investigated in this study. Compared to spherical particles, the motion of polyhedral particles is stronger, and mixing degree is higher under the same fluidization gas velocity.

“BEING UNITED WE CLOSE, BEING APART WE DIE”: COMMON COMBAT AGAINST COVID-19 IN DENSEST VILLAGE

The spread of pneumonia cases caused by a new type of Coronavirus (Novel Coronavirus) SARS Cov-2 was established by WHO called Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) on February 2020 and designated as a pandemic on March 11, 2020. However, an interesting phenomenon arises, despite the high number of COVID-19 spread in Jakarta. That is as of April 10, 2020, 50 out of 267 urban villages in Jakarta are declared free of COVID-19 (not infected with the virus) and one of them is the most populous village in Jakarta called the most densely populated urban village in Southeast Asia, namely Kalianyar in Tambora Sub District, West Jakarta.This study aims to find out how does Kalianyar combat the spread of COVID-19, recalling that considering the nature of the virus transmission, Kalianyar has high potential to be a vulnerable zone. The research was conducted through a qualitative analysis on a case study of Kalianyar aiming to examine the deep explanation and understanding of distinctive implementation and to obtain the lesson learned from the implementation of Fournier's idea seeing how the common process occurs. The common process occurring within social organization in Kalianyar shows that there are relational and reciprocal relationships resulting from each activity related to the three axes as suggested by Fournier.