The discovery of G-rich oligonucleotides (GROs) that have non-antisense antiproliferative activity against a number of cancer cell lines has been recently described. This biological activity of GROs was found to be associated with their ability to form stable G-quartet-containing structures and their binding to a specific cellular protein, most likely nucleolin (Bates, P. J., Kahlon, J. B., Tho...

All eukaryotes use three DNA-dependent RNA polymerases (RNAPs) to create cellular RNAs from DNA templates. Plants have additional RNAPs related to Pol II, but their evolutionary role(s) remain largely unknown. Zea mays (maize) RNA polymerase D1 (RPD1), the largest subunit of RNA polymerase IV (Pol IV), is required for normal plant development, paramutation, transcriptional repression of certain...

We report on XMM-Newton observations of GRO J1655-40 and GRS 1009-45, which are two black hole X-ray transients currently in their quiescent phase. GRO J1655-40 was detected with a 0.5-10 keV luminosity of 5.9 × 10 31 erg s −1. This luminosity is comparable to a previous Chandra measurement, but ten times lower than the 1996 ASCA value, most likely obtained when the source was not yet in a true...

We report on several European Southern Observatory (ESO) near-infrared (NIR) observational campaigns aimed at understanding the nature of galactic black hole candidates. Our results, including NIR photometry of the sources GRO J1655-40, GRS 1739-278, GRS 1716-249, GRS 1121-68 and GX 339-4, show that all the sources but GRO J1655-40 are consistent with low-mass stars as the companion star of the...

We analyze RXTE/PCA observations of the black hole candidate and galactic superluminal source GRO J1655–40 during its recent outburst. We show that during its decay to quiescence, GRO J1655–40 goes through the high, intermediate, and low state (and that at the beginning of its decay it might have even shown signatures of a very high state), just like other black hole candidates. This is the fir...

Chronic alcohol use alters adaptive immunity and cytokine activity influencing immunological and hormone responses, inflammation, and wound healing. Brain cytokine disturbances may impact neurological function, mood, cognition and traits related to alcoholism including impulsiveness. We examined the relationship between plasma cytokine levels and self-rated psychiatric symptoms in 40 adult male...

Recently, green reduction of graphene oxide (GRO) using various natural materials, including plant extracts, has drawn significant attention among the scientific community. These methods are sustainable, low cost, and are more environmentally friendly than other standard methods of reduction. Herein, we report a facile and eco-friendly method for the bioreduction of GRO using Salvadora persica ...

The Duffy Ag expressed on RBCs, capillaries, and postcapillary venular endothelial cells binds selective CXC and CC chemokines with high affinity. Cells transfected with the Duffy Ag internalize but do not degrade chemokine ligand. It has been proposed that Duffy Ag transports chemokines across the endothelium. We hypothesized that Duffy Ag participates in the movement of chemokines across the ...

Interleukin (IL)-31 is mainly produced by CD4+ T cells, in particular T cells skewed toward a Th2 phenotype. Here we report for the first time that IL-31 stimulates secretion of proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) from human colonic subepithelial myofibroblasts (SEMFs). The effects of IL-31 were investigated by cDNA microarrays, enzyme-linked immunosorbent...