In this study, we investigated the role of positively and negatively charged amino acids within the 89-99 region of apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I), which are highly conserved in mammals, on plasma lipid homeostasis and the biogenesis of HDL. We previously showed that deletion of the 89-99 region of apoA-I increased plasma cholesterol and phospholipids, but it did not affect plasma triglycerides. F...

Lassa virus (LASV) causes deadly hemorrhagic fever disease for which there are no vaccines and limited treatments. LASV-encoded L polymerase is required for viral RNA replication and transcription. The functional domains of L-a large protein of 2218 amino acid residues-are largely undefined, except for the centrally located RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRP) motif. Recent structural and functi...

Examples of repeated destructive behavior abound throughout the history of human societies. This paper examines the role of social memory — a society’s vicarious beliefs about the past — in creating and perpetuating destructive conflicts. We examine whether such behavior is consistent with the theory of rational strategic behavior. We analyze an infinite-horizon model in which two countries fac...

Individuals with a preference for keeping moral obligations may have an incentive to avoid information indicating that voluntary contributions are socially valuable. The reason is that such information can increase these individuals’perceived burden of responsibility. An increase in the believed social value of contributions a¤ects neither behavior nor the utility of Homo Economicus and of the ...

We find an economic rationale for the common sense answer to the question in our title — courts should not always enforce what the contracting parties write. We describe and analyze a contractual environment that allows a role for an active court. An active court can improve on the outcome that the parties would achieve without it. The institutional role of the court is to maximize the parties’...

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We build a simple model of trust as an equilibrium phenomenon, departing from standard “selfish” preferences in a minimal way. Agents who are on the receiving end of an offer to transact can choose whether to cheat and take away the entire surplus, taking into account a “cost of cheating.” The latter has an idiosyncratic component (an agent’s type), and a socially determined one. The smaller th...

This paper examines an equilibrium model of social memory — a society’s vicarious beliefs about its past. We show how social memory can be incorrect in a well defined sense, and that incorrect social memory is a key ingredient in creating and perpetuating destructive conflicts between nations. We analyze an infinite-horizon model in which two countries face off each period in a game of conflict...

TLR4 triggers LPS signaling through the adaptors Toll/IL-1R domain-containing adaptor molecule (TICAM)-2 (also called TRAM) and TICAM-1 (also called TRIF), together with Toll/IL-1R domain-containing adaptor protein (TIRAP) and MyD88. The MyD88 pathway mediates early phase responses to LPS on the plasma membrane, whereas the TICAM pathway mediates late-phase responses, which induce the productio...

The reverse reaction of ubiquitylation is catalyzed by different classes of deubiquitylation enzymes (DUBs), including ovarian tumor domain (OTU)-containing DUBs; experiments using Homo sapiens proteins have demonstrated that OTU DUBs modulate various cellular processes. With the exception of OTLD1, plant OTU DUBs have not been characterized. We identified 12 Arabidopsis thaliana OTU loci and a...