Alpha Omega

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Caffeine is consumed by over 80% of U.S. adults. This review examines the effects caffeine has on cognitive and physical function, since most real-world activities require complex decision making, motor processing and movement. Caffeine exerts its effects by blocking adenosine receptors. Following low (∼40mg or ∼0.5mgkg-1 ) to moderate (∼300mg or 4mgkg-1 ) caffeine doses, alertness, vigilance, attention, reaction time and attention improve, but less consistent effects are observed on memory and higher-order executive function, such as judgment and decision making...

Mitochondria are bioenergetic, biosynthetic, and signaling organelles that are integral in stress sensing to allow for cellular adaptation to the environment. Therefore, it is not surprising that mitochondria are important mediators of tumorigenesis, as this process requires flexibility to adapt to cellular and environmental alterations in addition to cancer treatments. Multiple aspects of mitochondrial biology beyond bioenergetics support transformation, including mitochondrial biogenesis and turnover, fission and fusion dynamics, cell death susceptibility, oxidative stress regulation, metabolism, and signaling...

Early warning signals of the coronary heart disease (CHD) risk of sugar (sucrose) emerged in the 1950s. We examined Sugar Research Foundation (SRF) internal documents, historical reports, and statements relevant to early debates about the dietary causes of CHD and assembled findings chronologically into a narrative case study. The SRF sponsored its first CHD research project in 1965, a literature review published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which singled out fat and cholesterol as the dietary causes of CHD and downplayed evidence that sucrose consumption was also a risk factor...

Although biology has achieved great successes in recent years, we have not got a clear idea on "what is life?" Actually, as explained here, the main reason for this situation is that there are two completely distinct aspects for "life", which are usually talked about together. Indeed, in respect to these two aspects: Darwinian evolution and self-sustaining, we must split the concept of life correspondingly, for example, by defining "life form" and "living entity", separately. For life's implementation (related to the two aspects) in nature, three mechanisms are crucial: the replication of DNA/RNA-like polymers by residue-pairing, the sequence-dependent folding of RNA/protein-like polymers engendering special functions, and the assembly of phospholipid-like amphiphiles forming vesicles...

Numerous biological processes are concurrently and coordinately active in every living cell. Each of them encompasses synthetic, catalytic and regulatory functions that are, almost always, carried out by proteins organized further into higher-order structures and networks. For decades, the structures and functions of selected proteins have been studied using biochemical and biophysical methods. However, the properties and behaviour of the proteome as an integrated system have largely remained elusive. Powerful mass-spectrometry-based technologies now provide unprecedented insights into the composition, structure, function and control of the proteome, shedding light on complex biological processes and phenotypes...

In recent years, rapid discoveries have been made relating to Ca2+ handling at specific organelles that have important implications for whole-cell Ca2+ homeostasis. In particular, the structures of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ channels revealed by electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM), continuous updates on the structure, regulation, and role of the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) complex, and the analysis of lysosomal Ca2+ signaling are milestones on the route towards a deeper comprehension of the complexity of global Ca2+ signaling...

Misinterpretation and abuse of statistical tests, confidence intervals, and statistical power have been decried for decades, yet remain rampant. A key problem is that there are no interpretations of these concepts that are at once simple, intuitive, correct, and foolproof. Instead, correct use and interpretation of these statistics requires an attention to detail which seems to tax the patience of working scientists. This high cognitive demand has led to an epidemic of shortcut definitions and interpretations that are simply wrong, sometimes disastrously so-and yet these misinterpretations dominate much of the scientific literature...

The canonical function of the endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation (ERAD) system is to enforce quality control among membrane-associated proteins by targeting misfolded secreted, intra-organellar, and intramembrane proteins for degradation. However, increasing evidence suggests that ERAD additionally functions in maintaining appropriate levels of a subset of membrane-associated proteins. In this 'quantity control' capacity, ERAD responds to environmental cues to regulate the proteasomal degradation of specific ERAD substrates according to cellular need...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), a class of endogenous small noncoding RNAs in eukaryotes, have been recognized as significant regulators of gene expression through post-transcriptional mechanisms. To date, >2000 miRNAs have been identified in the human genome, and they orchestrate a variety of biological and pathological processes. Disruption of miRNA levels correlates with many diseases, including diabetes mellitus, a complex multifactorial metabolic disorder affecting >400 million people worldwide. miRNAs are involved in the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus by affecting pancreatic β-cell functions, insulin resistance, or both...

CRISPR/Cas (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR-associated) adaptive immune systems constitute a bacterial defence against invading nucleic acids derived from bacteriophages or plasmids. This prokaryotic system was adapted in molecular biology and became one of the most powerful and versatile platforms for genome engineering. CRISPR/Cas9 is a simple and rapid tool which enables the efficient modification of endogenous genes in various species and cell types. Moreover, a modified version of the CRISPR/Cas9 system with transcriptional repressors or activators allows robust transcription repression or activation of target genes...

Neurodegenerative diseases are a very diverse group of disorders but they share some common mechanisms such as abnormally misfolded proteins with prion-like propagation and aggregation. Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is the most prevalent prion disease in humans. In the sporadic form of CJD the only known risk factor is the codon 129 polymorphism. Recent reports suggested that α-synuclein in multiple system atrophy (MSA) has similar pathogenic mechanisms as the prion protein. Here we present 1 Italian family with MSA and prion disease...

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The topic of persistent child health disparities remains a priority for policymakers and a concern for pediatric clinicians. Health disparities are defined as differences in adverse health outcomes for specific health indicators that exist across sub-groups of the population, frequently between minority and majority populations. This review will highlight the gains that have been made since the 1990s as well as describe disparities that have persisted or have worsened into the 21st century. It will also examine the most potent social determinants and their impact on the major disparities in mortality, preventive care, chronic disease, mental health, educational outcomes, and exposure to selected environmental toxins...

The nascent polypeptide-associated complex (NAC) is a highly conserved but poorly characterized triad of proteins that bind near the ribosome exit tunnel. The NAC is the first cotranslational factor to bind to polypeptides and assist with their proper folding. Surprisingly, we found that deletion of NAC subunits in Saccharomyces cerevisiae rescues toxicity associated with the strong [PSI+] prion. This counterintuitive finding can be explained by changes in chaperone balance and distribution whereby the folding of the prion protein is improved and the prion is rendered nontoxic...

To examine the association of colonization by Staphylococcus aureus and general population mortality, we followed 10,598 adults for 8.5 years on average. Methicillin-susceptible S. aureus colonization was not associated with death. Methicillin-resistant S. aureus carriage predicted death in a crude analysis but not after adjustment for socioeconomic status and co-morbidities.

The CRISPR-Cas9 RNA-guided DNA endonuclease has contributed to an explosion of advances in the life sciences that have grown from the ability to edit genomes within living cells. In this Review, we summarize CRISPR-based technologies that enable mammalian genome editing and their various applications. We describe recent developments that extend the generality, DNA specificity, product selectivity, and fundamental capabilities of natural CRISPR systems, and we highlight some of the remarkable advancements in basic research, biotechnology, and therapeutics science that these developments have facilitated...

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The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans advocate for increasing vegetable intake and replacing energy-dense foods with those that are nutrient-dense. Most Americans do not eat enough vegetables, and particularly legumes, each day, despite their well-established benefits for health. Traditional hummus is a nutrient-dense dip or spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas, blended with tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, and spices. Consumers of chickpeas and/or hummus have been shown to have higher nutrient intakes of dietary fiber, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C, folate, magnesium, potassium, and iron as compared to non-consumers...