Browsing by Subject "COMPONENTS"

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  • Bressi, M.; Cavalli, F.; Putaud, J.P.; Fröhlich, R.; Petit, J.-E.; Aas, W.; Äijälä, M.; Alastuey, A.; Allan, J.D.; Aurela, M.; Berico, M.; Bougiatioti, A.; Bukowiecki, N.; Canonaco, F.; Crenn, V.; Dusanter, S.; Ehn, Mikael; Elsasser, M.; Flentje, H.; Graf, P.; Green, D.C.; Heikkinen, Liine; Hermann, H.; Holzinger, R.; Hueglin, C.; Keernik, H.; Kiendler-Scharr, A.; Kubelová, L.; Lunder, C.; Maasikmets, M.; Makeš, O.; Malaguti, A.; Mihalopoulos, N.; Nicolas, J.B.; O'Dowd, C.; Ovadnevaite, J.; Petralia, E.; Poulain, L.; Priestman, M.; Riffault, V.; Ripoll, A.; Schlag, P.; Schwarz, J.; Sciare, J.; Slowik, J.; Sosedova, Y.; Stavroulas, I.; Teinemaa, E.; Via, M.; Vodička, P.; Williams, P.I.; Wiedensohler, A.; Young, D.E.; Zhang, S.; Favez, O.; Minguillón, M.C.; Prevot, A.S.H. (2021)
    Similarities and differences in the submicron atmospheric aerosol chemical composition are analyzed from a unique set of measurements performed at 21 sites across Europe for at least one year. These sites are located between 35 and 62 degrees N and 10 degrees W - 26 degrees E, and represent various types of settings (remote, coastal, rural, industrial, urban). Measurements were all carried out on-line with a 30-min time resolution using mass spectroscopy based instruments known as Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitors (ACSM) and Aerosol Mass Spectrometers (AMS) and following common measurement guidelines. Data regarding organics, sulfate, nitrate and ammonium concentrations, as well as the sum of them called non-refractory submicron aerosol mass concentration ([NR-PM1]) are discussed. NR-PM1 concentrations generally increase from remote to urban sites. They are mostly larger in the mid-latitude band than in southern and northern Europe. On average, organics account for the major part (36-64%) of NR-PM1 followed by sulfate (12-44%) and nitrate (6-35%). The annual mean chemical composition of NR-PM1 at rural (or regional background) sites and urban background sites are very similar. Considering rural and regional background sites only, nitrate contribution is higher and sulfate contribution is lower in midlatitude Europe compared to northern and southern Europe. Large seasonal variations in concentrations (mu g/m(3)) of one or more components of NR-PM1 can be observed at all sites, as well as in the chemical composition of NR-PM1 (%) at most sites. Significant diel cycles in the contribution to [NR-PM1] of organics, sulfate, and nitrate can be observed at a majority of sites both in winter and summer. Early morning minima in organics in concomitance with maxima in nitrate are common features at regional and urban background sites. Daily variations are much smaller at a number of coastal and rural sites. Looking at NR-PM1 chemical composition as a function of NR-PM1 mass concentration reveals that although organics account for the major fraction of NR-PM1 at all concentration levels at most sites, nitrate contribution generally increases with NR-PM1 mass concentration and predominates when NR-PM1 mass concentrations exceed 40 mu g/m(3) at half of the sites.
  • Gonzalez-Ortiz, Gemma; Bronsoms, Silvia; Van Ufford, H. C. Quarles; Halkes, S. Bart A.; Virkola, Ritva; Liskamp, Rob M. J.; Beukelman, Cees J.; Pieters, Roland J.; Francisco Perez, Jose; Maria Martin-Orue, Susana (2014)
  • Ma, Yang; Qu, Zhao-Lei; Liu, Bing; Tan, Jia-Jin; Asiegbu, Fred O.; Sun, Hui (2020)
    Pine wilt disease (PWD) caused by the nematode Bursaphelenchus xylophilus is a devastating disease in conifer forests in Eurasia. However, information on the effect of PWD on the host microbial community is limited. In this study, the bacterial community structure and potential function in the needles, roots, and soil of diseased pine were studied under field conditions using Illumina MiSeq coupled with Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved states (PICRUSt) software. The results showed that the community and functional structure of healthy and diseased trees differed only in the roots and needles, respectively (p <0.05). The needles, roots, and soil formed unique bacterial community and functional structures. The abundant phyla across all samples were Proteobacteria (41.9% of total sequence), Actinobacteria (29.0%), Acidobacteria (12.2%), Bacteroidetes (4.8%), and Planctomycetes (2.1%). The bacterial community in the healthy roots was dominated by Acidobacteria, Planctomycetes, and Rhizobiales, whereas in the diseased roots, Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Burkholderiales were dominant. Functionally, groups involved in the cell process and genetic information processing had a higher abundance in the diseased needles, which contributed to the difference in functional structure. The results indicate that PWD can only affect the host bacteria community structure and function in certain anatomical regions of the host tree.
  • Vered, Marilena; Lehtonen, Meri; Hotakainen, Lari; Pirila, Emma; Teppo, Susanna; Nyberg, Pia; Sormunen, Raija; Zlotogorski-Hurvitz, Ayelet; Salo, Tuula; Dayan, Dan (2015)
  • Ketonen, Elina E.; Hotulainen, Risto (2019)
    The development of students' learning and test-taking behavior may derive from the social context and the group of peers they associate with daily for years. Consequently, it is assumed that students' academic achievements are to some degree affected by their classmates and the composition of the classroom. The present study provides evidence on how Finnish students (N = 5071) from different classrooms (N = 435) develop distinct patterns regarding their mathematics and literacy achievement during lower secondary school. We analysed longitudinal large-scale educational assessment data using a multilevel latent profile analysis (MLPA) to investigate the impact of classroom effect on students' achievement patterns, that is, on the development of students' low-stakes mathematics and literacy test scores from 7th to 9th grade. The results demonstrated the added value of modelling the multilevel structure inherent in educational assessment data: we identified four student achievement patterns that displayed different distributions across the school classes. More precisely, besides individual characteristics, the development of students' low-stakes mathematics and literacy test scores was associated with class-level factors and some of the classrooms seemed to have a stronger effect on students' test scores. These results suggest that classroom context is associated with students' achievement patterns, especially regarding the worst achieving students. The findings may reflect a combination of class placement practices as well as classroom and peer effect. Although the differences between Finnish schools have been one of the lowest in the OECD countries, the findings of the present study suggest that the classroom membership may create class level quality differences in both the preconditions and the development of learning.
  • Leboucher, Thibault; Budnick, William R.; Passy, Sophia; Boutry, Sebastien; Jannoneau, Aurelien; Soininen, Janne; Vyverman, Wim; Tison-Rosebery, Juliette (2019)
    Aim To quantify the relative contributions of local community assembly processes versus gamma-diversity to beta-diversity, and to assess how spatial scale and anthropogenic disturbance (i.e. nutrient enrichment) interact to dictate which driver dominates. Location France and the United States. Time period 1993-2011. Major taxa studied Freshwater stream diatoms. Methods beta-diversity along a nutrient enrichment gradient was examined across multiple spatial scales. beta-diversity was estimated using multi-site Sorensen dissimilarity. We assessed the relative importance of specialists versus generalists using Friedley coefficient, and the contribution of local community assembly versus gamma-diversity to beta-diversity across spatial scales, with a null model. Finally, we estimated the response of beta-diversity to environmental and spatial factors by testing the correlations between community, environmental and geographical distance matrices with partial Mantel tests. Results beta-diversity generally increased with spatial scale but the rate of increase depended on nutrient enrichment level. beta-diversity decreased significantly with increasing nutrient enrichment level due to the loss of specialist species. Local assembly was an important driver of beta-diversity especially under low nutrient enrichment. Significant partial Mantel correlations were observed between diatom beta-diversity and pure environmental distances under these conditions, highlighting the role of species sorting in local assembly processes. Conversely, in heavily enriched sites, only spatial distances were significantly correlated with beta-diversity, which indicated a substantial role of dispersal processes. Main conclusions Nutrient concentration mediated the expected increase in beta-diversity with spatial scales. Across spatial scales, beta-diversity was more influenced by local assembly processes rather than by gamma-diversity. Nutrient enrichment was associated with an overall decline in diatom beta-diversity and a shift in assembly processes from species sorting to dispersal, notably due to the elimination of some specialists and their subsequent replacement by generalists.
  • Silventoinen, Karri; Jelenkovic, Aline; Sund, Reijo; Yokoyama, Yoshie; Hur, Yoon-Mi; Cozen, Wendy; Hwang, Amie E.; Mack, Thomas M.; Honda, Chika; Inui, Fujio; Iwatani, Yoshinori; Watanabe, Mikio; Tomizawa, Rie; Pietilainen, Kirsi H.; Rissanen, Aila; Siribaddana, Sisira H.; Hotopf, Matthew; Sumathipala, Athula; Rijsdijk, Fruhling; Tan, Qihua; Zhang, Dongfeng; Pang, Zengchang; Piirtola, Maarit; Aaltonen, Sari; Oncel, Sevgi Y.; Aliev, Fazil; Rebato, Esther; Hjelmborg, Jacob B.; Christensen, Kaare; Skytthe, Axel; Kyvik, Kirsten O.; Silberg, Judy L.; Eaves, Lindon J.; Cutler, Tessa L.; Ordonana, Juan R.; Sanchez-Romera, Juan F.; Colodro-Conde, Lucia; Song, Yun-Mi; Yang, Sarah; Lee, Kayoung; Franz, Carol E.; Kremen, William S.; Lyons, Michael J.; Busjahn, Andreas; Nelson, Tracy L.; Whitfield, Keith E.; Kandler, Christian; Jang, Kerry L.; Gatz, Margaret; Butler, David A.; Stazi, Maria A.; Fagnani, Corrado; D'Ippolito, Cristina; Duncan, Glen E.; Buchwald, Dedra; Martin, Nicholas G.; Medland, Sarah E.; Montgomery, Grant W.; Jeong, Hoe-Uk; Swan, Gary E.; Krasnow, Ruth; Magnusson, Patrik Ke; Pedersen, Nancy L.; Aslan, Anna K. Dahl; McAdams, Tom A.; Eley, Thalia C.; Gregory, Alice M.; Tynelius, Per; Baker, Laura A.; Tuvblad, Catherine; Bayasgalan, Gombojav; Narandalai, Danshiitsoodol; Spector, Timothy D.; Mangino, Massimo; Lachance, Genevieve; Burt, S. Alexandra; Klump, Kelly L.; Harris, Jennifer R.; Brandt, Ingunn; Nilsen, Thomas S.; Krueger, Robert F.; Mcgue, Matt; Pahlen, Shandell; Corley, Robin P.; Huibregtse, Brooke M.; Bartels, Meike; van Beijsterveldt, Catharina E. M.; Willemsen, Gonneke; Goldberg, Jack H.; Rasmussen, Finn; Tarnoki, Adam D.; Tarnoki, David L.; Derom, Catherine A.; Vlietinck, Robert F.; Loos, Ruth J. F.; Hopper, John L.; Sung, Joohon; Maes, Hermine H.; Turkheimer, Eric; Boomsma, Dorret I.; Sorensen, Thorkild I. A.; Kaprio, Jaakko (2017)
    Background: Genes and the environment contribute to variation in adult body mass index [BMI (in kg/m(2))], but factors modifying these variance components are poorly understood. Objective: We analyzed genetic and environmental variation in BMI between men and women from young adulthood to old age from the 1940s to the 2000s and between cultural-geographic regions representing high (North America and Australia), moderate (Europe), and low (East Asia) prevalence of obesity. Design: We used genetic structural equation modeling to analyze BMI in twins >= 20 y of age from 40 cohorts representing 20 countries (140,379 complete twin pairs). Results: The heritability of BMI decreased from 0.77 (95% CI: 0.77, 0.78) and 0.75 (95% CI: 0.74, 0.75) in men and women 2029 y of age to 0.57 (95% CI: 0.54, 0.60) and 0.59 (95% CI: 0.53, 0.65) in men 70-79 y of age and women 80 y of age, respectively. The relative influence of unique environmental factors correspondingly increased. Differences in the sets of genes affecting BMI in men and women increased from 20-29 to 60-69 y of age. Mean BMI and variances in BMI increased from the 1940s to the 2000s and were greatest in North America and Australia, followed by Europe and East Asia. However, heritability estimates were largely similar over measurement years and between regions. There was no evidence of environmental factors shared by co-twins affecting BMI. Conclusions: The heritability of BMI decreased and differences in the sets of genes affecting BMI in men and women increased from young adulthood to old age. The heritability of BMI was largely similar between cultural-geographic regions and measurement years, despite large differences in mean BMI and variances in BMI. Our results show a strong influence of genetic factors on BMI, especially in early adulthood, regardless of the obesity level in the population.
  • Yrjönen, Teijo; Vuorela, Heikki; Kauppila, Tiina J. (2017)
    Desorption atmospheric pressure photoionization (DAPPI) is an ambient mass spectrometry (MS) technique that can be used for the analysis of polar and nonpolar compounds directly from surfaces. Here, the feasibility of DAPPI-MS in the screening of plant metabolites from dried Peucedanum palustre leaves and umbels was studied. DAPPI-MS requires no prior sample preparation or chromatographic separation, and the analysis can therefore be performed directly from the untreated plant material. P. palustre contains several linear and angular furanocoumarins, some of which are specific for the species. The DAPPI mass spectra of both leaf and umbel samples showed distinct ions at m/z 445 and 443 in positive and negative ion modes, respectively. MS2 analyses of these ions confirmed that the ions were the protonated and deprotonated molecules, respectively, of peulustrin and its isomers, which have only been identified from P. palustre. The direct analysis of dried plant material by DAPPI-MS was shown to provide a fast and reliable means to confirm the identity of plant materials, to study the metabolite profiles of plants, and to screen biologically relevant compounds from plant surfaces.
  • Heikkinen, Liine; Äijälä, Mikko; Dällenbach, Kaspar; Chen, Gang; Garmash, Olga; Aliaga, Diego; Graeffe, Frans; Räty, Meri; Luoma, Krista; Aalto, Pasi; Kulmala, Markku; Petäjä, Tuukka; Worsnop, Douglas; Ehn, Mikael (2021)
    The Station for Measuring Ecosystem-Atmosphere Relations (SMEAR) II, located within the boreal forest of Finland, is a unique station in the world due to the wide range of long-term measurements tracking the Earth-atmosphere interface. In this study, we characterize the composition of organic aerosol (OA) at SMEAR II by quantifying its driving constituents. We utilize a multi-year data set of OA mass spectra measured in situ with an Aerosol Chemical Speciation Monitor (ACSM) at the station. To our knowledge, this mass spectral time series is the longest of its kind published to date. Similarly to other previously reported efforts in OA source apportionment from multi-seasonal or multi-annual data sets, we approached the OA characterization challenge through positive matrix factorization (PMF) using a rolling window approach. However, the existing methods for extracting minor OA components were found to be insufficient for our rather remote site. To overcome this issue, we tested a new statistical analysis framework. This included unsupervised feature extraction and classification stages to explore a large number of unconstrained PMF runs conducted on the measured OA mass spectra. Anchored by these results, we finally constructed a relaxed chemical mass balance (CMB) run that resolved different OA components from our observations. The presented combination of statistical tools provided a data-driven analysis methodology, which in our case achieved robust solutions with minimal subjectivity. Following the extensive statistical analyses, we were able to divide the 2012-2019 SMEAR II OA data (mass concentration interquartile range (IQR): 0.7, 1.3, and 2.6 mu gm(-3)) into three sub-categories - low-volatility oxygenated OA (LV-OOA), semi-volatile oxygenated OA (SV-OOA), and primary OA (POA) - proving that the tested methodology was able to provide results consistent with literature. LV-OOA was the most dominant OA type (organic mass fraction IQR: 49 %, 62 %, and 73 %). The seasonal cycle of LV-OOA was bimodal, with peaks both in summer and in February. We associated the wintertime LV-OOA with anthropogenic sources and assumed biogenic influence in LV-OOA formation in summer. Through a brief trajectory analysis, we estimated summertime natural LV-OOA formation of tens of ngm 3 h 1 over the boreal forest. SV-OOA was the second highest contributor to OA mass (organic mass fraction IQR: 19 %, 31 %, and 43 %). Due to SV-OOA's clear peak in summer, we estimate biogenic processes as the main drivers in its formation. Unlike for LV-OOA, the highest SV-OOA concentrations were detected in stable summertime nocturnal surface layers. Two nearby sawmills also played a significant role in SV-OOA production as also exemplified by previous studies at SMEAR II. POA, taken as a mix of two different OA types reported previously, hydrocarbon-like OA (HOA) and biomass burning OA (BBOA), made up a minimal OA mass fraction (IQR: 2 %, 6 %, and 13 %). Notably, the quantification of POA at SMEAR II using ACSM data was not possible following existing rolling PMF methodologies. Both POA organic mass fraction and mass concentration peaked in winter. Its appearance at SMEAR II was linked to strong southerly winds. Similar wind direction and speed dependence was not observed among other OA types. The high wind speeds probably enabled the POA transport to SMEAR II from faraway sources in a relatively fresh state. In the event of slower wind speeds, POA likely evaporated and/or aged into oxidized organic aerosol before detection. The POA organic mass fraction was significantly lower than reported by aerosol mass spectrometer (AMS) measurements 2 to 4 years prior to the ACSM measurements. While the co-located long-term measurements of black carbon supported the hypothesis of higher POA loadings prior to year 2012, it is also possible that short-term (POA) pollution plumes were averaged out due to the slow time resolution of the ACSM combined with the further 3 h data averaging needed to ensure good signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs). Despite the length of the ACSM data set, we did not focus on quantifying long-term trends of POA (nor other components) due to the high sensitivity of OA composition to meteorological anomalies, the occurrence of which is likely not normally distributed over the 8-year measurement period. Due to the unique and realistic seasonal cycles and meteorology dependences of the independent OA subtypes complemented by the reasonably low degree of unexplained OA variability, we believe that the presented data analysis approach performs well. Therefore, we hope that these results encourage also other researchers possessing several-yearlong time series of similar data to tackle the data analysis via similar semi- or unsupervised machine-learning approaches. This way the presented method could be further optimized and its usability explored and evaluated also in other environments.
  • Hyttinen, Noora; Wolf, Matthieu; Rissanen, Matti; Ehn, Mikael; Peräkylä, Otso; Kurten, Theo; Prisle, Nønne L. (2021)
    Oxidized organic compounds are expected to contribute to secondary organic aerosol (SOA) if they have sufficiently low volatilities. We estimated saturation vapor pressures and activity coefficients (at infinite dilution in water and a model water-insoluble organic phase) of cyclohexene- and alpha-pinene-derived accretion products, "dimers", using the COSMOtherm19 program. We found that these two property estimates correlate with the number of hydrogen bond-donating functional groups and oxygen atoms in the compound. In contrast, when the number of H-bond donors is fixed, no clear differences are seen either between functional group types (e.g., OH or OOH as H-bond donors) or the formation mechanisms (e.g., gas-phase radical recombination vs liquid-phase closed-shell esterification). For the cyclohexene-derived dimers studied here, COSMOtherm19 predicts lower vapor pressures than the SIMPOL.1 group-contribution method in contrast to previous COSMOtherm estimates using older parameterizations and nonsystematic conformer sampling. The studied dimers can be classified as low, extremely low, or ultra-low-volatility organic compounds based on their estimated saturation mass concentrations. In the presence of aqueous and organic aerosol particles, all of the studied dimers are likely to partition into the particle phase and thereby contribute to SOA formation.
  • Silventoinen, Karri; Maia, José; Jelenkovic, Aline; Pereira, Sara; Gouveia, Élvio; Antunes, António; Thomis, Martine; Lefevre, Johan; Kaprio, Jaakko; Freitas, Duarte (2021)
    Objectives To analyze the influence of genetic and environmental factors on the variation in somatotype, physical fitness, and their mutual associations. Methods Twins from 214 pairs (87 monozygotic) of the Autonomous Region of Madeira, Portugal, from 3 to 18 years of age (51% girls) were assessed in anthropometry and physical fitness tests. We estimated endomorphy, mesomorphy, and ectomorphy based on anthropometric measures and physical fitness using the Eurofit test battery. Two age categories were analyzed: children (3-11 years) and adolescents (12-18 years). Genetic and environmental variations were estimated using quantitative genetic twin modeling. Results No genetic sex differences were found, thus boys and girls were pooled in all genetic analyses. Heritability estimates were high for somatotype (a(2)= 0.80-0.93), physical fitness traits (a(2)= 0.67-0.83), and largely similar in children and adolescents. Positive correlations were found for ectomorphy with motor ability and cardiorespiratory endurance as well as for endomorphy and mesomorphy with muscular strength (r= 0.25-0.37). In contrast, negative associations were found for ectomorphy with muscular strength, as well as for endomorphy and mesomorphy with motor ability and cardiorespiratory endurance (-0.46 to -0.26). Twin modeling indicated that these associations were explained mostly by genetic factors in common to the two associated traits (84% or more). Conclusions Associations between somatotype and physical fitness tests are mainly explained by common genetic background in children and adolescents. Therefore, interventions in youth should consider that a child's performance in physical fitness tests partly reflects their inherited physique.
  • Kuparinen, Anna; Hutchings, Jeffrey A.; Waples, Robin S. (2016)
    Much has been written about fishery-induced evolution (FIE) in exploited species, but relatively little attention has been paid to the consequences for one of the most important parameters in evolutionary biology-effective population size (N-e). We use a combination of simulations of Atlantic cod populations experiencing harvest, artificial manipulation of cod life tables, and analytical methods to explore how adding harvest to natural mortality affects N-e, census size (N), and the ratio N-e/N. We show that harvest-mediated reductions in N-e are due entirely to reductions in recruitment, because increasing adult mortality actually increases the N-e/N ratio. This means that proportional reductions in abundance caused by harvest represent an upper limit to the proportional reductions in N-e, and that in some cases N-e can even increase with increased harvest. This result is a quite general consequence of increased adult mortality and does not depend on harvest selectivity or FIE, although both of these influence the results in a quantitative way. In scenarios that allowed evolution, N-e recovered quickly after harvest ended and remained higher than in the preharvest population for well over a century, which indicates that evolution can help provide a long-term buffer against loss of genetic variability.
  • Rodriguez, Patricia Q.; Unnersjö-Jess, David; Zambrano, Sonia S.; Guo, Jing; Möller-Hackbarth, Katja; Blom, Hans; Jahnukainen, Timo; Ebarasi, Lwaki; Patrakka, Jaakko (2020)
    Podocytes are critical for the maintenance of kidney ultrafiltration barrier and play a key role in the progression of glomerular diseases. Although mediator complex proteins have been shown to be important for many physiological and pathological processes, their role in kidney tissue has not been studied. In this study, we identified a mediator complex protein 22 (Med22) as a renal podocyte cell-enriched molecule. Podocyte-specific Med22 knockout mouse showed that Med22 was not needed for normal podocyte maturation. However, it was critical for the maintenance of podocyte health as the mice developed progressive glomerular disease and died due to renal failure. Detailed morphological analyses showed that Med22-deficiency in podocytes resulted in intracellular vacuole formation followed by podocyte loss. Moreover, Med22-deficiency in younger mice promoted the progression of glomerular disease, suggesting Med22-mediated processes may have a role in the development of glomerulopathies. This study shows for the first time that mediator complex has a critical role in kidney physiology.
  • Tervaniemi, Mari H.; Katayama, Shintaro; Skoog, Tiina; Siitonen, H. Annika; Vuola, Jyrki; Nuutila, Kristo; Tammimies, Kristiina; Suomela, Sari; Kankuri, Esko; Kere, Juha; Elomaa, Outi (2018)
    Background: CCHCR1 (Coiled Coil alpha-Helical Rod protein 1) is a putative psoriasis candidate gene with the risk alleles CCHCR1*WWCC and *Iso3, the latter inhibiting the translation of isoform 1. CCHCR1 was recently shown to be a centiosomal piotein, as well as a component of cytoplasmic piocessmg bodies (P-bodies) that regulate mRNA turnovel. The function of CCHCR1 has remained unsettled, partly because of the inconsistent findings, it has been shown to play a wide variety of roles in divergent processes, e.g., cell proliferation and steroidogenesis. Here we utilized RNA sequencing (RNAseq) using HEK293 cells overexpressing isoforms 1 or 3 (Iso1, Iso3 cells), in combination with the coding non-risk or risk (*WWCC haplotype of CCHCR1. Our aim was to study the overall role of CCHCR1 and the effects of its variants. Results: The overexpression of CCHCR1 variants in HEK293 cells resulted in cell line-specific expression profiles though seveial similarities were observable. Overall the Iso1 and Iso3 cells showed a clear isoform-specific clustering as two separate groups, and the Non-risk and Risk cells often exhibited opposite effects. The RNAseq supported a role for CCHCR1 in the centrosomes and P-bodies; the most highlighted pathways included regulation of cytoskeleton, adherens and tight junctions, mRNA surveillance and RNA transport. Interestingly, both the RNAseq and immunofluorescent localization revealed variant-specific differences for CCHCR1 within the P-bodies. Conclusions: CCHCR1 influenced a wide variety of signaling pathways, which could reflect its active role in the P-bodies and centrosomes that both are linked to the cytoskeleton; as a centrosomal P-body protein CCHCR1 may regulate diverse cytoskeleton-mediated functions, such as cell adhesion and division. The piesent findings may explain the previous inconsistent obseivations about the functions of CCHCR1.
  • Li, Xuefei; Schmid, Bernhard; Wang, Fei; Paine, C. E. Timothy (2016)
    Growth rates are of fundamental importance for plants, as individual size affects myriad ecological processes. We determined the factors that generate variation in RGR among 14 species of trees and shrubs that are abundant in subtropical Chinese forests. We grew seedlings for two years at four light levels in a shade-house experiment. We monitored the growth of every juvenile plant every two weeks. After one and two years, we destructively harvested individuals and measured their functional traits and gas-exchange rates. After calculating individual biomass trajectories, we estimated relative growth rates using nonlinear growth functions. We decomposed the variance in log(RGR) to evaluate the relationships of RGR with its components: specific leaf area (SLA), net assimilation rate (NAR) and leaf mass ratio (LMR). We found that variation in NAR was the primary determinant of variation in RGR at all light levels, whereas SLA and LMR made smaller contributions. Furthermore, NAR was strongly and positively associated with area-based photosynthetic rate and leaf nitrogen content. Photosynthetic rate and leaf nitrogen concentration can, therefore, be good predictors of growth in woody species.
  • Huttunen, Kati; Wlodarczyk, Anna J.; Tirkkonen, Jenni; Mikkonen, Santtu; Täubel, Martin; Krop, Esmeralda; Jacobs, Jose; Pekkanen, Juha; Heederik, Dick; Zock, Jan-Paul; Hyvärinen, Anne; Hirvonen, Maija-Riitta; Adams, Rachel; Jones, Tim; Zimmermann, Ralf; BeruBe, Kelly (2019)
    Exposure to moisture-damaged indoor environments is associated with adverse respiratory health effects, but responsible factors remain unidentified. In order to explore possible mechanisms behind these effects, the oxidative capacity and hemolytic activity of settled dust samples (n = 25) collected from moisture-damaged and non-damaged schools in Spain, the Netherlands, and Finland were evaluated and matched against the microbial content of the sample. Oxidative capacity was determined with plasmid scission assay and hemolytic activity by assessing the damage to isolated human red blood cells. The microbial content of the samples was measured with quantitative PCR assays for selected microbial groups and by analyzing the cell wall markers ergosterol, muramic acid, endotoxins, and glucans. The moisture observations in the schools were associated with some of the microbial components in the dust, and microbial determinants grouped together increased the oxidative capacity. Oxidative capacity was also affected by particle concentration and country of origin. Two out of 14 studied dust samples from moisture-damaged schools demonstrated some hemolytic activity. The results indicate that the microbial component connected with moisture damage is associated with increased oxidative stress and that hemolysis should be studied further as one possible mechanism contributing to the adverse health effects of moisture-damaged buildings.