| 1. |
- Birve, Anna, et al.
(author)
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Su(z)12, a novel Drosophila Polycomb group gene that is conserved in vertebrates and plants.
- 2001
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In: Development. - 0950-1991. ; 128:17, s. 3371-9
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)abstract
- In both Drosophila and vertebrates, spatially restricted expression of HOX genes is controlled by the Polycomb group (PcG) repressors. Here we characterize a novel Drosophila PcG gene, Suppressor of zeste 12 (Su(z)12). Su(z)12 mutants exhibit very strong homeotic transformations and Su(z)12 function is required throughout development to maintain the repressed state of HOX genes. Unlike most other PcG mutations, Su(z)12 mutations are strong suppressors of position-effect variegation (PEV), suggesting that Su(z)12 also functions in heterochromatin-mediated repression. Furthermore, Su(z)12 function is required for germ cell development. The Su(z)12 protein is highly conserved in vertebrates and is related to the Arabidopsis proteins EMF2, FIS2 and VRN2. Notably, EMF2 is a repressor of floral homeotic genes. These results suggest that at least some of the regulatory machinery that controls homeotic gene expression is conserved between animals and plants.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Larsson, Jan, et al.
(author)
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Painting of fourth, a chromosome-specific protein in Drosophila.
- 2001
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In: Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. - 0027-8424. ; 98:11, s. 6273-8
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Chromosome-specific gene regulation is known thus far only as a mechanism to equalize the transcriptional activity of the single male X chromosome with that of the two female X chromosomes. In Drosophila melanogaster, a complex including the five Male-Specific Lethal (MSL) proteins, "paints" the male X chromosome, mediating its hypertranscription. Here, with the molecular cloning of Painting of fourth (Pof), we describe a previously uncharacterized gene encoding a chromosome-specific protein in Drosophila. Unlike the MSL proteins, POF paints an autosome, the fourth chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster. Chromosome translocation analysis shows that the binding depends on an initiation site in the proximal region of chromosome 4 and spreads in cis to involve the entire chromosome. The spreading depends on sequences or structures specific to chromosome 4 and cannot extend to parts of other chromosomes translocated to the fourth. Spreading can also occur in trans to a paired homologue that lacks the initiation region. In the related species Drosophila busckii, POF paints the entire X chromosome exclusively in males, suggesting relationships between the fourth chromosome and the X and between POF complexes and dosage-compensation complexes.
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| 4. |
- Miller, AB, et al.
(author)
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Fruits and vegetables and lung cancer: Findings from the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition
- 2004
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In: International Journal of Cancer. - : Wiley. - 0020-7136. ; 108:2, s. 269-276
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Intake of fruits and vegetables is thought to protect against the development of lung cancer. However, some recent cohort and case-control studies have shown no protective effect. We have assessed the relation between fruit and vegetable intake and lung cancer incidence in the large prospective investigation on diet and cancer, the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC). We studied data from 478,021 individuals that took part in the EPIC study, who were recruited from 10 European countries and who completed a dietary questionnaire during 1992-1998. Follow-up was to December 1998 or 1999, but for some centres with active follow-up to June 2002. During follow-up, 1,074 participants were reported to have developed lung cancer, of whom 860 were eligible for our analysis. We used the Cox proportional hazard model to determine the effect of fruit and vegetable intake on the incidence of lung cancer. We paid particular attention to adjustment for smoking. Relative risk estimates were obtained using fruit and vegetable intake categorised by sex-specific, cohort-wide quintiles. After adjustment for age, smoking, height, weight and gender, there was a significant inverse association between fruit consumption and lung cancer risk: the hazard ratio for the highest quintile of consumption relative to the lowest being 0.60 (95% Confidence Interval 0.46-0.78), p for trend 0.0099. The association was strongest in the Northern Europe centres, and among current smokers at baseline, and was strengthened when the 293 lung cancers diagnosed in the first 2 years of follow-up were excluded from the analysis. There was no association between vegetable consumption or vegetable subtypes and lung cancer risk. The findings from this analysis can be regarded as re-enforcing recommendations with regard to enhanced fruit consumption for populations. However, the effect is likely to be small compared to smoking cessation.
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| 5. |
- Ryder, Edward, et al.
(author)
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The DrosDel collection : a set of P-element insertions for generating custom chromosomal aberrations in Drosophila melanogaster.
- 2004
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In: Genetics. - 0016-6731. ; 167:2, s. 797-813
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We describe a collection of P-element insertions that have considerable utility for generating custom chromosomal aberrations in Drosophila melanogaster. We have mobilized a pair of engineered P elements, p[RS3] and p[RS5], to collect 3243 lines unambiguously mapped to the Drosophila genome sequence. The collection contains, on average, an element every 35 kb. We demonstrate the utility of the collection for generating custom chromosomal deletions that have their end points mapped, with base-pair resolution, to the genome sequence. The collection was generated in an isogenic strain, thus affording a uniform background for screens where sensitivity to genetic background is high. The entire collection, along with a computational and genetic toolbox for designing and generating custom deletions, is publicly available. Using the collection it is theoretically possible to generate >12,000 deletions between 1 bp and 1 Mb in size by simple eye color selection. In addition, a further 37,000 deletions, selectable by molecular screening, may be generated. We are now using the collection to generate a second-generation deficiency kit that is precisely mapped to the genome sequence.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Westin, K. J., et al.
(author)
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Precipitation of calcium carbonate in the presence of citrate and EDTA
- 2003
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In: Desalination. - 0011-9164 .- 1873-4464. ; 159:2, s. 107-118
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The influence of process conditions such as feed rate, calcium/carbonate ratio, pH, complexing agents [ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), citrate (CIT)] and their concentration on the average particle size and shape of precipitated calcium carbonate was studied. The precipitation was performed in a semi-batch operated agitated vessel at constant pH by adding sodium hydrogen carbonate to a solution containing calcium chloride. In the absence of a complexing agent, agglomerates of needle-shaped crystals, probably aragonite, are obtained. Increasing feed time and the calcium/carbonate ratio increases the average particle size, whereas the opposite effect is observed for increasing pH. The observations can be related to the level of supersaturation. In the presence of complexing agents and at a concentration ratio of calcium vs. a complexing agent of 6, differently shaped and smaller particles were obtained. Furthermore, the effect of the other parameters on particle size becomes much weaker in the presence of complexing agents. In the presence of EDTA mostly spherical particles were obtained, and in the presence of citrate mainly rhombic particles corresponding to calcite were obtained. The effect on particle shape and size is attributed to interactions of the complexing agents with the faces of the crystalline calcium carbonate.
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