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1
Driller, Katrin, Axel Pagenstecher, Markus Uhl, Heymut Omran, Ansgar Berlis, Albert Gründer, and Albrecht E. Sippel. "Nuclear Factor I X Deficiency Causes Brain Malformation and Severe Skeletal Defects." Molecular and Cellular Biology 27, no. 10 (March 12, 2007): 3855–67. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mcb.02293-06.
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ABSTRACT The transcription factor family of nuclear factor I (NFI) proteins is encoded by four closely related genes: Nfia, Nfib, Nfic, and Nfix. A potential role for NFI proteins in regulating developmental processes has been implicated by their specific expression pattern during embryonic development and by analysis of NFI-deficient mice. It was shown that loss of NFIA results in hydrocephalus and agenesis of the corpus callosum and that NFIB deficiency leads to neurological defects and to severe lung hypoplasia, whereas Nfic knockout mice exhibit specific tooth defects. Here we report the knockout analysis of the fourth and last member of this gene family, Nfix. Loss of NFIX is postnatally lethal and leads to hydrocephalus and to a partial agenesis of the corpus callosum. Furthermore, NFIX-deficient mice develop a deformation of the spine, which is due to a delay in ossification of vertebral bodies and a progressive degeneration of intervertebral disks. Impaired endochondral ossification and decreased mineralization were also observed in femoral sections of Nfix − / − mice. Consistent with the defects in bone ossification we could show that the expression level of tetranectin, a plasminogen-binding protein involved in mineralization, is specifically downregulated in bones of NFIX-deficient mice.
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Li, Yuexian, Cheng Sun, Yonggang Tan, Lin Li, Heying Zhang, Yusi Liang, Juan Zeng, and Huawei Zou. "Transcription levels and prognostic significance of the NFI family members in human cancers." PeerJ 8 (March 18, 2020): e8816. http://dx.doi.org/10.7717/peerj.8816.
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Background The nuclear factor I (NFI) is a family of transcription factors consisting of four distinct but closely related genes, NFIA, NFIB, NFIC and NFIX, which are important in the development of various tissues and organs in mammals. Recent study results have shown that NFI family may play a critical role in the progression of various human tumors and have been identified as key tumor suppressors and oncogenes for many cancers. However, the expression levels and distinctive prognostic values of the NFI family remain poorly explored in most cancers. Materials and Methods In the present study, the differences in mRNA expression of the NFI family in various cancers were investigated using the Oncomine and TCGA databases, and the mRNA expression, genetic alteration and DNA methylation of the NFI family members in various cancers were examined using cBioPortal for Cancer Genomics. In addition, the prognostic significance of the NFI family was assessed in multiple cancers using the Kaplan–Meier plotter (KM plotter) and SurvExpress databases. Results The mRNA expression levels in the NFI family were significantly downregulated in most cancers compared with normal tissues and DNA hypermethylation might downregulate the NFI family expression. Although NFIX expression was not downregulated in kidney, colorectal and prostate cancers. Furthermore, NFIB expression was upregulated in gastric cancer. Further survival analyses based on the KM plotter and SurvExpress databases showed dysregulations of the NFI genes were significantly correlated with survival outcomes in breast, lung, and head and neck cancers. Decreased expression levels of NFIA, NFIB and NFIC were associated with poor overall survival (OS) in head and neck cancer. Low mRNA expression of NFIA and NFIB was significantly associated with OS and first progression in lung adenocarcinoma, but not in lung squamous cell carcinoma. In addition, potential correlations between NFI family members and survival outcomes were also observed in liver, esophageal, kidney and cervical cancer. Conclusion The results from the present study indicated certain members of the NFI family could be promising therapeutic targets and novel prognostic biomarkers for human cancers.
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Qin, Kunhua, Peng Huang, Anran Huang, Ruopeng Feng, Thiyagaraj Mayuranathan, Cheryl A. Keller, Belinda Giardine, et al. "Control of Fetal Hemoglobin Levels By NFI Transcription Factors." Blood 136, Supplement 1 (November 5, 2020): 54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood-2020-136167.
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Sickle cell disease and some forms of b-thalassemia are disorders, which can be improved by therapies that elevate HbF, the fetal form of hemoglobin. It is currently thought that in adult type erythroid cells, silencing of the fetal type b-globin-like genes HBG1 and HBG2 is accomplished predominantly by two major transcription factors: BCL11A and ZBTB7A. However, it is unknown whether there are additional transcription factors that contribute to the repression of the HBG1/2 genes. Here, using a DNA-binding domain focused CRISPR-Cas9 screening approach, we identified NFIA as a novel regulator of HbF expression. NFIA belongs to the NFI transcription factor family, which is composed of NFIA, NFIB, NFIC and NFIX. NFIA and NFIX are the predominantly expressed forms in human erythroid cells, and their expression is higher in adult erythroblast cells when compared to fetal erythroid cells. CRISPR-Cas9 mediated disruption of NFIA in an immortalized human umbilical cord blood-derived erythroid progenitor cell line 2 (HUDEP2) or CD34+ hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell-derived primary erythroblast cells led to a modest reactivation of HBG1/2 mRNA expression, whereas disruption of NFIX had little effect. However, combined NFIA and NFIX disruption produced a substantial increase in HBG1/2 expression, suggesting that these factors function in a partially redundant manner. ChIP-seq and RNA-seq studies showed that NFIA and NFIX have comparable chromatin binding and activity profiles in human erythroid cells. ChIP-seq failed to detect NFI protein occupancy at or near the HBG1/2 genes. However, given the known difficulty in detecting repressor molecules by ChIP at the silent HBG1/2 genes [Martyn et al., Nature Genetics 2018; Liu et al., Cell 2018], we tested a direct involvement of NFI proteins by disrupting putative NFI binding sites near the HBG1/2 genes. Perturbation of one such NFI motif residing upstream of the transcription start site in the HBG1/2 promoters both in HUDEP2 and primary human erythroid cells markedly increased HBG1/2 mRNA levels, comparable to those achieved by combined disruption of NFIA and NFIX. Mutation of another putative NFI motif within intron1 in the HBG1/2 gene also significantly raised HbF levels. While these results implicate NFI proteins in the direct silencing of the HBG1/2 genes, the identity of the bound factors at the NFI motifs remains to be established. Studies are currently ongoing that use alternative approaches such as Cleavage Under Target & Release Using Nuclease (CUT & RUN) to map the chromatin occupancy of NFI factors at the HBG1/2 genomic region. We will also discuss results from ongoing studies of NFI factors in NBSGW mice models. In sum, we uncovered NFI transcription factors as a novel HbF regulator suggesting that the silencing of HbF involves a transcription factor network that is more complex than previously appreciated. Disclosures Weiss: Rubius Inc.: Consultancy, Current equity holder in private company; Cellarity Inc.: Consultancy, Current equity holder in private company; Novartis: Consultancy, Current equity holder in private company; Esperion Therapeutics: Consultancy, Current equity holder in private company; Beam Therapeuticcs: Consultancy, Current equity holder in private company. Blobel:Pfizer: Research Funding; Fulcrum Therapeutics: Consultancy.
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Steele-Perkins, George, Kenneth G. Butz, Gary E. Lyons, Margarita Zeichner-David, Heung-Joong Kim, Moon-Il Cho, and Richard M. Gronostajski. "Essential Role for NFI-C/CTF Transcription-Replication Factor in Tooth Root Development." Molecular and Cellular Biology 23, no. 3 (February 1, 2003): 1075–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mcb.23.3.1075-1084.2003.
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ABSTRACT The mammalian tooth forms by a series of reciprocal epithelial-mesenchymal interactions. Although several signaling pathways and transcription factors have been implicated in regulating molar crown development, relatively little is known about the regulation of root development. Four genes encoding nuclear factor I (NFI) transcription-replication proteins are present in the mouse genome: Nfia, Nfib, Nfic, and Nfix. In order to elucidate its physiological role(s), we disrupted the Nfic gene in mice. Heterozygous animals appear normal, whereas Nfic−/− mice have unique tooth pathologies: molars lacking roots, thin and brittle mandibular incisors, and weakened abnormal maxillary incisors. Feeding in Nfic−/− mice is impaired, resulting in severe runting and premature death of mice reared on standard laboratory chow. However, a soft-dough diet mitigates the feeding impairment and maintains viability. Although Nfic is expressed in many organ systems, including the developing tooth, the tooth root development defects were the prominent phenotype. Indeed, molar crown development is normal, and well-nourished Nfic−/− animals are fertile and can live as long as their wild-type littermates. The Nfic mutation is the first mutation described that affects primarily tooth root formation and should greatly aid our understanding of postnatal tooth development.
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Chen, Ching-Han, Chen-Shuo An, and Ching-Yi Chen. "Fingerprint Quality Assessment based on Texture and Geometric Features." Journal of Imaging Science and Technology 64, no. 4 (July 1, 2020): 40403–1. http://dx.doi.org/10.2352/j.imagingsci.technol.2020.64.4.040403.
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Abstract Fingerprint quality assessments are generally used to evaluate the quality of images obtained from fingerprint sensors, and effective fingerprint quality assessment methods are crucial to establishing high-performance biometric identification systems. The use of fingerprint quality assessments helps improve the accuracy of fingerprint registration and user satisfaction. NIST Fingerprint Image Quality (NFIQ) is a popular fingerprint quality assessment algorithm; however, it is unable to provide high-quality assessments for some partial fingerprint images obtained from mobile device sensors. In this study, a hybrid fingerprint assessment framework that integrated texture and geometric features was examined. The final quality assessment values obtained by the framework were higher than those obtained using NFIQ, effectively elevating the performance of existing NFIQ algorithms and expanding its scope of application for different fingerprint images.
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Steele-Perkins, George, Céline Plachez, Kenneth G. Butz, Guanhu Yang, Cindy J. Bachurski, Stephen L. Kinsman, E. David Litwack, Linda J. Richards, and Richard M. Gronostajski. "The Transcription Factor Gene Nfib Is Essential for both Lung Maturation and Brain Development." Molecular and Cellular Biology 25, no. 2 (January 15, 2005): 685–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/mcb.25.2.685-698.2005.
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ABSTRACT The phylogenetically conserved nuclear factor I (NFI) gene family encodes site-specific transcription factors essential for the development of a number of organ systems. We showed previously that Nfia-deficient mice exhibit agenesis of the corpus callosum and other forebrain defects, whereas Nfic-deficient mice have agenesis of molar tooth roots and severe incisor defects. Here we show that Nfib-deficient mice possess unique defects in lung maturation and exhibit callosal agenesis and forebrain defects that are similar to, but more severe than, those seen in Nfia-deficient animals. In addition, loss of Nfib results in defects in basilar pons formation and hippocampus development that are not seen in Nfia-deficient mice. Heterozygous Nfib-deficient animals also exhibit callosal agenesis and delayed lung maturation, indicating haploinsufficiency at the Nfib locus. The similarity in brain defects in Nfia- and Nfib-deficient animals suggests that these two genes may cooperate in late fetal forebrain development, while Nfib is essential for late fetal lung maturation and development of the pons.
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Vo, Kevin, Rebecca Burchett, Miranda Brun, and Roseline Godbout. "38 Untangling the NFI-Calpain signaling axis in malignant glioma." Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences / Journal Canadien des Sciences Neurologiques 45, S3 (June 2018): S7—S8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/cjn.2018.279.
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Malignant gliomas (MG) are highly infiltrative tumours with a poor prognosis. Nuclear factor I (NFI) is a family of 4 transcription factors (NFIA, B, C and X) implicated in the regulation of genes involved in MG cell migration and infiltration, particularly the neural stem cell marker, brain fatty acid binding protein (B-FABP). NFI activity is regulated by its phosphorylation status, with hypophosphorylated NFI being the active form. Our results indicate that the phosphatase calcineurin is able to dephosphorylate NFI. In turn, calcineurin is cleaved and activated by calpain proteases. We have identified CAST, a gene that encodes calpain inhibitor, calpastatin, as a putative target of NFI based on chromatin immunoprecipitation. Putative NFI binding elements are located in intron 3 of the CAST gene. To determine whether there is a bona fide alternative promoter within intron 3 of CAST, we carried out gel shifts as well as luciferase reporter gene assays using both the canonical and alternative promoters of CAST. These assays confirmed CAST alternative promoter usage in MG cells. Knockdown of individual NFIs revealed a role for NFIC and NFIX in the repression of CAST gene expression, specifically in cells expressing the hypophosphorylated (active) form of NFI. NFI depletion also altered the subcellular localization of both calpain and calineurin protein. Our results suggest a feedback loop for the NFI –calcineurin – calpain – calpastatin pathway in MG cells which may regulate cell migration.
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Holmfeldt, Per, Pardieck Jennifer, and Shannon McKinney-Freeman. "Nfi Genes Are Novel Regulators Of Murine Hematopoietic Stem- and Progenitor Cell Survival." Blood 122, no. 21 (November 15, 2013): 735. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v122.21.735.735.
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Abstract Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are responsible for life-long maintenance of hematopoiesis. HSC transplantation represents one of the most heavily exploited cell based therapies, routinely used to treat a myriad of life threating disorders, such as leukemia and bone marrow failure. Identifying the molecular pathways that regulate HSC engraftment is crucial to further improving outcomes in patients that rely on HSC transplantation as a curative therapy. By examining the global gene expression profiles of highly purified HSC (Lineage-Sca-1+c-Kit+CD150+CD48-), we recently identified the following members of the Nfi gene family of transcription factors as highly expressed by HSC (McKinney-Freeman et al., Cell Stem Cell, 2012): Nfix, Nfia, and Nfic. These data suggest that Nfi genes may play a novel role in regulating HSC function. To test this hypothesis, HSCs were enriched from adult bone marrow (Lineage-, c-kit+, Sca-1+ (LSK) cells) and then transduced, individually, with lentiviruses carrying shRNAs targeting each Nfi gene. Twenty-four hours post-transduction, cells were injected into lethally irradiated mice along with untransduced bone marrow LSK competitor cells congenic at the CD45 allele. The peripheral blood of recipient mice was then analyzed periodically over 16 weeks for engraftment of the Nfi-depleted cells. Although shRNA mediated knockdown of Nfi gene expression had no effect on the in vitro cell growth or viability of LSK cells, Nfi-depleted HSCs displayed a significant loss of short- and long-term in vivo hematopoietic repopulating activity. This was true for Nfia-, Nfic-, and Nfix-deficient HSC. While Nfia and Nfic are only expressed by bone marrow HSC, Nfix is highly expressed by both bone marrow and fetal liver HSC. When Nfix was depleted by shRNAs from LSK cells purified from E14.5 fetal liver, a similar loss in competitive repopulating potential was seen. Lineage analysis of peripheral blood of recipients showed no significant differences in the distribution of the major blood lineages derived from LSK cells transduced with Nfi-specific shRNAs compared to controls. When the bone marrow of recipients transplanted with Nfix- depleted cells was examined 4 and 16 weeks post-transplant, a general loss of all hematopoietic stem- and progenitor compartments examined was seen relative to control. Thus, the observed decrease in repopulating activity occurs at the level of HSCs and multipotent progenitors. To confirm an essential role for an Nfi gene family member in the regulation of HSC engraftment post-transplant, LSK cells were purified from Nfix fl/fl mice, transduced with lentiviral Cre recombinase and subsequently introduced into lethally irradiated recipients alongside congenic competitor cells. Like LSK transduced with Nfix-specific shRNAs, Nfix-/- LSK cells failed to repopulate the peripheral blood of recipient mice as efficiently as control and similar trends were detected in all stem- and progenitor cell populations examined. Time-course experiments immediately following transplantation revealed that Nfix-depleted LSK cells establish themselves in the marrow of recipient mice as efficiently as control at 5 days post-transplant, but thereafter exhausted rapidly. Examination 10 days post-transplant revealed a 5-fold increase in apoptosis specifically in the LSK compartment, but not in its differentiated progeny, in recipients transplanted with Nfix-depleted LSK cells compared to control. The increase in apoptosis was not associated with any apparent change in the cell cycle status of the LSK cells. These data suggest that Nfi genes are necessary for the survival of HSC post-transplantation. In an effort to identify the molecular pathways regulated by Nfi genes in HSC, we acquired the global gene expression profiles of Nfix-depleted HSC. In agreement with our observation that Nfix-deficient HSC displays elevated levels of apoptosis following transplantation in vivo, we observed a significant decrease in multiple genes known to be important for HSC survival, such as Erg, Mecom and Mpl, in Nfix-depleted HSC. In summary, we have for the first time established a role for the Nfi gene family in HSC biology, as evident by a decrease in bone marrow repopulating activity in Nfi-depleted HSCs. By dissecting the precise role of Nfi genes in HSC biology, we will glean insights that could improve our understanding of graft failure in clinical bone marrow transplantations. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
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Traub, Berthold, Fabrizio Cioldi, and Christoph Düggelin. "Wiederholungsaufnahmen als Instrument zur Qualitätssicherung im Schweizerischen Landesforstinventar." Schweizerische Zeitschrift fur Forstwesen 167, no. 3 (March 1, 2016): 118–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.3188/szf.2016.0118.
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Repeat surveys as a quality assurance tool in the Swiss National Forest Inventory The Swiss National Forest Inventory (NFI) repeats surveys to guarantee the quality of fieldwork. To this end, approximately 10% of sample plots are completely surveyed a second time over a field season. Based on the results of the repeat survey, the current investigation focuses on the assessment precision, i.e. the reproducibility of various tree and stand attributes in NFI4. It also investigates whether the change from periodic (NFI1–NFI3) to continuous (NFI4) fieldwork has had a positive effect on the reproducibility of the attributes. The current results of the repeat surveys for NFI4 (2009/2017) are compared with those for NFI3 (2004/2006) to this end. We used statistical measures as well as measurement quality objectives (MQO) set by the NFI instructor team as a reference for evaluating reproducibility. The results vary for tree attributes which are vital for estimating stock. The result for the diameter at breast height (dbh) corresponds to the expected values, while that for upper stem diameter at seven meters height and tree height were approximately 5% below the expected values. With regard to the seven stand attributes also analyzed, four of them exceeded the quality goals (stand age, stand stability, the degree of cover of secured regeneration, and stage of development). The results for the mixture proportion, the stand structure and crown closure were between 5 and 18% below MQO. The result for presence of woody species shows that the recording of larger plants (above 130 cm) is clearly more reproducible than for smaller plants (40–130 cm). In NFI4, the reproducibility for almost all studied attributes was improved. The results suggest that the modified structure of fieldwork (with only three field teams and continuous fieldwork in NFI4) has a positive influence on the reproducibility of the included attributes.
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Fraser, James, Alexandra Essebier, Alexander S. Brown, Raul Ayala Davila, Danyon Harkins, Oressia Zalucki, Lauren P. Shapiro, et al. "Common Regulatory Targets of NFIA, NFIX and NFIB during Postnatal Cerebellar Development." Cerebellum 19, no. 1 (December 14, 2019): 89–101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12311-019-01089-3.
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Latha, K., and C. Manikandan. "Critical Analysis and Detection of Altered Fingerprints Using Evolutionary Computation Algorithm." Applied Mechanics and Materials 573 (June 2014): 483–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.573.483.
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The widespread operation of modified algorithm (National Institution of Standard Technology Fingerprint image Quality (NIFQ)) in government applications allow some persons with illegal environment by neglecting the detection of altered fingerprints. By using the fingerprint quality assessment software, it is difficult to find the altered fingerprints, since the quality of image does not degrade. This paper focuses on optimizing the modified NFIQ algorithm by implementing particle swarm optimization (PSO) based on a fingerprint identification system. It can also be helpful in improving the performance by accuracy and robustness for detecting the fingerprint which is altered.
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Fletcher, Colin F., Nancy A. Jenkins, Neal G. Copeland, Ali Z. Chaudhry, and Richard M. Gronostajski. "Exon structure of the Nuclear Factor I DNA-binding domain from C. elegans to mammals Nfia ), AF111264 ( Nfib ), AF111265 ( Nfic ), AF111266 ( Nfix ).-->." Mammalian Genome 10, no. 4 (April 1, 1999): 390–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s003359901008.
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Holmfeldt, Per, Jennifer Pardieck, and Shannon McKinney-Freeman. "Nfix Is Required for Hematopoietic Stem- and Progenitor Cell in Vivo Repopulating Potential." Blood 120, no. 21 (November 16, 2012): 2320. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v120.21.2320.2320.
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Abstract Abstract 2320 Hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) are both necessary and sufficient to sustain the complete blood system of vertebrates. Specified at several locations during fetal development, they ultimately congregate in the fetal liver for rapid expansion. Around birth HSCs relocate to the bone marrow (BM) and enter a state of cellular quiescence, cycling intermittently to supply progenitor cells, which differentiate into the distinct blood lineages. Due to their regenerative potential, HSCs are heavily utilized in the clinic for bone marrow transplants (BMTs) to treat a variety of diseases. However, a lack of suitable donors and inefficiency in recipient engraftment currently limit this life saving therapy. To improve BMT regimens, a better understanding of regulators of HSC BM engraftment is required. Recently, we examined the gene expression patterns of HSCs as they emerge throughout murine ontogeny (McKinney-Freeman et al., Cell Stem Cell, in press). We observed that the transcription factor Nfix, a member of the nuclear factor I (NFI) family of transcription factors never before linked to HSC biology, was highly expressed by both fetal liver and BM HSCs. These data suggest that Nfix may play a novel role in regulating HSC function in the BM and/or fetal liver. To test this hypothesis, HSCs were enriched from E14.5 fetal liver or adult BM (Lineage-, c-kit+, Sca-1+ (LSK) cells) and then transduced with lentiviruses carrying shRNAs targeting Nfix. Twenty-four hours post-transduction, cells were injected into lethally irradiated mice along with untransduced BM LSK competitor cells congenic at the CD45 allele. The peripheral blood of recipient mice was then analyzed periodically over 16 weeks for engraftment of the Nfix-depleted cells. Depletion of Nfix by two independent shRNA (confirmed by Western blot analysis to deplete NFIX protein levels to <20% of baseline) resulted in a significant decrease in the repopulating activity of BM LSK cells relative to LSK cells transduced with either of two independent control shRNAs. As early as two weeks post-transplant, a 22% +/− 5% (p=0.03) reduction in repopulating activity was observed. By 16 weeks post-transplant, this reduction in repopulating potential had gradually increased to 55% +/−8% (p<0.0001) in four independent experiments. Depletion of Nfix in fetal liver-derived LSK cells resulted in a similar loss of repopulating potential. Critically, in vitro analysis of BM LSK expansion in liquid culture and differentiative potential, as analyzed by the methylcellulose based colony forming assay, revealed no differences in the activity of LSK cells transduced with Nfix-specific shRNAs compared to controls. Thus, it is unlikely that the observed decrease in BM repopulating activity is due to general cytotoxicity resulting from Nfix depletion or a block in differentiation. Concordantly, lineage analysis of peripheral blood of recipients showed no significant differences in the percentage of the major blood lineages derived from LSK cells transduced with Nfix-specific shRNAs compared to controls. Thus, the observed decrease in repopulating activity likely occurs at the level of HSCs and multipotent progenitors. In agreement with this conclusion, when BM of recipients transplanted with Nfix-depleted LSK cells are examined 4 and 16 weeks post transplant, a loss of phenotypic HSCs (LSK/CD150+/CD48-) relative to controls is evident. The loss of repopulating potential by Nfix-depleted cells as early as two weeks post-transplant suggests that Nfix may be involved in either the homing/lodgment of HSCs in the BM or their ability to expand soon after incorporation into the stem cell niche. We are presently teasing out the molecular mechanism behind this phenomenon. Furthermore, to examine a role for Nfix during HSC homeostasis, we are currently analyzing mice in which Nfix has been conditionally ablated in the hematopoietic compartment. Finally, functional analysis of two other members of the NFI gene family shown by our array analysis to be expressed by BM HSC, Nfia and Nfic, will further assess a role for this gene family in the regulation of HSCs. In summary, we have for the first time established a role for a member of the NFI gene family, Nfix, in HSC biology, as evident by a decrease in BM repopulating activity in Nfix-depleted HSCs. By dissecting the precise role of Nfix in HSC biology, we will glean insights that could improve our understanding of graft failure in clinical BMTs. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
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Kaufmann, Edgar. "Nachhaltiges Holzproduktionspotenzial im Schweizer Wald." Schweizerische Zeitschrift fur Forstwesen 162, no. 9 (September 1, 2011): 300–311. http://dx.doi.org/10.3188/szf.2011.0300.
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Potential of sustainable wood production in Swiss forests In the Swiss National Forest Inventory (NFI), the data collected in the three inventories (NFI1 1983–1985, NFI2 1993–1995, NFI3 2004–2006) provide the basis not only for analysing the present state of the forest and how it has developed up to now, but also for assessing, with the help of models, how it might develop in future. The scenario model «Massimo 3», developed at the Swiss Federal Institut for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research, is an empirical and stochastic simulation model. It relies on data from the NFI and forecasts the development of the forest according to how it is managed. Six scenarios with different management regimes were defined according to the economic, silvicultural and ecological aspects considered. In three scenarios the growing stock is kept constant at the level of NFI3, but different management strategies are used (Scenario A: basis [business as usual], Scenario E: even-aged forests are transformed into uneven-aged forests, and Scenario F: near-natural percentages of conifers are promoted). In two scenarios forest management is partially abandoned for either ecological reasons (Scenario B: reservations, 10% of the forest area is left unmanaged) or for economic reasons (Scenario C: harvesting costs, 40% of the forest area is left unmanaged). Scenario D (rotation periods are shortened) was used to study the effects of augmenting the annual harvesting amount. A forecasting time period of 100 years was selected to assess the long-term effects of the scenarios. Scenarios A, D, and E show that the sustainable harvesting potential of merchantable wood lies in a relatively narrow range of 7.1 to 7.3 million m3/year, even though in Scenario D the growing stock is reduced from 360 m3/ha to 305 m3/ha. In Scenario F regeneration is systematically established with near-natural percentages of conifers, the long-term harvesting potential is slightly less: about 6.5 million m3/year of merchantable wood. If forest management is abandoned for economic reasons on as much as 40% of the forest area (Scenario C, harvesting costs), the impact on the wood reserves is very negative.
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Duc, Philippe, Urs-Beat Brändli, Fabrizio Cioldi, Adrian Lanz, and Ulrich Ulmer. "Entwicklung der Baumarten im Schweizer Wald – methodische Überlegungen." Schweizerische Zeitschrift fur Forstwesen 162, no. 9 (September 1, 2011): 326–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.3188/szf.2011.0326.
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Development of tree species in Swiss forests – some methodological considerations Swiss forests have been subject to more stress in recent decades due to increased climatic and biogenic disturbances. Some tree species, such as Norway spruce, have been more severely affected than others. How the tree species composition of the Swiss forest has changed during this time has been assessed with data from the Swiss National Forest Inventory (NFI). The four indicators, presence, dominance, number of stems and basal area, were examined to see: whether the changes in the most important tree species are significant; whether the indicators have developed in the same way in the two diameter classes, D1 (12–36 cm DBH) and D2 (> 36 cm DBH); and how different diameter thresholds (12 or 36 cm DBH) and different circular sample plot sizes (200 m2 or 500 m2) affect the development and significance of the indicators. All the values were estimated for the 5370 NFI forest plots that were accessible in all three inventories, NFI1 (1983–85), NFI2 (1993–95) and NFI3 (2004–06). Only in a minority of tree species did changes in the presence, dominance, number of stems and basal area develop in the same way. Most indicators for the conifer species spruce, fir and pine decreased significantly, whereas for the broadleaf species, maple and ash, as well as larch and the other conifers, they increased significantly. The basal area increased during the period investigated for all tree species except pine and spruce. The different development of the indicators number of stems and basal area can be attributed to a different development within the DBH classes D1 and D2. The inventory diameter threshold strongly affects the development of the indicator number of stems, but not that of the indicator basal area.
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Kawauchi, Daisuke, Kristian Pajtler, Yiju Wei, Konstantin Okonechnikov, Patricia Silva, David Jones, Mikio Hoshino, Stefan Pfister, Marcel Kool, and Wei Li. "TB-06 MOLECULAR MECHANISM OF BRAIN TUMOUR FORMATION DRIVEN BY SUPRATENTORIAL EPENDYMOMA-SPECIFIC YAP1 FUSION GENES." Neuro-Oncology Advances 1, Supplement_2 (December 2019): ii11. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/noajnl/vdz039.048.
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Abstract YAP1 fusion-positive supratentorial ependymomas predominantly occur in infants, but the molecular mechanisms of oncogenesis are unknown. Here we show YAP1-MAMLD1 fusions but not YAP1 wildtype are sufficient to drive malignant transformation of neural progenitors in the developing cerebral cortex in mice, and the resulting tumours share histo-molecular characteristics of human ependymomas. Nuclear localization of YAP1-MAMLD1 protein is associated with its oncogenicity and is mediated by the nuclear localization signal of MAMLD1 in a YAP1-Ser127 phosphorylation-independent manner. Chromatin immunoprecipitation-sequencing analyses of human YAP1-MAMLD1-positive ependymoma reveal enrichment of NFI and TEAD transcription factor binding site motifs in YAP1-bound regulatory elements, hypothesizing the important role of these transcription factors in YAP1-MAMLD1-driven tumourigenesis. Indeed, co-immunoprecipitation assays revealed physical interactions of TEADs and NFIA/B with the YAP1 and MAMLD1 domains of the fusion protein, respectively. Mutation of the TEAD binding site in the YAP1 fusion or repression of NFI targets prevents tumour induction in mice. Together, these results demonstrate that the YAP1-MAMLD1 fusion functions as an oncogenic driver of ependymoma through recruitment of TEADs and NFIs, indicating a rationale for preclinical studies to block the interaction between YAP1 fusions and NFI and TEAD transcription factors.
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Bunt, Jens, Jason M. Osinski, Jonathan WC Lim, Diana Vidovic, Yunan Ye, Oressia Zalucki, Timothy R. O’Connor, et al. "Combined allelic dosage of Nfia and Nfib regulates cortical development." Brain and Neuroscience Advances 1 (January 1, 2017): 239821281773943. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2398212817739433.
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Background: Nuclear factor I family members nuclear factor I A and nuclear factor I B play important roles during cerebral cortical development. Nuclear factor I A and nuclear factor I B regulate similar biological processes, as their expression patterns, regulation of target genes and individual knockout phenotypes overlap. We hypothesised that the combined allelic loss of Nfia and Nfib would culminate in more severe defects in the cerebral cortex than loss of a single member. Methods: We combined immunofluorescence, co-immunoprecipitation, gene expression analysis and immunohistochemistry on knockout mouse models to investigate whether nuclear factor I A and nuclear factor I B function similarly and whether increasing allelic loss of Nfia and Nfib caused a more severe phenotype. Results: We determined that the biological functions of nuclear factor I A and nuclear factor I B overlap during early cortical development. These proteins are co-expressed and can form heterodimers in vivo. Differentially regulated genes that are shared between Nfia and Nfib knockout mice are highly enriched for nuclear factor I binding sites in their promoters and are associated with neurodevelopment. We found that compound heterozygous deletion of both genes resulted in a cortical phenotype similar to that of single homozygous Nfia or Nfib knockout embryos. This was characterised by retention of the interhemispheric fissure, dysgenesis of the corpus callosum and a malformed dentate gyrus. Double homozygous knockout of Nfia and Nfib resulted in a more severe phenotype, with increased ventricular enlargement and decreased numbers of differentiated glia and neurons. Conclusion: In the developing cerebral cortex, nuclear factor I A and nuclear factor I B share similar biological functions and function additively, as the combined allelic loss of these genes directly correlates with the severity of the developmental brain phenotype.
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Le-Bel, Gaëtan, Sergio Cortez Ghio, Louis-Philippe Guérin, Francis Bisson, Lucie Germain, and Sylvain L. Guérin. "Irradiated Human Fibroblasts as a Substitute Feeder Layer to Irradiated Mouse 3T3 for the Culture of Human Corneal Epithelial Cells: Impact on the Stability of the Transcription Factors Sp1 and NFI." International Journal of Molecular Sciences 20, no. 24 (December 13, 2019): 6296. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms20246296.
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Because of the worldwide shortage of graftable corneas, alternatives to restore visual impairments, such as the production of a functional human cornea by tissue engineering, have emerged. Self-renewal of the corneal epithelium through the maintenance of a sub-population of corneal stem cells is required to maintain the functionality of such a reconstructed cornea. We previously reported an association between stem cell differentiation and the level to which they express the transcription factors Sp1 and NFI. In this study, we investigated the impact of replacing irradiated 3T3 (i3T3) murine fibroblast feeder cells by irradiated human corneal fibroblasts (iHFL) on the expression of Sp1 and NFI and evaluated their contribution to the proliferative properties of human corneal epithelial cells (hCECs) in both monolayer cultures and human tissue engineered corneas (hTECs). hCECs co-cultured with iHFL could be maintained for up to two more passages than when they were grown with i3T3. Western Blot and electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) revealed no significant difference in the feeder-layer dependent increase in Sp1 at both the protein and DNA binding level, respectively, between HCECs grown with either i3T3 or iHFL. On the other hand, a significant increase in the expression and DNA binding of NFI was observed at each subsequent passage when hCECs were co-cultured along with i3T3. These changes were found to result from an increased expression of the NFIA and NFIB isoforms in hCECs grown with i3T3. Exposure of hCECs to cycloheximide revealed an increased stability of NFIB that likely resulted from post-translational glycosylation of this protein when these cells were co-cultured with i3T3. In addition, iHFL were as efficient as i3T3 at preserving corneal, slow-cycling, epithelial stem cells in the basal epithelium of the reconstructed hTECs. Furthermore, we observed an increased expression of genes whose encoded products promote hCECs differentiation along several passages in hCECs co-cultured with either type of feeder layer. Therefore, the iHFL feeder layer appears to be the most effective at maintaining the proliferative properties of hCECs in culture most likely by preserving high levels of Sp1 and low levels of NFIB, which is known for its gene repressor and cell differentiation properties.
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Matuzelski, Elise, Tracey J. Harvey, Danyon Harkins, Thuan Nguyen, Marc J. Ruitenberg, and Michael Piper. "Expression of NFIA and NFIB within the murine spinal cord." Gene Expression Patterns 35 (January 2020): 119098. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gep.2020.119098.
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Harvey, Tracey, James Fraser, Alexandra Essebier, Alexander Brown, Raul Davila, Mikael Boden, Richard Gronostajski, and Michael Piper. "Common regulatory targets of NFIA and NFIX mediate postnatal cerebellar development." IBRO Reports 6 (September 2019): S337—S338. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ibror.2019.07.1042.
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Grabowska, Magdalena M., Stephen M. Kelly, Amy L. Reese, Justin M. Cates, Tom C. Case, Jianghong Zhang, David J. DeGraff, et al. "Nfib Regulates Transcriptional Networks That Control the Development of Prostatic Hyperplasia." Endocrinology 157, no. 3 (December 17, 2015): 1094–109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1210/en.2015-1312.
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AbstractA functional complex consisting of androgen receptor (AR) and forkhead box A1 (FOXA1) proteins supports prostatic development, differentiation, and disease. In addition, the interaction of FOXA1 with cofactors such as nuclear factor I (NFI) family members modulates AR target gene expression. However, the global role of specific NFI family members has yet to be described in the prostate. In these studies, chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by DNA sequencing in androgen-dependent LNCaP prostate cancer cells demonstrated that 64.3% of NFIB binding sites are associated with AR and FOXA1 binding sites. Interrogation of published data revealed that genes associated with NFIB binding sites are predominantly induced after dihydrotestosterone treatment of LNCaP cells, whereas NFIB knockdown studies demonstrated that loss of NFIB drives increased AR expression and superinduction of a subset of AR target genes. Notably, genes bound by NFIB only are associated with cell division and cell cycle. To define the role of NFIB in vivo, mouse Nfib knockout prostatic tissue was rescued via renal capsule engraftment. Loss of Nfib expression resulted in prostatic hyperplasia, which did not resolve in response to castration, and an expansion of an intermediate cell population in a small subset of grafts. In human benign prostatic hyperplasia, luminal NFIB loss correlated with more severe disease. Finally, some areas of intermediate cell expansion were also associated with NFIB loss. Taken together, these results show a fundamental role for NFIB as a coregulator of AR action in the prostate and in controlling prostatic hyperplasia.
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Chen, Kok-Siong, Caitlin R. Bridges, Zorana Lynton, Jonathan W. C. Lim, Brett W. Stringer, Revathi Rajagopal, Kum-Thong Wong, et al. "Transcription factors NFIA and NFIB induce cellular differentiation in high-grade astrocytoma." Journal of Neuro-Oncology 146, no. 1 (November 23, 2019): 41–53. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11060-019-03352-3.
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Yoo, Sooyeon, Juhyun Kim, Pin Lyu, Thanh V. Hoang, Alex Ma, Vickie Trinh, Weina Dai, et al. "Control of neurogenic competence in mammalian hypothalamic tanycytes." Science Advances 7, no. 22 (May 2021): eabg3777. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abg3777.
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Hypothalamic tanycytes, radial glial cells that share many features with neuronal progenitors, can generate small numbers of neurons in the postnatal hypothalamus, but the identity of these neurons and the molecular mechanisms that control tanycyte-derived neurogenesis are unknown. In this study, we show that tanycyte-specific disruption of the NFI family of transcription factors (Nfia/b/x) robustly stimulates tanycyte proliferation and tanycyte-derived neurogenesis. Single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) and single-cell assay for transposase-accessible chromatin sequencing (scATAC-seq) analysis reveals that NFI (nuclear factor I) factors repress Sonic hedgehog (Shh) and Wnt signaling in tanycytes and modulation of these pathways blocks proliferation and tanycyte-derived neurogenesis in Nfia/b/x-deficient mice. Nfia/b/x-deficient tanycytes give rise to multiple mediobasal hypothalamic neuronal subtypes that can mature, fire action potentials, receive synaptic inputs, and selectively respond to changes in internal states. These findings identify molecular mechanisms that control tanycyte-derived neurogenesis, which can potentially be targeted to selectively remodel the hypothalamic neural circuitry that controls homeostatic physiological processes.
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Matuzelski, Elise, Jens Bunt, Danyon Harkins, Jonathan W. C. Lim, Richard M. Gronostajski, Linda J. Richards, Lachlan Harris, and Michael Piper. "Transcriptional regulation of Nfix by NFIB drives astrocytic maturation within the developing spinal cord." Developmental Biology 432, no. 2 (December 2017): 286–97. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.10.019.
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Yang, Bo, Zhi-hang Zhou, Li Chen, Xiang Cui, Jun-yan Hou, Kai-jie Fan, Si-hao Han, Peng Li, Shao-qiong Yi, and Yang Liu. "Prognostic significance of NFIA and NFIB in esophageal squamous carcinoma and esophagogastric junction adenocarcinoma." Cancer Medicine 7, no. 5 (March 25, 2018): 1756–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cam4.1434.
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Saclier, Marielle, Michela Lapi, Chiara Bonfanti, Giuliana Rossi, Stefania Antonini, and Graziella Messina. "The Transcription Factor Nfix Requires RhoA-ROCK1 Dependent Phagocytosis to Mediate Macrophage Skewing during Skeletal Muscle Regeneration." Cells 9, no. 3 (March 13, 2020): 708. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/cells9030708.
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Macrophages (MPs) are immune cells which are crucial for tissue repair. In skeletal muscle regeneration, pro-inflammatory cells first infiltrate to promote myogenic cell proliferation, then they switch into an anti-inflammatory phenotype to sustain myogenic cells differentiation and myofiber formation. This phenotypical switch is induced by dead cell phagocytosis. We previously demonstrated that the transcription factor Nfix, a member of the nuclear factor I (Nfi) family, plays a pivotal role during muscle development, regeneration and in the progression of muscular dystrophies. Here, we show that Nfix is mainly expressed by anti-inflammatory macrophages. Upon acute injury, mice deleted for Nfix in myeloid line displayed a significant defect in the process of muscle regeneration. Indeed, Nfix is involved in the macrophage phenotypical switch and macrophages lacking Nfix failed to adopt an anti-inflammatory phenotype and interact with myogenic cells. Moreover, we demonstrated that phagocytosis induced by the inhibition of the RhoA-ROCK1 pathway leads to Nfix expression and, consequently, to acquisition of the anti-inflammatory phenotype. Our study identified Nfix as a link between RhoA-ROCK1-dependent phagocytosis and the MP phenotypical switch, thus establishing a new role for Nfix in macrophage biology for the resolution of inflammation and tissue repair.
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Walker, Megan, Trent Hall, Scott A. Brown, and Shannon McKinney-Freeman. "Nuclear Factor I-X May Regulate a Myeloid-Biased Hematopoietic Stem Cell Population during Stress Hematopoiesis." Blood 132, Supplement 1 (November 29, 2018): 5084. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood-2018-99-118378.
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Abstract Hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPC) are routinely exploited in the clinic to treat patients with cancers or other hematologic diseases. The transcription factor nuclear factor I-X (NFIX) has a proven role regulating migration, adhesion, differentiation and quiescence in neural stem cells. Importantly, Nfix was recently shown to be upregulated in FLT3-ITD+ acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patient samples and the NFI binding motif was protected during DNase hypersensitivity screening. We recently identified Nfix as a novel regulator of HSPC repopulating potential. Using our mouse models, Nfixflox/floxRosa26-CreERT2 and Nfix+/+Rosa26-CreERT2, we induced the deletion of Nfix and performed competitive transplants; here we observe a 50% increase in chimerism 20 weeks post-transplant accompanied by a 10% increase in reconstitution of peripheral blood (PB) B cells. Primary recipient whole bone marrow (WBM) was then transplanted into secondary recipients. Beginning four weeks post-transplant, a 2.5-fold loss of PB myeloid reconstitution was observed in secondary recipients of Nfix-deficient WBM. This effect persisted beyond 20 weeks post-secondary transplant, suggesting that a self-renewing myeloid-biased HSPC is functionally perturbed by the loss of Nfix. To identify genes transcriptionally regulated by NFIX, we recently validated an anti-NFIX monoclonal antibody that is currently being used for chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) followed by paired-end sequencing. Future efforts will focus on investigating Nfix-deficient myeloid-biased HSC subsets. This study will illuminate the transcriptional control of specific HSC subsets. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.
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Lister, Andrew J., Hans Andersen, Tracey Frescino, Demetrios Gatziolis, Sean Healey, Linda S. Heath, Greg C. Liknes, et al. "Use of Remote Sensing Data to Improve the Efficiency of National Forest Inventories: A Case Study from the United States National Forest Inventory." Forests 11, no. 12 (December 19, 2020): 1364. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f11121364.
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Globally, forests are a crucial natural resource, and their sound management is critical for human and ecosystem health and well-being. Efforts to manage forests depend upon reliable data on the status of and trends in forest resources. When these data come from well-designed natural resource monitoring (NRM) systems, decision makers can make science-informed decisions. National forest inventories (NFIs) are a cornerstone of NRM systems, but require capacity and skills to implement. Efficiencies can be gained by incorporating auxiliary information derived from remote sensing (RS) into ground-based forest inventories. However, it can be difficult for countries embarking on NFI development to choose among the various RS integration options, and to develop a harmonized vision of how NFI and RS data can work together to meet monitoring needs. The NFI of the United States, which has been conducted by the USDA Forest Service’s (USFS) Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program for nearly a century, uses RS technology extensively. Here we review the history of the use of RS in FIA, beginning with general background on NFI, FIA, and sampling statistics, followed by a description of the evolution of RS technology usage, beginning with paper aerial photography and ending with present day applications and future directions. The goal of this review is to offer FIA’s experience with NFI-RS integration as a case study for other countries wishing to improve the efficiency of their NFI programs.
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Costea, Adrian. "On building early-warning systems for preventing the deterioration of financial institutions’ performance." Proceedings of the International Conference on Applied Statistics 1, no. 1 (October 1, 2019): 194–202. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/icas-2019-0017.
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Abstract This paper assesses the financial performance of Romania’s non-banking financial institutions (NFIs) using a neural network training algorithm proposed by Kohonen, namely the Self-Organizing Maps algorithm. The algorithm takes the financial dataset and positiones each observation into a self-organizing map (a two-dimensional map) which can be latter used to visualize the trajectories of an individual NFI and explain it based on different performance dimensions, such as capital adequacy, assets’ quality and profitability. Further, we use the map as an early-warning system that would accurately forecast the NFIs future performance (whether they would stay or be eliminated from the NFI’s Special Register three quarters into the future). The results are promising: the model is able to correctly predict NFIs’ performance movements. Finally, we compared the results of our SOM-based model with those obtained by applying a multivariate logit-based model. The SOM model performed worse in discriminating the NFIs’ performance: the performance classes were not clearly defined and the model lacked the interpretability of the results. In the contrary, the multivariate logit coefficients have nice interpretability and an individual default probability estimate is obtained for each new observation. However, we can benefit from the results of both techniques: the visualization capabilities of the SOM model and the interpretability of multivariate logit-based model.
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Wang, Guofu, Lechang Bi, Gaofeng Wang, Feilai Huang, Mingjing Lu, and Kai Zhu. "Microarray analysis to identify the similarities and differences of pathogenesis between aortic occlusive disease and abdominal aortic aneurysm." Vascular 26, no. 3 (October 31, 2017): 301–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1708538117736695.
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Objectives Expression profile of GSE57691 was analyzed to identify the similarities and differences between aortic occlusive disease and abdominal aortic aneurysm. Methods The expression profile of GSE57691 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database, including 20 small abdominal aortic aneurysm samples, 29 large abdominal aortic aneurysm samples, 9 aortic occlusive disease samples, and 10 control samples. Using the limma package in R, the differentially expressed genes were screened. Followed by enrichment analysis was performed for the differentially expressed genes using database for annotation, visualization, and integrated discovery online tool. Based on string online tool and Cytoscape software, protein–protein interaction network and module analyses were carried out. Moreover, integrated TF platform database and Cytoscape software were used for constructing transcriptional regulatory networks. Results As a result, 1757, 354, and 396 differentially expressed genes separately were identified in aortic occlusive disease, large abdominal aortic aneurysm, and small abdominal aortic aneurysm samples. UBB was significantly enriched in proteolysis related pathways with a high degree in three groups. SPARCL1 was another gene shared by these groups and regulated by NFIA, which had a high degree in transcriptional regulatory network. ACTB, a significant upregulated gene in abdominal aortic aneurysm samples, could be regulated by CLIC4, which was significantly enriched in cell motions. ACLY and NFIB were separately identified in aortic occlusive disease and small abdominal aortic aneurysm samples, and separately enriched in lipid metabolism and negative regulation of cell proliferation. Conclusions The downregulated UBB, NFIA, and SPARCL1 might play key roles in both aortic occlusive disease and abdominal aortic aneurysm, while the upregulated ACTB might only involve in abdominal aortic aneurysm. ACLY and NFIB were specifically involved in aortic occlusive disease and small abdominal aortic aneurysm separately.
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Kangas, Räty, Korhonen, Vauhkonen, and Packalen. "Catering Information Needs from Global to Local Scales—Potential and Challenges with National Forest Inventories." Forests 10, no. 9 (September 12, 2019): 800. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f10090800.
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Forest information is needed at global, national and local scales. This review aimed at providing insights of potential of national forest inventories (NFIs) as well as challenges they have to cater to those needs. Within NFIs, the authors address the methodological challenges introduced by the multitude of scales the forest data are needed, and the challenges in acknowledging the errors due to the measurements and models in addition to sampling errors. Between NFIs, the challenges related to the different harmonization tasks were reviewed. While a design-based approach is often considered more attractive than a model-based approach as it is guaranteed to provide unbiased results, the model-based approach is needed for downscaling the information to smaller scales and acknowledging the measurement and model errors. However, while a model-based inference is possible in small areas, the unknown random effects introduce biased estimators. The NFIs need to cater for the national information requirements and maintain the existing time series, while at the same time providing comparable information across the countries. In upscaling the NFI information to continental and global information needs, representative samples across the area are of utmost importance. Without representative data, the model-based approaches enable provision of forest information with unknown and indeterminable biases. Both design-based and model-based approaches need to be applied to cater to all information needs. This must be accomplished in a comprehensive way In particular, a need to have standardized quality requirements has been identified, acknowledging the possibility for bias and its implications, for all data used in policy making.
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Chaand, Mudit, Chris Fiore, Brian T. Johnston, Diane H. Moon, John P. Carulli, and Jeffrey R. Shearstone. "Chromatin Accessibility Mapping of Primary Erythroid Cell Populations Leads to Identification and Validation of Nuclear Factor I X (NFIX) As a Novel Fetal Hemoglobin (HbF) Repressor." Blood 134, Supplement_1 (November 13, 2019): 812. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood-2019-124337.
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Human beta-like globin gene expression is developmentally regulated. Erythroblasts (EBs) derived from fetal tissues, such as umbilical cord blood (CB), primarily express gamma globin mRNA (HBG) and HbF, while EBs derived from adult tissues, such as bone marrow (BM), predominantly express beta globin mRNA (HBB) and adult hemoglobin. Human genetics has validated de-repression of HBG in adult EBs as a powerful therapeutic paradigm in diseases involving defective HBB, such as sickle cell anemia. To identify novel factors involved in the switch from HBG to HBB expression, and to better understand the global regulatory networks driving the fetal and adult cell states, we performed transcriptome profiling (RNA-seq) and chromatin accessibility profiling (ATAC-seq) on sorted EB cell populations from CB or BM. This approach improves upon previous studies that used unsorted cells (Huang J, Dev Cell 2016) or that did not measure chromatin accessibility (Yan H, Am J Hematol 2018). CD34+ cells from CB and BM were differentiated using a 3-phase in vitro culture system (Giarratana M, Blood 2011). Fluorescence-activated cell sorting and the cell surface markers CD36 and GYPA were used to isolate 7 discrete populations, with each sorting gate representing increasingly mature, stage-matched EBs from CB or BM (Fig 1A, B). RNA-seq analysis revealed expected expression patterns of the beta-like globins, with total levels increasing during erythroid maturation and primarily composed of HBB or HBG transcripts in BM or CB, respectively (Fig 1C). Erythroid maturation led to progressive increases in chromatin accessibility at the HBB promoter in BM populations. In CB-derived cells, erythroid maturation led to progressive increases in chromatin accessibility at the HBG promoters through the CD36+GYPA+ stage (Pops 1-5). Chromatin accessibility shifted from the HBG promoters to the HBB promoter during the final stages of differentiation (Pops 6-7), suggesting that HBG gene activation is transient in CB EBs (Fig 1D). Hierarchical clustering and principal component analysis of ATAC-seq data revealed that cell populations cluster based on differentiation stage rather than by BM or CB lineage, suggesting most molecular changes are stage-specific, not lineage-specific (Fig 2A, B). To identify transcription factors driving cell state, and potentially beta-like globin expression preference, we searched for DNA binding motifs within regions of differential chromatin accessibility and found NFI factor motifs enriched under peaks that were larger in BM relative to CB (Fig 2C). Transcription factor footprinting analysis showed that both flanking accessibility and footprint depth at NFI motifs were also increased in BM relative to CB (Fig 2D). Increased chromatin accessibility was observed at the NFIX promoter in BM relative to CB populations, and in HUDEP-2 relative to HUDEP-1 cell lines (Fig 2E). Furthermore, accessibility at the NFIX promoter correlated with elevated NFIX mRNA in BM and HUDEP-2 relative to CB and HUDEP-1, respectively. Together these data implicated NFIX in HbF repression, a finding consistent with previous genome-wide association and DNA methylation studies that suggested a possible role for NFIX in regulating beta-like globin gene expression (Fabrice D, Nat Genet 2016; Lessard S, Genome Med 2015). To directly test the hypothesis that NFIX represses HbF, short hairpin RNAs were used to knockdown (KD) NFIX in primary erythroblasts derived from human CD34+ BM cells (Fig 3A). NFIX KD led to a time-dependent induction of HBG mRNA, HbF, and F-cells comparable to KD of the known HbF repressor BCL11A (Fig 3B-D). A similar effect on HbF was observed in HUDEP-2 cells following NFIX KD (Fig 3E). Consistent with HbF induction, NFIX KD also increased chromatin accessibility and decreased DNA methylation at the HBG promoters in primary EBs (Fig 3F, G). NFIX KD led to a delay in erythroid differentiation as measured by CD36 and GYPA expression (Fig 3H). Despite this delay, by day 14 a high proportion of fully enucleated erythroblasts was observed, suggesting NFIX KD cells are capable of terminal differentiation (Fig 3H). Collectively, these data have enabled identification and validation of NFIX as a novel repressor of HbF, a finding that enhances the understanding of beta-like globin gene regulation and has potential implications in the development of therapeutics for sickle cell disease. Disclosures Chaand: Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership. Fiore:Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership. Johnston:Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership. Moon:Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership. Carulli:Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership. Shearstone:Syros Pharmaceuticals: Employment, Equity Ownership.
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&NA;. "NFIC NEWS." Journal of Wound, Ostomy and Continence Nursing 13, no. 4 (July 1986): 35A. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00152192-198607000-00023.
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Khan, Fasihullah, Waqar Khan, and Sam-Dong Kim. "High-Performance Ultraviolet Light Detection Using Nano-Scale-Fin Isolation AlGaN/GaN Heterostructures with ZnO Nanorods." Nanomaterials 9, no. 3 (March 15, 2019): 440. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nano9030440.
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Owing to their intrinsic wide bandgap properties ZnO and GaN materials are widely used for fabricating passive-type visible-blind ultraviolet (UV) photodetectors (PDs). However, most of these PDs have a very low spectral responsivity R, which is not sufficient for detecting very low-level UV signals. We demonstrate an active type UV PD with a ZnO nanorod (NR) structure for the floating gate of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT), where the AlGaN/GaN epitaxial layers are isolated by the nano-scale fins (NFIs) of two different fin widths (70 and 80 nm). In the dark condition, oxygen adsorbed at the surface of the ZnO NRs generates negative gate potential. Upon UV light illumination, the negative charge on the ZnO NRs is reduced due to desorption of oxygen, and this reversible process controls the source-drain carrier transport property of HEMT based PDs. The NFI PDs of a 70 nm fin width show the highest R of a ~3.2 × 107 A/W at 340 nm wavelength among the solid-state UV PDs reported to date. We also compare the performances of NFI PDs with those of conventional mesa isolation (MI, 40 × 100 µm2). NFI devices show ~100 times enhanced R and on-off current ratio than those of MI devices. Due to the volume effect of the small active region, a much faster response speed (rise-up and fall-off times of 0.21 and 1.05 s) is also obtained from the NFI PDs with a 70 nm fin width upon the UV on-off transient.
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Dintcheva, Nadka Tzankova, Giulia Infurna, Marilena Baiamonte, and Francesca D’Anna. "Natural Compounds as Sustainable Additives for Biopolymers." Polymers 12, no. 4 (March 25, 2020): 732. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/polym12040732.
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In the last few decades, the interest towards natural compounds, coming from a natural source and biodegradable, for biopolymers is always increasing because of a public request for the formulation of safe, eco-friendly, and sustainable materials. The main classes of natural compounds for biopolymers are: (i) naturally occurring fillers (nFil), such as nano-/micro- sized layered alumino-silicate: halloysite, bentonite, montmorillonite, hydroxyapatite, calcium carbonate, etc.; (ii) naturally occurring fibers (nFib), such as wood and vegetable fibers; (iii) naturally occurring antioxidant molecules (nAO), such as phenols, polyphenols, vitamins, and carotenoids. However, in this short review, the advantages and drawbacks, considering naturally occurring compounds as safe, eco-friendly, and sustainable additives for biopolymers, have been focused and discussed briefly, even taking into account the requests and needs of different application fields.
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Cheung, Leonard, Alexandre Daly, Michelle Brinkmeier, and Sally Ann Camper. "Single-Cell Gene Expression Analysis Reveals Gene Regulatory Networks Driving Proliferation in Pituitary Stem and Endocrine Cells." Journal of the Endocrine Society 5, Supplement_1 (May 1, 2021): A509—A510. http://dx.doi.org/10.1210/jendso/bvab048.1042.
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Abstract A fundamental question for pituitary development and disease is to understand the mechanisms that regulate proliferation, quiescence, and differentiation of stem cells and endocrine lineage-committed precursor cells. Pituitary stem cells, marked by expression of SOX2, are highly proliferative during development and the early postnatal period. This pool becomes quiescent over time, but stem cells retain the ability to re-enter the cell cycle and differentiate into nascent endocrine cells of all lineages in response to physiological demands. The rodent pituitary gland undergoes substantial growth in the postnatal period, and much of this increase in size is due to proliferation of committed progenitors, such as Pou1f1-expressing cells. We performed single-cell RNA transcriptomics analyses of over 8,000 male and female 4-day-old mouse pituitary cells in order to assess stem cell heterogeneity and to identify novel pituitary stem cell biomarkers. We identified a number of factors enriched in pituitary stem cells relative to differentiating cells, including the transcription factors TGIF1 and NR4A3 as well as several members of the nuclear factor I family (NFIA, NFIB, NFIX). We also detected stem cell-specific expression of the cortisol synthesizing enzyme HSD11B1 and folate receptor FOLR1, suggesting novel roles for these pathways in pituitary stem cells. There were few transcriptomic differences between proliferating and non-proliferating stem cells. However, proliferating stem cells and proliferating committed progenitors shared expression of cell-cycle associated genes and novel transcription factors such as BRCA1 and E2F1. Furthermore, single-cell gene network inference and clustering (SCENIC) analyses demonstrated activation of common gene regulatory networks in both proliferating stem and proliferating endocrine populations, including both the E2f1 and Brca1 regulons. RNA velocity, trajectory, and phylogenetic analyses and find that proliferating stem and endocrine cells are likely independent cellular states. Instead, they support the idea that proliferating stem cells become quiescent and transition to committed progenitors that re-enter the cell cycle and then subsequently activate hormone gene expression. In conclusion, our single-cell gene expression analyses of early postnatal pituitary cells have shed light on the developmental trajectory from proliferating stem cell to quiescent differentiated hormone-producing cells.
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Wang, X. "NFIR nonlinear filter." IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing 39, no. 7 (July 1991): 1705–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/78.134416.
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Yim, Jong Su, Young Hwan Kim, Sung Ho Kim, Jin Hyun Jeong, and Man Yong Shin. "Comparison of the k-nearest neighbor technique with geographical calibration for estimating forest growing stock volumeThis article is one of a selection of papers from Extending Forest Inventory and Monitoring over Space and Time." Canadian Journal of Forest Research 41, no. 1 (January 2011): 73–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/x10-132.
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National Forest Inventories (NFIs) have been used in many countries to assess forest resources at the national level. To facilitate the estimation of forest growing stock volume at more regional scales, the k-nearest neighbor (k-NN) technique was applied in this research to obtain estimates for unmeasured areas by using NFI field data and optical satellite data. The NFI field data were assigned to data sets of three different sample sizes to evaluate the effect of sample size on the accuracy of k-NN estimates. In small-area estimation, calibration techniques, in which samples surveyed outside a county of interest are employed to produce estimates for the county, are often adopted due to the lack of sample observations for the county of interest. Thus, the k-NN estimates, forest growing stock volume and areal proportions by forest types, were compared with estimates obtained from field data with and without calibration. The results indicated that the accuracy of k-NN estimates could be improved as sample size increased. Also, the k-NN technique provided acceptable estimates for small-area estimation. Although there was no significant difference with the calibration approach (p > 0.18), k-NN has potential for small-area estimation and is useful to generate thematic maps of forest attributes.
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Cu, Katharina, Ruchi Bansal, Samir Mitragotri, and David Fernandez Rivas. "Delivery Strategies for Skin: Comparison of Nanoliter Jets, Needles and Topical Solutions." Annals of Biomedical Engineering 48, no. 7 (October 15, 2019): 2028–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10439-019-02383-1.
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Abstract Drug diffusion within the skin with a needle-free micro-jet injection (NFI) device was compared with two well-established delivery methods: topical application and solid needle injection. A permanent make-up (PMU) machine, normally used for dermal pigmentation, was utilized as a solid needle injection method. For NFIs a continuous wave (CW) laser diode was used to create a bubble inside a microfluidic device containing a light absorbing solution. Each method delivered two different solutions into ex vivo porcine skin. The first solution consisted of a red dye (direct red 81) and rhodamine B in water. The second solution was direct red 81 and rhodamine B in water and glycerol. We measured the diffusion depth, width and surface area of the solutions in all the injected skin samples. The NFI has a higher vertical dispersion velocity of 3 × 105μm/s compared to topical (0.1 μm/s) and needle injection (53 μm/s). The limitations and advantages of each method are discussed, and we conclude that the micro-jet injector represents a fast and minimally invasive injection method, while the solid needle injector causes notable tissue damage. In contrast, the topical method had the slowest diffusion rate but causes no visible damage to the skin.
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Hawryło, Paweł, Saverio Francini, Gherardo Chirici, Francesca Giannetti, Karolina Parkitna, Grzegorz Krok, Krzysztof Mitelsztedt, et al. "The Use of Remotely Sensed Data and Polish NFI Plots for Prediction of Growing Stock Volume Using Different Predictive Methods." Remote Sensing 12, no. 20 (October 13, 2020): 3331. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rs12203331.
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Forest growing stock volume (GSV) is an important parameter in the context of forest resource management. National Forest Inventories (NFIs) are routinely used to estimate forest parameters, including GSV, for national or international reporting. Remotely sensed data are increasingly used as a source of auxiliary information for NFI data to improve the spatial precision of forest parameter estimates. In this study, we combine data from the NFI in Poland with satellite images of Landsat 7 and 3D point clouds collected with airborne laser scanning (ALS) technology to develop predictive models of GSV. We applied an area-based approach using 13,323 sample plots measured within the second cycle of the NFI in Poland (2010–2014) with poor positional accuracy from several to 15 m. Four different predictive approaches were evaluated: multiple linear regression, k-Nearest Neighbours, Random Forest and Deep Learning fully connected neural network. For each of these predictive methods, three sets of predictors were tested: ALS-derived, Landsat-derived and a combination of both. The developed models were validated at the stand level using field measurements from 360 reference forest stands. The best accuracy (RMSE% = 24.2%) and lowest systematic error (bias% = −2.2%) were obtained with a deep learning approach when both ALS- and Landsat-derived predictors were used. However, the differences between the evaluated predictive approaches were marginal when using the same set of predictor variables. Only a slight increase in model performance was observed when adding the Landsat-derived predictors to the ALS-derived ones. The obtained results showed that GSV can be predicted at the stand level with relatively low bias and reasonable accuracy for coniferous species, even using field sample plots with poor positional accuracy for model development. Our findings are especially important in the context of GSV prediction in areas where NFI data are available but the collection of accurate positions of field plots is not possible or justified because of economic reasons.
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Aguirre, Ana, Miren del Río, and Sonia Condés. "Productivity Estimations for Monospecific and Mixed Pine Forests along the Iberian Peninsula Aridity Gradient." Forests 10, no. 5 (May 18, 2019): 430. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f10050430.
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National Forest Inventories (NFIs) are the primary source of information to fulfill international requirements, such as growing stock volume. However, NFI cycles may be “out of phase” in terms of the information required, so prediction techniques are needed. To disentangle the effects of climate and competition on stand productivity and to estimate the volume of stocks at national scale, it is important to recognize that growth and competition are species-specific and vary along climatic gradients. In this study, we estimate the productivity of five pine species (Pinus sylvestris, Pinus pinea, Pinus halepensis, Pinus nigra and Pinus pinaster), growing in monospecific stands or in mixtures along an aridity gradient in the Iberian Peninsula, based on Spanish NFI data. We study the stand volume growth efficiency (VGE), since it allows the comparison of volume growth in monospecific and mixed stands. The results reveal the importance of considering the aridity when assessing VGE. Moreover, it was found that, in general, admixture among pine species leads to modifications in the VGE, which can vary from negative to positive effects depending on species composition, and that this is always influenced by the aridity. Finally, we provide simple growth efficiency models for the studied pines species which are valid for both monospecific and mixed stands along the aridity gradient of the Iberian Peninsula.
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Haakana, Helena, Juha Heikkinen, Matti Katila, and Annika Kangas. "Precision of exogenous post-stratification in small-area estimation based on a continuous national forest inventory." Canadian Journal of Forest Research 50, no. 4 (April 2020): 359–70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/cjfr-2019-0139.
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National forest inventories (NFIs) are designed to provide accurate information on forest resources at the national and regional levels, but there is also a demand for such information at smaller spatial scales. Auxiliary data such as satellite imagery have been used to facilitate small-area estimation. The commonly used method, k-nearest neighbour (k-NN), provides a model-based estimator for small areas, but a design-unbiased estimator for the mean square error is not available. Post-stratification (PS) is an alternative approach to using auxiliary information that allows for design-based variance estimation. In a case study using real inventory data of the Finnish NFI, we applied this method to the municipality level to explore the lower limit to the area for which the key forest parameters, forest area and growing stock volumes, can be estimated with sufficient precision. For PS, we employed exogenous forest resources maps based on the previous NFI round. In the municipalities of the two study provinces, the relative standard errors of total volume estimates ranged from 2.3% to 26.9%. They were smaller than 10% for municipalities with an area of 390 km2 or larger, corresponding to approximately 100 or more sample plots on forestland. We also demonstrated the usefulness of design-unbiased variance estimation in showing discrepancies between design-based PS and model-based k-NN estimates.
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&NA;. "NFID Calendar of Events." Infectious Diseases in Clinical Practice 22, no. 2 (March 2014): e6-e13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ipc.0000000000000122.
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Shermer, William D. "NFIA Laboratory Methods Compendium." Journal of Applied Poultry Research 1, no. 1 (March 1992): 154–55. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/japr/1.1.154.
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Palacios, Daniela, and Pier Lorenzo Puri. "Switch NFix Developmental Myogenesis." Developmental Cell 18, no. 3 (March 2010): 340–41. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.devcel.2010.03.005.
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David, Hassan C., David W. MacFarlane, Sylvio Péllico Netto, Ana Paula Dalla Corte, Daniel Piotto, Yeda M. M. de Oliveira, Vinicius A. Morais, Carlos R. Sanquetta, and Rorai P. M. Neto. "Exploring coarse- to fine-scale approaches for mapping and estimating forest volume from Brazilian National Forest Inventory data." Forestry: An International Journal of Forest Research 92, no. 5 (May 29, 2019): 577–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/forestry/cpz030.
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Abstract The aim of this study was to explore methods to: (1) enhance coarse-scale estimates of wood volume from National Forest Inventories (NFIs) data and (2) map them at finer scales. The ‘standard’ coarse-scale estimation extrapolates wood volume from clusters to the grid cell they represent, using the cluster’s represented forested area (RFA) to predict the cell’s forested area. Data from a subset of Brazil’s NFI clusters were combined with Landsat-8 imagery to explore a new coarse-scale method, where forested area derived from image classification (FADIC) is used instead of RFA. The RFA- and FADIC-derived estimates of total volume were, respectively, 197.4 million m3 and 116.3 million m3. For fine-scale methods, volume was estimated and mapped at pixel level using: (i) surface reflectance-based models (SRMs), and (ii) regression-kriging (RK) and a RK model (RKM) whose inputs were latitude and longitude of pixels. The SRM-based method captured the mean and the general spatial trend of the volume well. The RK-based method also estimated the mean well, but it failed to predict higher and lower volumes. The SRM- and RK-based estimates of total volume were 211.7 million m3 and 203.3 million m3, an overestimate of 7 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively, of the ‘standard’ NFI estimate (197.4 million m3), though both estimates were within the 95 per cent confidence interval, meaning that both fine-scale methods yield total volume statistically similar to the ‘standard’ coarse-scale method.
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Shapira, Suzanne N., and Patrick Seale. "Enhancing brown fat with NFIA." Nature Cell Biology 19, no. 9 (August 31, 2017): 1006–7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncb3591.
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Shrestha, Indira. "Organizational Commitment of Female Employees of Nepalese Financial Institutions." Journal of Nepalese Business Studies 9, no. 1 (March 1, 2016): 126–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jnbs.v9i1.14602.
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This paper examines the organizational commitment of female employees of Nepalese Financial Institutions (NFIs) and analyzes the factors affecting the organizational commitment. A structured questionnaire has been distributed to the female employees of NFIs. Financial Institutions have been stratified into three strata namely commercial bank, development bank and finance companies situated at Lekhnath municipality and Pokhara sub-metropolitan city. Stratified random sampling method has been applied for sampling. The sample size for this study is 122. The paper employs 18 statement questionnaire developed by Mowday, Steers, and Porter as measure of organizational commitment (OC) which is used as the dependent variable in the study. Additionally, communication, career development and role of employee, working condition, recognition and reward, role of immediate supervisor and training program as factors of job satisfaction have been considered as independent variables. Descriptive analysis has been used to find frequency, mean, and percentage. Statistical tools like correlation, independent sample t test, ANOVA, and multiple regression analysis have been employed. The study reveals that the female employees in NFI are found to have moderate level of organizational commitment. No significant difference is found in the OC level of the employees by marital status, job position, organizational status, educational level, and service year except the age of employee. The organizational commitment of the employees is found to be effected significantly by role of supervisor and training programme of organization. Moreover, for married employees role of supervisor is found to be important factor for organizational commitment while for single employees training programme is found to be more important.Journal of Nepalese Business Studies Vol. 9, No. 1, 2015 pp.126-136
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Lin, Xiaoqing, Monica Buzzai, Ross L. Levine, Windy Berkofsky-Fessler, Weijia Zhang, Benjamin L. Ebert, D. Gary Gilliland, and Jonathan D. Licht. "NFIB: A Gene Consistently Upregulated in MPD and Frequently Co-Amplified with JAK2V617F Augments Growth of Erythropoietin Dependent Cells." Blood 112, no. 11 (November 16, 2008): 3727. http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.v112.11.3727.3727.
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Abstract Myeloproliferative disorders (MPDs) are characterized by abnormal proliferation of one or more myeloid lineages. Among MPDs, three distinct yet related disorders, PV, ET and IMF, harbor the same gain-of-function mutation JAK2V617F at a high frequency (~100%, 70%, 50%, respectively). Accumulating evidence suggest that other genetic lesions may cooperate with JAK2V617F to induce MPD. Analysis of microarray datasets from CD34+ cells isolated from a set of 9 PV patients as well as reanalysis of expression profiles of granulocytes from other sets of MPD patients reveals consistent up-regulation of the NFIB gene. NFIB is located ~9 Mb centromeric to the JAK2 locus (ch9p24) and encodes a nuclear transcription factor that binds to CAAT sequences. Examination of expression array databases (symatlas.gnf.org, www.oncomine.org) shows that NFIB is normally expressed at very low levels in human bone marrow and peripheral blood. Up-regulation of NFIB in MPD correlates with a recurrent amplification of the NFIB locus on chromosome 9p23. However, analysis of gene expression and chromosomal segment amplification in the same set of MPD specimens by cDNA microarray and SNP analysis showed that even in MPD patients without amplification of segments of chromosome 9, NFIB expression is upregulated. In JAK2V617F positive HEL cells quantitative genomic PCR showed that the JAK2 locus was amplifed 30 fold compared to control K562 cells and the NFIB locus amplified 10 fold. JAK2 expression in HEL cells measured by quantitative RT-PCR was elevated 5 fold above levels in K562 cells while NFIB expression was increased by a factor of 54. In another JAK2V617F containing leukemia cell line, UKE-1 there was a 6-fold amplification of JAK2 and 2-fold amplification of NFIB. However in UKE1 cells JAK2 expression was not elevated compared to K562 cells while NFIB expression was increased by a factor of 5. These data suggested that NFIB overexpression might be a common feature of JAK2V617-associated neoplasms, related in part to gene amplification, and that the regulation of JAK2 and NFIB expression was distinct. Supporting this idea, NFIB mRNA expression was not stimulated by lentivirus mediated overexpression of JAK2V617F in cytokine dependent TF1 cells nor repressed by blocking JAK2 kinase activity with a chemical inhibitor in HEL cells. To determine whether NFIB might play a role in malignant cell growth in MPD, a murine hematopoietic cell line transduced with the erythropoietin receptor, Ba/F3-EPOR, was transduced with a lentivirus harboring NFIB. Overexpression of NFIB in these cells promoted proliferation of these cells presence of erythropoietin (EPO) (1unit/ml). When grown in 0.1 or 0.01unit/ml of EPO, NFIB-expressing cells continued to show a 30–40% growth advantage with decreased cell death noted as well. To begin to understand the mechanisms of action of NFIB in hematopoitic cell growth, NFIB expressing and control cells were exposed to DNA damage in the form of ultraviolet radiation (UV). UV-induced transcription of the p21 cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor was repressed in Ba/F3-EPOR cells overexpressing NFIB compared to control cells. Furthermore engineered expression of NFIB in Ba/F3-EPOR cells consistently increased the number of cells entering the S-phase after addition of cytokine to starved cells. Mis-expresson of NFIB in MPD by chromosomal segment amplification or other mechanism may contribute to the development of MPD. Experiments are in progress to co-express NFIB and JAK2V61F in human and murine hematopoietic progenitor cells to ascertain the contribution of NFIB in vivo. NFIB and its target genes may represent additional therapeutic targets in MPD.
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Whetton, Rebecca L., Yifan Zhao, Said Nawar, and Abdul M. Mouazen. "Modelling the Influence of Soil Properties on Crop Yields Using a Non-Linear NFIR Model and Laboratory Data." Soil Systems 5, no. 1 (February 16, 2021): 12. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/soilsystems5010012.
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This paper introduces a new non-linear correlation analysis method based on a non-linear finite impulse response (NFIR) model to study and quantify the effects of ten soil properties on crop yield. Two versions of the NFIR model were implemented: NFIR-LN, accounting for both the linear and non-linear variability in the system, and NFIR-L, accounting for linear variability only. The performance of the NFIR models was compared with a non-linear random forest (RF) model, to predict oilseed rape (2013) and wheat (2014) yields in one field at Premslin, Germany. The ten soil properties were used as system inputs, whereas crop yield was the system output. Results demonstrated that the individual and total contribution of the soil properties on crop yield varied throughout the different cropping seasons, weather conditions, and crops. Both the NFIR-LN and RF models outperformed the NFIR-L model and explained up to 55.62% and 50.66% of the yield variation for years 2013 and 2014, respectively. The NFIR-LN and RF models performed equally during yield prediction, although the NFIR-LN model provided more consistent results through the two cropping seasons. Higher phosphorus and potassium contributions to the yield were calculated with the NFIR-LN model, suggesting this method outperforms the RF model.