Constructing green superhydrophilic and superoleophobic COFs-MOFs hybrid-based membrane for efficiently emulsion separation and synchronous removal of microplastics, dyes, and pesticides

Oil spills and micropollutants have become thorny environmental issues, posing serious threat to ecosystem and human health. To settle such dilemma, this study successfully constructed a robust and environmentally-friendly MOFs-COFs hybrid-based membrane (FS-50/COF(MATPA)-MOF(Zr)/PDA@PVDF) for the first time through solution synthesis and solvothermal method, combined with surface modification of FS-50 molecule. Importantly, we employed a simple two-step strategy to obtain the high-aspect-ratio MOFs fibers: (1) solvent regulation to generate smaller needle-like whiskers during the in-situ growth of MOFs on COFs; (2) high pressure induced directional crystallization in filtration process. The introduction of polydopamine (PDA) greatly improved the adhesion between coating and PVDF membrane. The in-situ growth of high length-diameter ratio MOFs fibers on blocky COFs greatly enhanced the specific surface area of MOFs-COFs hybrid, thus provided sufficient absorption sites. The functional groups of FS-50 endowed the hybrid membrane with superhydrophilicity and superoleophobicity, which facilitated to selectively penetrate water molecules and repel non-polar pollutants. The separation efficiency and decontamination mechanism of hybrid membrane to the simulated oily wastewater (containing various MPs, dyes, and pesticides) were investigated through experiments and theoretical calculations. The hybrid membrane could selectively and synchronously adsorb various dyes (20 mg/L-120 mg/L, almost 100% removal) and pesticides (10 mg/L for DIF and TET, adsorption rates 93.2% and 90.9%, respectively) from oil-water emulsion (50 mL). The large-scale coated sponge (6 cm × 4.5 cm × 3 cm) could quickly achieve separation of oil-water mixture (almost 100%) with a water permeability of more than 162 L m-2·h-1·bar-1, and simultaneously remove various MPs (PP-2000, PP-100, PE-2000, PS-100, 0.2 g/300 mL for each), Sudan Ⅲ (C0 = 200 mg/L), and DIF (C0 = 10 mg/L) from a simulant oily wastewater (300 mL), with the removal rates of almost 100% for MPs, 99.7% for Sudan Ⅲ, and 95.8% for DIF. Furthermore, we elucidated the removal mechanism of pesticide and dyes through simulating the theoretical adsorption energy and potential adsorption sites. The hybrid membrane not only provides a promising candidate for the removal of multiple pollutants from oil-water emulsion, but also opens a new strategy for achieving efficient and clean aquatic environment restoration.

Defining the progeria phenome

Progeroid disorders are a heterogenous group of rare and complex hereditary syndromes presenting with pleiotropic phenotypes associated with normal aging. Due to the large variation in clinical presentation the diseases pose a diagnostic challenge for clinicians which consequently restricts medical research. To accommodate the challenge, we compiled a list of known progeroid syndromes and calculated the mean prevalence of their associated phenotypes, defining what we term the 'progeria phenome'. The data were used to train a support vector machine that is available at https://www.mitodb.com and able to classify progerias based on phenotypes. Furthermore, this allowed us to investigate the correlation of progeroid syndromes and syndromes with various pathogenesis using hierarchical clustering algorithms and disease networks. We detected that ataxia-telangiectasia like disorder 2, spastic paraplegia 49 and Meier-Gorlin syndrome display strong association to progeroid syndromes, thereby implying that the syndromes are previously unrecognized progerias. In conclusion, our study has provided tools to evaluate the likelihood of a syndrome or patient being progeroid. This is a considerable step forward in our understanding of what constitutes a premature aging disorder and how to diagnose them.

Magnetic Bimetallic Heterointerface Nanomissiles with Enhanced Microwave Absorption for Microwave Thermal/Dynamics Therapy of Breast Cancer

Microwave thermotherapy (MWT) has shown great potential in cancer treatment due to its deep tissue penetration and minimally invasive nature. However, the poor microwave absorption (MA) properties of the microwave thermal sensitizer in the medical frequency band significantly limit the thermal effect of MWT and then weaken the therapeutic efficacy. In this paper, a Ni-based multilayer heterointerface nanomissile of MOFs-Ni-Ru@COFs (MNRC) with improved MA performance in the desired frequency band via introducing magnetic loss and dielectric loss is developed for MWT-based treatment. The loading of the Ni nanoparticle in MNRC mediates the magnetic loss, introducing the MA in the medical frequency band. The heterointerface formed in the MNRC by nanoengineering induces significant interfacial polarization, increasing the dielectric loss and then enhancing the generated MA performance. Moreover, MNRC with the strong MA performance in the desired frequency range not only enhances the MW thermal effect of MWT but also facilitates the electron and energy transfer, generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) at tumor sites to mediate microwave dynamic therapy (MDT). The strategy of strengthening the MA performance of the sensitizer in the medical frequency band to improve MWT-MDT provides a direction for expanding the clinical application of MWT in tumor treatment.

Mixed-Linkage Donor-Acceptor Covalent Organic Framework as a Turn-On Fluorescent Sensor for Aliphatic Amines

Amine determination is crucial to our daily life, including the prevention of pollution, the treatment of certain disorders, and the evaluation of food quality. Herein, a mixed-linkage donor-acceptor covalent organic framework (named DSE-COF) was first constructed by the polymerization between 2,4-dihydroxybenzene-1,3,5-tricarbaldehyde (DTA) and 4,4'-(benzo[c][1,2,5]selenadiazole-4,7-diyl)dianiline (SEZ). DSE-COF displayed superior turn-on fluorescent responses to primary, secondary, and tertiary aliphatic amines, such as cadaverine, isopropylamine, sec-butylamine, cyclohexylamine, hexamethylenediamine, di-n-butylamine, and triethylamine in absolute acetonitrile than other organic species. Further experiments and theoretical calculations demonstrated that the combination of intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) and photoinduced electron transfer (PET) effects between the DSE-COF and aliphatic amines resulted in enhanced fluorescence. Credibly, DSE-COF can quantitatively detect cadaverine content in actual pork samples with satisfactory results. In addition, DSE-COF-based test papers could rapidly monitor cadaverine from real pork samples, manifesting the potential application of COFs in food quality inspection.

Recent advances in fluorescence-based chemosensing of organoarsenic feed additives using luminescence MOFs, COFs, HOFs, and QDs

Organoarsenics are low-toxicity compounds that are used widely as feed additives to promote livestock growth, enhance meat pigmentation, and fight against intestinal parasites. The organoarsenic compounds are commonly found in poultry waste and the degradation of organoarsenic produces the toxic carcinogen inorganic arsenic such as As(V) and As(III), which results in severe arsenic pollution of soil and groundwater. As a consequence, there exists a high necessity to develop suitable sensing methods for the trace detection and quantification of organoarsenic feed additives in wastewater. Among various detection methods, in particular, fluorescence-based sensing has become a popular and efficient method used extensively for sensing water contaminants and environmental contaminants. In the recent past, a wide variety of fluorescence chemosensors have been designed and employed for the efficient sensing and quantification of the concentration of organoarsenic feed additives in different environmental samples. This review article systematically highlights various fluorescence chemosensors reported to date for fluorescence-based sensing of organoarsenic feed additives. The fluorescence sensors discussed in this review are classified and grouped according to their structures and functions, and in each section, we provide a detailed report on the structure, photophysics, and fluorescence sensing properties of different chemosensors. Lastly, the future perspectives on the design and development of practically useful sensor systems for selective and discriminative sensing of organoarsenic compounds have been stated.

Arabidopsis RAD16 Homologues Are Involved in UV Tolerance and Growth

In plants, prolonged exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation causes harmful DNA lesions. Nucleotide excision repair (NER) is an important DNA repair mechanism that operates via two pathways: transcription coupled repair (TC-NER) and global genomic repair (GG-NER). In plants and mammals, TC-NER is initiated by the Cockayne Syndrome A and B (CSA/CSB) complex, whereas GG-NER is initiated by the Damaged DNA Binding protein 1/2 (DDB1/2) complex. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae (S. cerevisiae), GG-NER is initiated by the Radiation Sensitive 7 and 16, (RAD7/16) complex. Arabidopsis thaliana has two homologues of yeast RAD16, At1g05120 and At1g02670, which we named AtRAD16 and AtRAD16b, respectively. In this study, we characterized the roles of AtRAD16 and AtRAD16b. Arabidopsis rad16 and rad16b null mutants exhibited increased UV sensitivity. Moreover, AtRAD16 overexpression increased plant UV tolerance. Thus, AtRAD16 and AtRAD16b contribute to plant UV tolerance and growth. Additionally, we found physical interaction between AtRAD16 and AtRAD7. Thus, the Arabidopsis RAD7/16 complex is functional in plant NER. Furthermore, AtRAD16 makes a significant contribution to Arabidopsis UV tolerance compared to the DDB1/2 and the CSB pathways. This is the first time the role and interaction of DDB1/2, RAD7/16, and CSA/CSB components in a single system have been studied.

Assessing the Formation of Purine Lesions in Mitochondrial DNA of Cockayne Syndrome Cells

Mitochondrial (mt) DNA and nuclear (n) DNA have known structures and roles in cells; however, they are rarely compared under specific conditions such as oxidative or degenerative environments that can create damage to the DNA base moieties. Six purine lesions were ascertained in the mtDNA of wild type (wt) CSA (CS3BE-wtCSA) and wtCSB (CS1AN-wtCSB) cells and defective counterparts CS3BE and CS1AN in comparison with the corresponding total (t) DNA (t = n + mt). In particular, the four 5',8-cyclopurine (cPu) and the two 8-oxo-purine (8-oxo-Pu) lesions were accurately quantified by LC-MS/MS analysis using isotopomeric internal standards after an enzymatic digestion procedure. The 8-oxo-Pu levels were found to be in the range of 25-50 lesions/107 nucleotides in both the mtDNA and tDNA. The four cPu were undetectable in the mtDNA both in defective cells and in the wt counterparts (CSA and CSB), contrary to their detection in tDNA, indicating a nonappearance of hydroxyl radical (HO•) reactivity within the mtDNA. In order to assess the HO• reactivity towards purine nucleobases in the two genetic materials, we performed γ-radiolysis experiments coupled with the 8-oxo-Pu and cPu quantifications on isolated mtDNA and tDNA from wtCSB cells. In the latter experiments, all six purine lesions were detected in both of the DNA, showing a higher resistance to HO• attack in the case of mtDNA compared with tDNA, likely due to their different DNA helical topology influencing the relative abundance of the lesions.

Disruption of TTDA results in complete nucleotide excision repair deficiency and embryonic lethality

The ten-subunit transcription factor IIH (TFIIH) plays a crucial role in transcription and nucleotide excision repair (NER). Inactivating mutations in the smallest 8-kDa TFB5/TTDA subunit cause the neurodevelopmental progeroid repair syndrome trichothiodystrophy A (TTD-A). Previous studies have shown that TTDA is the only TFIIH subunit that appears not to be essential for NER, transcription, or viability. We studied the consequences of TTDA inactivation by generating a Ttda knock-out (Ttda^−/−) mouse-model resembling TTD-A patients. Unexpectedly, Ttda^−/− mice were embryonic lethal. However, in contrast to full disruption of all other TFIIH subunits, viability of Ttda^−/− cells was not affected. Surprisingly, Ttda^−/− cells were completely NER deficient, contrary to the incomplete NER deficiency of TTD-A patient-derived cells. We further showed that TTD-A patient mutations only partially inactivate TTDA function, explaining the relatively mild repair phenotype of TTD-A cells. Moreover, Ttda^−/− cells were also highly sensitive to oxidizing agents. These findings reveal an essential role of TTDA for life, nucleotide excision repair, and oxidative DNA damage repair and identify Ttda^−/− cells as a unique class of TFIIH mutants.

DNA is under constant attack of various environmental and cellular produced DNA damaging agents. DNA damage hampers normal cell function; however, different DNA repair mechanisms protect our genetic information. Nucleotide Excision Repair is one of the most versatile repair processes, as it removes a large variety of DNA helix-distorting lesions induced by UV light and various chemicals. To remove these lesions, the DNA helix needs to be opened by the transcription/repair factor II H (TFIIH). TFIIH is a multifunctional complex that consists of 10 subunits and plays a fundamental role in opening the DNA helix in both NER and transcription. TTDA, the smallest subunit of TFIIH, was thought to be dispensable for both NER and transcription. However, in this paper, we show for the first time that TTDA is in fact a crucial component of TFIIH for NER. We demonstrate that Ttda^−/− mice are embryonic lethal. We also show that Ttda^−/− mouse cells are the first known viable TFIIH subunit knock-out cells, which are completely NER deficient and sensitive to oxidative agents (showing a new role for TFIIH outside NER and transcription).

Ozone induces clear cellular and molecular responses in the mouse lung independently of the transcription-coupled repair status

The oxidant ozone is a well-known air pollutant, inhalation of which is associated with respiratory tract inflammation and functional alterations of the lung. It is well established as an inducer of intracellular oxidative stress. We investigated whether Cockayne syndrome B, transcription-coupled, repair-deficient mice (Csb(-/-)), known to be sensitive to oxidative stressors, respond differently to ozone than repair-proficient controls (Csb(+/-)). Mice were exposed to 0.8 parts/million ozone for 8 h, and we examined a wide range of biological parameters in the lung at the gene expression, protein, and cellular level 4 h after the ozone exposure. Relevant biological responses to ozone for both repair-deficient Csb(-/-) and repair-proficient Csb(+/-) mice, as determined by biochemical analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (e.g., increases of polymorphonuclear neutrophils, alkaline phosphatase, macrophage-inflammatory protein-2, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha), pathological examinations, and gene expression (upregulation of oxidative-stress-related genes) analyses were observed. The bronchoalveolar lavage fluid showed significantly more tumor necrosis factor-alpha in repair-deficient Csb(-/-) mice than in repair-proficient Csb(+/-) mice after ozone exposure. In addition, a clear trend was observed toward fewer differentially expressed genes with a lower fold ratio in repair-deficient Csb(-/-) mice than in repair-proficient Csb(+/-) mice. However, repair-deficient Csb(-/-) mice do not respond significantly more sensitively to ozone compared with repair-proficient Csb(+/-) mice at the level of gene expression. We conclude that, under the conditions employed here, although small differences at the transcriptional level exist between repair-proficient Csb(+/-) mice and transcription-coupled repair defective Csb(-/-) mice, these do not have a significant effect on the ozone-induced lung injury.

DNA unwinding and protein displacement by superfamily 1 and superfamily 2 helicases

DNA helicases are required for virtually every aspect of DNA metabolism, including replication, repair, recombination and transcription. A comprehensive description of these essential biochemical processes requires detailed understanding of helicase mechanisms. These enzymes are ubiquitous, having been identified in viruses, prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Disease states, such as xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne's syndrome, Bloom's syndrome and Werner's syndrome, have been linked to defects in specific genes coding for DNA helicases. Helicases have been placed into different subfamilies based on sequence comparison. The largest subgroups are termed superfamily 1 and superfamily 2. A proposed mechanism for helicases in these classes has been described in terms of an ‘inchworm model’. The inchworm model includes conformational changes driven by ATP binding and hydrolysis that allow unidirectional translocation along DNA. A monomeric form of the enzyme is proposed to have two DNA-binding sites that enable sequential steps of DNA binding and release. Significant differences exist between helicases in important aspects of the models such as the oligomerization state of the enzyme with some helicases functioning as monomers, some as dimers and others as higher-order oligomers.

Cooperation of the Cockayne syndrome group B protein and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase 1 in the response to oxidative stress

Cockayne syndrome (CS) is a rare genetic disorder characterized as a segmental premature-aging syndrome. The CS group B (CSB) protein has previously been implicated in transcription-coupled repair, transcriptional elongation, and restoration of RNA synthesis after DNA damage. Recently, evidence for a role of CSB in base excision repair of oxidative DNA lesions has accumulated. In our search to understand the molecular function of CSB in this process, we identify a physical and functional interaction between CSB and poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1). PARP-1 is a nuclear enzyme that protects the integrity of the genome by responding to oxidative DNA damage and facilitating DNA repair. PARP-1 binds to single-strand DNA breaks which activate the catalytic ability of PARP-1 to add polymers of ADP-ribose to various proteins. We find that CSB is present at sites of activated PARP-1 after oxidative stress, identify CSB as a new substrate of PARP-1, and demonstrate that poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation of CSB inhibits its DNA-dependent ATPase activity. Furthermore, we find that CSB-deficient cell lines are hypersensitive to inhibition of PARP. Our results implicate CSB in the PARP-1 poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation response after oxidative stress and thus suggest a novel role of CSB in the cellular response to oxidative damage.

Relationship between UV-induced mutant p53 patches and skin tumours, analysed by mutation spectra and by induction kinetics in various DNA-repair-deficient mice

Clusters of p53 immunopositive epidermal keratinocytes (so-called p53 patches, clones or foci) are found in sun or ultraviolet (UV) light-exposed skin. We investigated to what extent these p53 patches are genuine precursors of skin carcinomas in chronically irradiated hairless (SKH1) mice. The mutation spectra of exons 5-8 of the p53 gene of laser-micro-dissected mutant p53 patches and carcinomas were therefore compared. The mutations we found were mainly UV-signature mutations (C-->T and CC-->TT at dipyrimidine sites) located at known hotspots. No significant differences were found between both spectra, indicating that all p53 patches harbour mutations with which they could progress to carcinomas. To examine whether these p53 patches can be used as tumour risk indicators, we made an extensive comparison of the induction kinetics of these patches and carcinomas in genetically modified mice with various defects in nucleotide excision repair (NER), i.e. xeroderma pigmentosum A (Xpa), Xpc and Cockayne syndrome B (Csb) and wild-type mice. In this aforementioned order, the mouse strains developed both p53 patches and carcinomas in the course of daily exposure to 40 J/m(2) UV. Hence, the order in which the NER-deficient mice developed patches was predictive of the order in which they developed tumours. The induction kinetics of the patches in Xpc-deficient mice differed notably from the others: there was a stationary phase (days 13-41) where the numbers were limited to 5-10 patches per mouse before an explosive increase which ran parallel to the other groups. The chance that a p53 patch progresses to carcinoma is relatively small (estimated at 1 out of 8300-40,000/individual when the first tumour appears), but our results are strongly indicative of a causal relationship between p53 patches and carcinomas.

WD-repeat proteins: structure characteristics, biological function, and their involvement in human diseases

Defined by the presence of four or more repeating units containing a conserved core of approximately 40 amino acids that usually ending with tryptophan-aspartic acid (WD), WD-repeat proteins belong to a large and fast-expanding conservative protein family. As demonstrated by the crystal structure of the G protein beta subunit, all WD-repeat proteins are speculated to form a circularized beta propeller structure. The importance of these proteins is not only demonstrated by their critical roles in many essential biological functions ranging from signal transduction, transcription regulation, to apoptosis, but is also recognized by their association with several human diseases. Defining the function of a WD-repeat protein is the current challenge. It is, however, paramount to uncover the function of individual WD-repeat proteins, explore the protein interaction mechanism through WD-repeat domains and, ultimately, understand the complex biological processes and organisms themselves.

Codominance associated with overexpression of certain XPD mutations

Mutations in the XPD gene are associated with three complex clinical phenotypes, namely xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), XP in combination with Cockayne syndrome (XP-CS), and trichothiodystrophy (TTD). XP is caused by a deficiency in nucleotide excision repair (NER) that results in a high risk of skin cancer. TTD is characterized by severe developmental and neurological defects, with hallmark features of brittle hair and scaly skin, and sometimes has defective NER. We used CHO cells as a system to study how specific mutations alter the dominant/recessive behavior of XPD protein. Previously we identified the T46I and R75W mutations in two highly UV-sensitive hamster cell lines that were reported to have paradoxically high levels of unscheduled DNA synthesis. Here we report that these mutants have greatly reduced XPD helicase activity and fully defective NER in a cell-extract excision assay. We conclude that the unscheduled DNA synthesis seen in these mutants is caused by abortive "repair" that does not contribute to cell survival. These mutations, as well as the K48R canonical helicase-domain mutation, each produced codominant negative phenotypes when overexpressed in wild-type CHO cells. The common XP-specific R683W mutation also behaved in a codominant manner when overexpressed, which is consistent with the idea that this mutation may affect primarily the enzymatic activity of the protein rather than impairing protein interactions, which may underlie TTD. A C-terminal mutation uniquely found in TTD (R722W) was overexpressed but not to levels sufficiently high to rigorously test for a codominant phenotype. Overexpression of mutant XPD alleles may provide a simple means of producing NER deficiency in other cell lines.

Characteristics of UV-induced repair patches relative to the nuclear skeleton in human fibroblasts

We have tried to characterize the nucleotide excision repair (NER) events associated with the nuclear skeleton in both repair-proficient and repair-deficient human cell lines following UV irradiation. The repair patches were labelled with biotin-16-dUTP and the repair sites were visualized by fluorescence microscopy using fluorescence-conjugated antibodies to biotin. The intensities of repair labelling measured for the three human cell lines of normal, xeroderma pigmentosum group C (XP-C) and Cockayne syndrome group B (CS-B) are in good agreement with their known repair capabilities. Digestion of nuclei with DNase I markedly solubilized the repair patches in normal (3-fold reduction after 1 h post-UV incubation) and transcription-coupled repair (TCR)-defective Cockayne syndrome cells (6-fold reduction after 1 h post-UV incubation). The intensity of repair labelling remained the same in TCR-proficient XP-C cells after DNase I digestion, indicating that the repair events mediated by the TCR pathway are tightly associated with the nuclear skeleton. Treatment with ammonium sulphate after DNase I digestion further reduced the intensity of repair patches in both normal and Cockayne syndrome cells, but not in XP-C cells. The tight association of repair patches generated by the TCR pathway with the nucleoskeleton in XP-C cells reinforces the concept of functional compartmentalization of the nucleus, where NER is highly heterogeneous.

RNA polymerase II elongation complexes containing the Cockayne syndrome group B protein interact with a molecular complex containing the transcription factor IIH components xeroderma pigmentosum B and p62

Transcription factor IIH (TFIIH) is involved both in transcription initiation by RNA polymerase II and in nucleotide excision-repair. Nucleotide excision-repair occurs at higher rates in transcriptionally active regions of the genome. Genetic studies indicate that this transcription-coupled repair is dependent on the Cockayne syndrome group A and B proteins, as well as TFIIH subunits. Previous work indicated that Cockayne syndrome group B interacts with RNA polymerase II molecules engaged in ternary complexes containing DNA and RNA. Evidence presented here indicates that this complex can interact with a factor containing the TFIIH core subunits p62 and xeroderma pigmentosum subunit B/excision repair cross-complementing 3. The targeting of TFIIH or a TFIIH-like repair factor to transcriptionally active DNA indicates a potential mechanism for transcription-coupled repair in human cells.

UV-induced alterations in the spatial distribution of the basal transcription factor TFIIH: an early event in nucleotide excision repair

New findings concerning the molecular mechanisms of nucleotide excision repair (NER) are discussed.

UV irradiation and heat shock mediate JNK activation via alternate pathways

To elucidate cellular pathways involved in Jun-NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) activation by different forms of stress, we have compared the effects of UV irradiation, heat shock, and H2O2. Using mouse fibroblast cells (3T3-4A) we show that while H2O2 is ineffective, UV and heat shock (HS) are potent inducers of JNK. The cellular pathways that mediate JNK activation after HS or UV exposure are distinctly different as can be concluded from the following observations: (i) H2O2 is a potent inhibitor of HS-induced but not of UV-induced JNK activation; (ii) Triton X-100-treated cells abolish the ability of UV, but not HS, to activate JNK; (iii) the free radical scavenger N-acetylcysteine inhibits UV- but not HS-mediated JNK activation; (iv) N-acetylcysteine inhibition is blocked by H2O2 in a dose-dependent manner; (v) a Cockayne syndrome-derived cell line exhibits JNK activation upon UV exposure, but not upon HS treatment. The significance of Jun phosphorylation by JNK after treatment with UV, HS, or H2O2 was evaluated by measuring Jun phosphorylation in vivo and also its binding activity in gel shifts. HS and UV, which are potent inducers of JNK, increased the level of c-Jun phosphorylation when this was measured by [32P]orthophosphate labeling of 3T3-4A cultures. H2O2 had no such effect. Although H2O2 failed to activate JNK in vitro and to phosphorylate c-Jun in vivo, all three forms of stress were found to be potent inducers of binding to the AP1 target sequence. Overall, our data indicate that both membrane-associated components and oxidative damage are involved in JNK activation by UV irradiation, whereas HS-mediated JNK activation, which appears to be mitochondrial-related, utilizes cellular sensors.

Transcription-related human disorders

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Cockayne's syndrome: literature review and case report

Cockayne's syndrome is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder characterized clinically by cachectic dwarfism, cutaneous photosensitivity, loss of adipose tissue, mental retardation, skeletal and neurological abnormalities, and pigmentary degeneration of the retina. Dental caries is a common finding. The case of a 4-year-old male with Cockayne's syndrome is presented. A dental rehabilitation involving outpatient surgery is described including the difficulties encountered because of a small oral cavity and restricted mandibular range of motion.