The Cyprus Institute

About: The Cyprus Institute is a other organization based out in Nicosia, Cyprus. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Aerosol & Environmental science. The organization has 418 authors who have published 1252 publications receiving 32586 citations.

Transcriptional silencing and activation of paternal DNA during Plasmodium berghei zygotic development and transformation to oocyst

Abstract: The malaria parasite develops sexually in the mosquito midgut upon entry with the ingested blood meal before it can invade the midgut epithelium and embark on sporogony. Recent data have identified a number of distinct transcriptional programmes operating during this critical phase of the parasite life cycle. We aimed at characterizing the parental contribution to these transcriptional programmes and establish the genetic framework that would guide further studies of Plasmodium zygotic development and ookinete-to-oocyst transition. To achieve this we used in vitro and in vivo cross-fertilization experiments of various parasite lines expressing fluorescent reporters under the control of constitutive and stage-specific promoters. The results revealed that the zygote/ookinete stage exhibits a maternal phenotype with respect to constitutively expressed reporters, which is derived from either maternal mRNA inheritance or transcription of the maternal allele. The respective paternal alleles are silenced in the zygote/ookinete but reactivated after midgut invasion and transformation to oocyst. Transcripts specifically produced in the zygote/ookinete are synthesized de novo by both parental alleles. These findings highlight a putative role of epigenetic regulation of Plasmodium zygotic development and add substantially to the emerging picture of the molecular mechanisms regulating this important stage of malaria transmission.

Cold NH–NH collisions in a magnetic field: Basis set convergence versus sensitivity to the interaction potential

Abstract: We explore the combined effect of the uncertainties due to the interaction potential and basis set convergence on low-temperature collisional properties of spin-polarized NH molecules in a magnetic field. We show that quantum scattering calculations with different rotational basis sets and λ-scaled interaction potentials produce qualitatively different ratios of elastic to inelastic cross sections for collision energies above 10−3 cm−1, leading to favorable (unfavorable) prospects for sympathetic cooling of NH molecules depending on the basis set cutoff parameter . The physical reason behind this effect is that the resonance widths, which determine the maximum variation of the scattering cross sections with λ, tend to depend strongly on . At ultralow collision energies, all basis sets produce highly uncertain (and statistically indistinguishable) elastic and inelastic cross sections; however, their ratio γ is much less sensitive to small variations of the interaction potential. Our results highlight the importance of basis set convergence in quantum scattering calculations and establish the existence of parameter regimes where unconverged calculations can still be used to make qualitatively accurate predictions of scattering observables.

Human variome project country nodes: Documenting genetic information within a country

Abstract: The Human Variome Project (http://wwwhumanvariomeprojectorg) is an international effort aiming to systematically collect and share information on all human genetic variation The two main pillars of this effort are gene/disease-specific databases and a network of Human Variome Project Country Nodes The latter are nationwide efforts to document the genomic variation reported within a specific population The development and successful operation of the Human Variome Project Country Nodes are of utmost importance to the success of Human Variome Project's aims and goals because they not only allow the genetic burden of disease to be quantified in different countries, but also provide diagnosticians and researchers access to an up-to-date resource that will assist them in their daily clinical practice and biomedical research, respectively Here, we report the discussions and recommendations that resulted from the inaugural meeting of the International Confederation of Countries Advisory Council, held on 12th December 2011, during the 2011 Human Variome Project Beijing Meeting We discuss the steps necessary to maximize the impact of the Country Node effort for developing regional and country-specific clinical genetics resources and summarize a few well-coordinated genetic data collection initiatives that would serve as paradigms for similar projects

The use of satellite remote sensing and GIS for assisting flood risk assessment: a case study of the Agriokalamin Catchment area in Paphos-Cyprus

Abstract: The main aim of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of utilizing satellite remote sensing and GIS tools to assist the technical flooding aspects of the catchment area of Agriakalamin River located in Kissonerga Village in Paphos-Cyprus. The remote sensing technique has been used to quantify the actual increase in urban area over the past forty three years. The Agriokalamin River area in Kissonerga Village in Paphos-Cyprus has been chosen as the study area. By analyzing the temporal satellite imageries and the observed meteorological and hydrologic data of the catchment, the local authorities can use the proposed methodology to investigate and assessing all the catchment areas versus the urbanization. The results of this study will encourage decision makers or the local authorities to consider land use planning as an effective non-structural measure for flood risk mitigation. Remotely sensed data such as aerial photos, Landsat-5 TM and Quickbird image data have been used to track the urbanization i.e. building activities near the catchment area (urbanization factor for the years 1963-2006: 0.9 % - 27.0 %). GPS measurements have been used to locate in-situ the boundaries of the catchment area. Indicative flood risk assessment study was applied.