University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

About: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a education organization based out in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Poison control. The organization has 81393 authors who have published 185327 publications receiving 9948508 citations. The organization is also known as: University of North Carolina & North Carolina.

Efficient long-term gene transfer into muscle tissue of immunocompetent mice by adeno-associated virus vector.

Abstract: Muscle-directed gene transfer is being considered for the treatment of several metabolic diseases, including hemophilia and Duchene's muscular dystrophy. Previous efforts to target this tissue for somatic delivery with various vector systems have resulted in transient expression due to silencing of the transgene or to an immune response against the vector-transduced cells. We introduced recombinant adeno-associated virus vector (rAAV) carrying a lacZ reporter into muscle tissue of immunocompetent mice. The lacZ reporter gene was efficiently transduced and expressed with no evidence of a cellular immune response. Moreover, gene expression persisted for more than 1.5 years. Molecular characterization of rAAV vector DNA suggests a mechanism for persistence, since vector episomes convert to high-molecular-weight genomic DNA. These data provide the first report for establishing long-term gene transduction into mammalian muscle cells in vivo without the need for immune modulation of the organism.

Interdependence, interaction, and relationships.

Abstract: Interdependence theory presents a logical analysis of the structure of interpersonal situations, offering a conceptual framework in which interdependence situations can be analyzed in terms of six dimensions. Specific situations present specific problems and opportunities, logically implying the relevance of specific motives and permitting their expression. Via the concept of transformation, the theory explains how interaction is shaped by broader considerations such as long-term goals and concern for a partner's welfare. The theory illuminates our understanding of social-cognitive processes that are of longstanding interest to psychologists such as cognition and affect, attribution, and self-presentation. The theory also explains adaptation to repeatedly encountered interdependence patterns, as well as the embodiment of such adaptations in interpersonal dispositions, relationship-specific motives, and social norms.

The Structure of Founding Teams: Homophily, Strong Ties, and Isolation among U.S. Entrepreneurs

Abstract: The mechanisms governing the composition of formal social groups (e.g., task groups, organizational founding teams) remain poorly understood, owing to (1) a lack of representative sampling from groups found in the general population, (2) a "success" bias among researchers that leads them to consider only those groups that actually emerge and survive, and (3) a restrictive focus on some theorized mechanisms of group composition (e.g., homophily) to the exclusion of others. These shortcomings are addressed by analyzing a unique, representative data set of organizational founding teams sampled from the U.S. population. Rather than simply considering the properties of those founding teams that are empirically observed, a novel quantitative methodology generates the distribution of all possible teams, based on combinations of individual and relational characteristics. This methodology permits the exploration of five mechanisms of group composition-those based on homophily, functionality, status expectations, network constraint, and ecological constraint. Findings suggest that homophily and network constraints based on strong ties have the most pronounced effect on group composition. Social isolation (i.e., exclusion from a group) is more likely to occur as a result of ecological constraints on the availability of similar alters in a locality than as a result of status varying membership choices.

Genome-wide trans-ancestry meta-analysis provides insight into the genetic architecture of type 2 diabetes susceptibility.

Abstract: To further understanding of the genetic basis of type 2 diabetes (T2D) susceptibility, we aggregated published meta-analyses of genome-wide association studies (GWAS), including 26,488 cases and 83,964 controls of European, east Asian, south Asian and Mexican and Mexican American ancestry. We observed a significant excess in the directional consistency of T2D risk alleles across ancestry groups, even at SNPs demonstrating only weak evidence of association. By following up the strongest signals of association from the trans-ethnic meta-analysis in an additional 21,491 cases and 55,647 controls of European ancestry, we identified seven new T2D susceptibility loci. Furthermore, we observed considerable improvements in the fine-mapping resolution of common variant association signals at several T2D susceptibility loci. These observations highlight the benefits of trans-ethnic GWAS for the discovery and characterization of complex trait loci and emphasize an exciting opportunity to extend insight into the genetic architecture and pathogenesis of human diseases across populations of diverse ancestry.