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The questions and answers below relate to the Research Techniques Made Simple (RTMS) entitled " Genome-Wide Epigenetics" in the June 2013 issue of Journal of Investigative Dermatology. To view the article, go to the RTMS web page. Questions & Answers 1) Heterochromatin refers to: A. Actively transcribed regions of DNA to which transcription factors actively bind B. The core structure around which 147 base pairs of DNA bind C. Constitutively closed and transcriptionally repressed areas of genome... Read more
Image from Wikimedia Commons is in the public domain by Lowell A. Goldsmith, MD In "The Graduate" (1967), Dustin Hoffman's character learns much about sex, but more importantly, he hears that "plastics" are the societal trend to be followed. Today, the new trend is mosaicism. Clinical dermatologists are inculcated with a number of diseases that have limited and often segmental patterns in the skin, frequently following patterns of the lines of Blaschko. Diseases include: Darier disease, neurofibromatosis 1, Proteus syndrome,... Read more
By guest bloggers William Levis and Frank Martiniuk of NYU School of Medicine, Departments of Medicine and Dermatology In the 1980’s, we made significant advances in the serodiagnosis of leprosy using carbohydrate antigens (Levis et al, 1986). Since then, with the rapid advances on isolation and advances in protein technology, an international consortium of Dutch (Geluk et al, 2011), Brazilian and US scientists led by Duthie (Rada et al, 2011) and Spencer (Spencer et al, 2012) have added to... Read more
Chrysanthemum extract apigenin improves barrier repair after tape stripping Apigenin, a chrysanthemum extract, has been used for skin care in Asia for ages but knowledge on how this agent acts is scarce. It was shown before that apigenin exhibits preventive activity against UVB-induced skin tumors (Tong et al., 2007),and that an apigenin-enriched diet attenuates the development of atopic dermatitis-like lesions (Yano et al 2009). The Man group (2013) now reports the influence of apigenin on early skin barrier repair after... Read more
This quiz relates to the Research Techniques Made Simple article "FLUORESCENCE IN SITU HYBRIDIZATION (FISH)" published in the May 2013 issue of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology. Questions: 1. What does FISH detect? a. Protein structure abnormalities b. Specific chromosome copy number aberrations c. Presence of specific antigens d. Presence of complement 2. Where does the FISH probe localize to? a. Golgi apparatus b. Cytoplasm c. Cell membrane d. Nucleus 3. What is the... Read more
In dermatology, as in many specialties, there are a number of "tried and true" treatments that have been utilized, in some cases for millenia, to treat cutaneous diseases. These therapies continue to comprise an important part of our therapeutic armamentarium, despite the fact that the mechanisms by which these compounds improve clinical disease courses are often poorly understood. Modern efforts to understand pathologic disease mechanisms, particularly when undertaken or funded by pharmaceutical companies, tend to focus attention toward the development... Read more
Before Walt Disney's Fantasia featuring Mickey Mouse, Goethe gave the world the image of the sorcerer’s apprentice -- cutting his broom progressively in half in an attempt to complete the task of cleaning up the sorcerer’s workshop. This is a perfect image for advances with ever finer examinations of the HLA locus with new genetic probes and methodologies. The sorcerers will be up all night at their computers, cleaning up the laboratory -- flooded with data. A recent advance appears... Read more
The questions and and answers below relate to the Research Techniques Made Simple entitled "Microarray Technique, Analysis and Applications in Dermatology" in the April 2013 issue of Journal of Investigative Dermatology. 1. The term "array" in microarray refers to the arrangement of which of the following on the chip: a. the probe b. the target c. the fluorophore d. the antigen The correct answer is a: the probe 2. The most common types of probes used... Read more
Correlation between local cortisol metabolism and epidermal hyperproliferative disorders Recent findings have shown constitutive and regulated production of cortisol by human skin. Cutaneous cortisol can be generated through sequential metabolism of endogenously produced cholesterol or from progesterone that is delivered via the circulation. Thus, the recognized neuroendocrine functions of human skin are extended by a major glucocorticoidogenic capability. Two key enzymes that regulate local cortisol availability for the glucocorticoid receptor are 11ß-HSD1 and 11ß-HSD2. 11β-HSD1 expresses ketoreductase activity (at a... Read more
The questions and answers below relate to the Research Techniques Made Simple article entitled “Polymerase Chain Reaction” published in the March 2013 issue of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology Questions 1. Qualitative PCR and quantitative PCR provide information on ____________ and ________ respectively. A. presence/absence of specific DNA product; how much of a specific DNA product is present B. how much of a specific DNA product is present; presence/absence of DNA product C. RNA; DNA D. gene byproducts;... Read more
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