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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65922: Trying to read a Google BigQuery table that contains a variable defined as an array might result in a panic error and SAS shutting down

Trying to read a Google BigQuery table that contains a variable that is defined as an array of records might result in an error and cause SAS to shut down. This issue occurs when one of the variables contained in




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65295: The order of columns is not maintained when you select columns for output in the Business Rules transformation

In SAS Data Integration Studio, the columns that you select to include in the target table in a Business Rules transformation appear in the Selected columns area in a random order. Th




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65916: Accessing a Google BigQuery table without including the SCHEMA= option in the LIBNAME statement might result in an error

When you issue a LIBNAME statement for a Google BigQuery database without including the SCHEMA= option, all tables in the project are shown when the libref is expanded. However, if you try to acces




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65935: The UNICODE function does not support Numeric Character Representation (NCR) for a surrogate pair

Using the NCR form of a surrogate pair as an input string to the UNICODE function does not convert the string to the appropriate display character.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65031: Grid options set mappings are returned based on which option set is the first in the metadata search chain

When users are defined in multiple groups associated with grid options set mappings, the first grid option set that is returned by the metadata search chain takes precedence. Only one grid options set mapping is used




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 34294: A missing discrete dependent variable in the selection model together with a OUTPUT statement might cause an Access Violation error

If the following conditions are met in PROC QLIM: the SELECT option and DISCRETE option are specified in the same MODEL statement or ENDOGENOUS statement the same dependent variable with S




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65927: The Copy Files task in SAS Enterprise Guide 8.2 fails with the message "ERROR: Target folder does not exist or cannot be accessed"

When you run the Copy Files task in SAS Enterprise Guide and there is no connection to a SAS server, it fails with the following error: "ERROR: Target folder does not exist or cannot be accessed."




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65903: You see a "java.lang.IllegalArgumentException" error in the log file when you use the IFRS9_Cycle workflow template in SAS Solution for IFRS 9

The problem occurs on a content release on the SAS Risk Governance Framework.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65872: You see a "java.lang.IllegalArgumentException" error in the log file when you use the CECL_Cycle workflow template in SAS Solution for CECL

The problem occurs on a content release on the SAS Risk Governance Framework.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65904: SAS Federation Server stops responding when you run queries against X_OBJECT_PRIVILEGES in SYSCAT and the queries run for hours

The select * from "SYSCAT"."SYSCAT"."X_EFFECTIVE_OBJECT_PRIVILEGES" query runs for hours. In this scenario, SAS Federation Server stops responding, making it unavailable for use. Restarting SAS Federation Server solves t




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65682: Running FedSQL with an Oracle table is slow, even when you use a LIMIT clause

When you query an Oracle table and use the LIMIT clause using either SAS  Federation Server or FedSQL, a row limit is not passed to the database. In this scenario, a Full Article



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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65914: You see the error "Driver does not support this optional feature" after trying to insert or append data to a Databricks table

You can create create a Databricks table by using PROC SQL, but you cannot insert data into the table. PROC APPEND cannot create a new table or append data to an existing table.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65574: Decimal values are rounded after they are inserted into a new Databricks table via SAS/ACCESS Interface to JDBC

A DATA step and PROC SQL can round numeric values while creating and loading data into a new Databricks table via JDBC.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65886: Trying to bulk load data into a Google BigQuery database might result in an error

When you bulk load data into a Google BigQuery database, you might encounter this error: "Error while reading data, error message: CSV table encountered too many errors, giving up...Error detected while parsing row starting at position: 0...Data




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65898: A misleading SASTRACE message appears in the log when you insert a row into an Oracle table using SAS/ACCESS Interface to Oracle with DBIDIRECTEXEC

When you add one row to an Oracle table using DBIDIRECTEXEC, you see the following misleading trace message: "ORACLE: 4294967296 rows inserted/updated/deleted." You should see something similar to the following: "ORACLE: 1 rows inserte




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65909: SAS Visual Analytics Designer 7.5 responds slowly when you edit large or complex reports

If your SAS Visual Analytics report contains many sections and objects, you might encounter performance problems when you are editing the report.   A hot fix is planned for this issue.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 64980: The PRINT procedure contains a buffer-overrun vulnerability

Severity: Medium Description: PROC PRINT might fail with a buffer overrun when you submit it in conjunction with certain malformed SAS statements.



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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 64550: SAS Enterprise Case Management contains a cross-site scripting vulnerability in the CASE_ID parameter

Severity: Medium Description: SAS Enterprise Case Management contains a cross-site scripting vulnerability in the CASE_ID parameter. Potential Impact:




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65893: Custom sorts are sorted incorrectly when they are used in a hierarchy in SAS Visual Analytics Designer

A custom sort might be sorted incorrectly when the data item is used in a custom category, which is then used in a hierarchy. The issue can occur in the following scenario:




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65844: STRESS task fails with "Fatal error in PMPI_Bcast: Other MPI error, error stack: PMPI_Bcast(1478)"

In SAS  High-Performance Risk, a STRESS task might fail with a message like the following in the SAS log while the compute server is sending the ScenarioCF/Value data to the HPRisk Engine:



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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65835: A series of PROC SQL queries might not generate a distinct set of rows

A set of PROC SQL queries that create a view, contain a constant column, contain a computed column, and a create a table do not generate a unique set of rows in the table that is created.




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65597: An SQL procedure query with a WHERE clause that contains multiple subselects might return incorrect results

An issue occurs when code contains a complex SQL procedure query with a WHERE clause that contains multiple subselects. Incorrect results might be returned. Click the Hot Fix tab in this note to




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65572: The length of a string variable might be longer than specified with the MAX_CHAR_LEN= option

When you read in a BigQuery table, the length of string variables might be longer than the length specified with the MAX_CHAR_LEN= option when running your SAS software   with UTF-8. By




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65883: SAS Workflow Studio returns a "cannot load" error when you try to open the CECL_Cycle_AFS workflow template for SAS Solution for CECL

You might see the following error in SAS Workflow Studio when you try to open the CECL_Cycle_AFS workflow template that is shipped with SAS Solution for CECL:



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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65856: The process of updating a lookup table in SAS Business Rules Manager (running in UNIX operating environments) does not work properly

Under UNIX, the process of updating a lookup table in SAS Business Rules Manager does not work properly. The problem occurs when you perform these steps:  Open a lookup table. Cl




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65869: SAS Visual Data Builder does not enable you to schedule with multiple time-event triggers

SAS Visual Data Builder might not enable you to create multiple time-event triggers. The + button to add another trigger is not available to select, as shown in the following display: imgalt="" src="{fusion_658




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Problem Notes for SAS®9 - 65868: Saving a report distribution in SAS Visual Analytics Designer fails with "The name is invalid"

When you attempt to save a report distribution in SAS Visual Analytics Designer, you might see the error shown in the following display:  imgalt="" src="{fusion_65868_1_distributionerror.png}" />



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Snell not feeling pressure in '19 after Cy win

After winning the 2018 American League Cy Young Award, Blake Snell said he doesn't feel "any pressure" in '19.




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Glasnow working to quicken delivery

Tyler Glasnow is hoping to build off a positive 2018, but his delivery is going to look a little different this season.




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Cash reminder: Stay focused on the now

All 66 players on the Rays' Spring Training roster took the field Monday as Tampa Bay went through its first full-squad workout.




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Thyroid nodules: diagnostic evaluation based on thyroid cancer risk assessment




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Autoimmune complications of immunotherapy: pathophysiology and management




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Noncatalytic Bruton's tyrosine kinase activates PLC{gamma}2 variants mediating ibrutinib resistance in human chronic lymphocytic leukemia cells [Membrane Biology]

Treatment of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with inhibitors of Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK), such as ibrutinib, is limited by primary or secondary resistance to this drug. Examinations of CLL patients with late relapses while on ibrutinib, which inhibits BTK's catalytic activity, revealed several mutations in BTK, most frequently resulting in the C481S substitution, and disclosed many mutations in PLCG2, encoding phospholipase C-γ2 (PLCγ2). The PLCγ2 variants typically do not exhibit constitutive activity in cell-free systems, leading to the suggestion that in intact cells they are hypersensitive to Rac family small GTPases or to the upstream kinases spleen-associated tyrosine kinase (SYK) and Lck/Yes-related novel tyrosine kinase (LYN). The sensitivity of the PLCγ2 variants to BTK itself has remained unknown. Here, using genetically-modified DT40 B lymphocytes, along with various biochemical assays, including analysis of PLCγ2-mediated inositol phosphate formation, inositol phospholipid assessments, fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) static laser microscopy, and determination of intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i), we show that various CLL-specific PLCγ2 variants such as PLCγ2S707Y are hyper-responsive to activated BTK, even in the absence of BTK's catalytic activity and independently of enhanced PLCγ2 phospholipid substrate supply. At high levels of B-cell receptor (BCR) activation, which may occur in individual CLL patients, catalytically-inactive BTK restored the ability of the BCR to mediate increases in [Ca2+]i. Because catalytically-inactive BTK is insensitive to active-site BTK inhibitors, the mechanism involving the noncatalytic BTK uncovered here may contribute to preexisting reduced sensitivity or even primary resistance of CLL to these drugs.




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Overexpression of GPR40 in Pancreatic {beta}-Cells Augments Glucose Stimulated Insulin Secretion and Improves Glucose Tolerance in Normal and Diabetic Mice

Objective:

GPR40 is a G protein-coupled receptor regulating free fatty acid-induced insulin secretion. We have generated transgenic mice overexpressing the human GPR40 gene (hGPR40-Tg) under control of the mouse insulin II promoter and have used them to examine the role of GPR40 in the regulation of insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis.

Research Design and Methods:

Normal (C57BL/6J) and diabetic (KK) mice overexpressing the human GPR40 gene under control of the insulin II promoter were generated, and their glucose metabolism and islet function were analyzed.

Results:

In comparison with nontransgenic littermates, hGPR40-Tg mice exhibited improved oral glucose tolerance with an increase in insulin secretion. Although islet morphological analysis showed no obvious differences between hGPR40-Tg and nontransgenic (NonTg) mice, isolated islets from hGPR40-Tg mice enhanced insulin secretion in response to high glucose (16 mM) than those from NonTg mice with unchanged low glucose (3 mM)-stimulated insulin secretion. In addition, hGPR40-Tg islets significantly increased insulin secretion against a naturally occurring agonist palmitate in the presence of 11 mM glucose. hGPR40-Tg mice were also found to be resistant to high fat diet-induced glucose intolerance, and hGPR40-Tg harboring KK mice showed augmented insulin secretion and improved oral glucose tolerance compared to nontransgenic littermates.

Conclusions:

Our results suggest that GPR40 may have a role in regulating glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and plasma glucose levels in vivo, and that pharmacological activation of GPR40 may provide a novel insulin secretagogue beneficial for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.




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A Peripheral Blood DNA Methylation Signature of Hepatic Fat Reveals a Potential Causal Pathway for Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes (T2D). We aimed to identify the peripheral blood DNA methylation signature of hepatic fat. We conducted epigenome-wide association studies of hepatic fat in 3,400 European ancestry (EA) participants and in 401 Hispanic ancestry and 724 African ancestry participants from four population-based cohort studies. Hepatic fat was measured using computed tomography or ultrasound imaging and DNA methylation was assessed at >400,000 cytosine-guanine dinucleotides (CpGs) in whole blood or CD14+ monocytes using a commercial array. We identified 22 CpGs associated with hepatic fat in EA participants at a false discovery rate <0.05 (corresponding P = 6.9 x 10–6) with replication at Bonferroni-corrected P < 8.6 x 10–4. Mendelian randomization analyses supported the association of hypomethylation of cg08309687 (LINC00649) with NAFLD (P = 2.5 x 10–4). Hypomethylation of the same CpG was also associated with risk for new-onset T2D (P = 0.005). Our study demonstrates that a peripheral blood–derived DNA methylation signature is robustly associated with hepatic fat accumulation. The hepatic fat–associated CpGs may represent attractive biomarkers for T2D. Future studies are warranted to explore mechanisms and to examine DNA methylation signatures of NAFLD across racial/ethnic groups.




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Glucagon Resistance at the Level of Amino Acid Turnover in Obese Subjects with Hepatic Steatosis

Glucagon secretion is regulated by circulating glucose, but it has turned out that amino acids also play an important role, and that hepatic amino acid metabolism and glucagon are linked in a mutual feed-back cycle, the liver-alpha cell axis. On this background, we hypothesized that hepatic steatosis might impair glucagon’s action on hepatic amino acid metabolism and lead to hyperaminoacidemia and hyperglucagonemia.

We subjected 15 healthy lean and 15 obese steatotic male participants to a pancreatic clamp with somatostatin and evaluated hepatic glucose and amino acid metabolism during basal and high physiological levels of glucagon. The degree of steatosis was evaluated from liver biopsies.

Total RNA sequencing of liver biopsies revealed perturbations in the expression of genes predominantly involved in amino acid metabolism in the obese steatotic individuals. This group was also characterized by fasting hyperglucagonemia, hyperaminoacidemia and an absent lowering of amino acid levels in response to high levels of glucagon. Endogenous glucose production was similar between lean and obese individuals.

Our results suggest that hepatic steatosis causes resistance to the effect of glucagon on amino acid metabolism resulting in increased amino acid concentrations as well as increased glucagon secretion providing a likely explanation of fatty liver-associated hyperglucagonemia.




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Novel Detection and Restorative Levodopa Treatment for Pre-Clinical Diabetic Retinopathy

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is diagnosed clinically by directly viewing retinal vascular changes during ophthalmoscopy or through fundus photographs. However, electroretinography (ERG) studies in humans and rodents have revealed that retinal dysfunction is demonstrable prior to the development of visible vascular defects. Specifically, delays in dark-adapted ERG oscillatory potential (OP) implicit times in response to dim flash stimuli (<-1.8 log cd·s/m2) occur prior to clinically-recognized diabetic retinopathy. Animal studies suggest that retinal dopamine deficiency underlies these early functional deficits. Here, we randomized persons with diabetes, without clinically detectable retinopathy, to treatment with either low or high dose Sinemet (levodopa plus carbidopa) for 2 weeks and compared their ERG findings with those of control (no DM) subjects. We assessed dim flash stimulated OP delays using a novel hand-held ERG system (RETeval) at baseline, 2 and 4 weeks. RETeval recordings identified significant OP implicit-time delays in persons with diabetes without retinopathy compared to age-matched controls (p<0.001). After two weeks of Sinemet treatment, OP implicit times were restored to control values, and these improvements persisted even after a two-week washout. We conclude that detection of dim flash OP delays could provide early detection of DR, and that Sinemet treatment may reverse retinal dysfunction.




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Revisiting Proinsulin Processing: Evidence That Human {beta}-Cells Process Proinsulin With Prohormone Convertase (PC) 1/3 But Not PC2

Insulin is first produced in pancreatic β-cells as the precursor prohormone proinsulin. Defective proinsulin processing has been implicated in the pathogenesis of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Though there is substantial evidence that mouse β-cells process proinsulin using prohormone convertase 1/3 (PC1/3) then prohormone convertase 2 (PC2), this finding has not been verified in human β-cells. Immunofluorescence with validated antibodies reveals that there was no detectable PC2 immunoreactivity in human β-cells and little PCSK2 mRNA by in situ hybridization. Similarly, rat β-cells were not immunoreactive for PC2. In all histological experiments, PC2 immunoreactivity in neighbouring α-cells acts as a positive control. In donors with type 2 diabetes, β-cells had elevated PC2 immunoreactivity, suggesting that aberrant PC2 expression may contribute to impaired proinsulin processing in β-cells of patients with diabetes. To support histological findings using a biochemical approach, human islets were used for pulse-chase experiments. Despite inhibition of PC2 function by temperature blockade, brefeldin-A, chloroquine, and multiple inhibitors that blocked production of mature glucagon from proglucagon, β-cells retained the ability to produce mature insulin. Conversely, suppression of PC1/3 blocked processing of proinsulin but not proglucagon. By demonstrating that healthy human β-cells process proinsulin by PC1/3 but not PC2 we suggest that there is a need to revise the longstanding theory of proinsulin processing.




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Secretory Functions of Macrophages in the Human Pancreatic Islet are Regulated by Endogenous Purinergic Signaling

Endocrine cells of the pancreatic islet interact with their microenvironment to maintain tissue homeostasis. Communication with local macrophages is particularly important in this context, but the homeostatic functions of human islet macrophages are not known. Here we show that the human islet contains macrophages in perivascular regions that are the main local source of the anti-inflammatory cytokine Il-10 and the metalloproteinase MMP9. Macrophage production and secretion of these homeostatic factors is controlled by endogenous purinergic signals. In obese and diabetic states, macrophage expression of purinergic receptors, MMP9, and Il-10 is reduced. We propose that in those states exacerbated beta cell activity due to increased insulin demand and increased cell death produces high levels of ATP that downregulate purinergic receptor expression. Loss of ATP sensing in macrophages may reduce their secretory capacity.




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Branched-Chain Amino Acids Exacerbate Obesity-Related Hepatic Glucose and Lipid Metabolic Disorders via Attenuating Akt2 Signaling

Branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) are associated with the progression of obesity-related metabolic disorders, including T2DM and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. However, whether BCAAs disrupt the homeostasis of hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism remains unknown. In this study, we observed that BCAAs supplementation significantly reduced high-fat (HF) diet-induced hepatic lipid accumulation while increasing the plasma lipid levels and promoting muscular and renal lipid accumulation. Further studies demonstrated that BCAAs supplementation significantly increased hepatic gluconeogenesis and suppressed hepatic lipogenesis in HF diet-induced obese (DIO) mice. These phenotypes resulted from severe attenuation of Akt2 signaling via mTORC1- and mTORC2-dependent pathways. BCAAs/branched-chain α-keto acids (BCKAs) chronically suppressed Akt2 activation through mTORC1 and mTORC2 signaling and promoted Akt2 ubiquitin-proteasome-dependent degradation through the mTORC2 pathway. Moreover, the E3 ligase Mul1 played an essential role in BCAAs/BCKAs-mTORC2-induced Akt2 ubiquitin-dependent degradation. We also demonstrated that BCAAs inhibited hepatic lipogenesis by blocking Akt2/SREBP1/INSIG2a signaling and increased hepatic glycogenesis by regulating Akt2/Foxo1 signaling. Collectively, these data demonstrate that in DIO mice, BCAAs supplementation resulted in serious hepatic metabolic disorder and severe liver insulin resistance: insulin failed to not only suppress gluconeogenesis but also activate lipogenesis. Intervening BCAA metabolism is a potential therapeutic target for severe insulin-resistant disease.




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Motifs of Three HLA-DQ Amino Acid Residues ({alpha}44, {beta}57, {beta}135) Capture Full Association with the Risk of Type 1 Diabetes in DQ2 and DQ8 Children

HLA-DQA1 and -DQB1 are strongly associated with type 1 diabetes (T1D), and DQ8.1 and DQ2.5 are major risk haplotypes. Next generation targeted sequencing of HLA-DQA1 and -DQB1 in Swedish newly diagnosed 1-18 year-old patients (n=962) and controls (n=636) was used to construct abbreviated DQ haplotypes, converted into amino acid (AA) residues, and assessed for their associations with T1D. A hierarchically-organized haplotype (HOH) association analysis, allowed 45 unique DQ haplotypes to be categorized into seven clusters. The DQ8/9 cluster included two DQ8.1 risk and the DQ9 resistant haplotypes, and the DQ2 cluster, included the DQ2.5 risk and DQ2.2 resistant haplotypes. Within each cluster, HOH found residues α44Q (OR 3.29, p=2.38*10-85 ) and β57A (OR 3.44, p=3.80*10-84) to be associated with T1D in the DQ8/9 cluster representing all ten residues (α22, α23, α44, α49, α51, α53, α54, α73, α184, β57) due to complete linkage-disequilibrium (LD) of α44 with eight such residues. Within the DQ2 cluster and due to LD, HOH analysis found α44C and β135D to share the risk for T1D (OR 2.10, p=1.96*10-20). The motif "QAD" of α44, β57, and β135 captured the T1D risk association of DQ8.1 (OR 3.44, p=3.80*10-84), the corresponding motif "CAD" captured the risk association of DQ2.5 (OR 2.10, p=1.96*10-20). Two risk associations were related to GADA and IA-2A, but in opposite directions. "CAD" was positively associated with GADA (OR 1.56; p=6.35*10-8) but negatively with IA-2A (OR 0.59, p= 6.55*10-11). "QAD" was negatively associated with GADA (OR 0.88; p= 3.70*10-3) but positively with IA-2A (OR 1.64; p= 2.40*10-14), despite a single difference at α44. The residues are found in and around anchor pockets 1 and 9, as potential TCR contacts, in the areas for CD4 binding and putative homodimer formation. The identification of three HLA-DQ AA (α44, β57, β135) conferring T1D risk should sharpen functional and translational studies.




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Myo-Inositol Oxygenase (MIOX) Overexpression Drives the Progression of Renal Tubulo-Interstitial Injury in Diabetes

Conceivably, upregulation of myo-inositol oxygenase (MIOX) is associated with altered cellular redox. Its promoter includes oxidant-response elements, and we also discovered binding sites for XBP-1, a transcription factor of ER stress response. Previous studies indicate that MIOX’s upregulation in acute tubular injury is mediated by oxidant and ER stress. Here, we investigated if hyperglycemia leads to accentuation of oxidant and ER stress, while boosting each other’s activities and thereby augmenting tubulo-interstitial injury/fibrosis. We generated MIOX-overexpressing transgenic (MIOX-TG) and -knockout (MIOX-KO) mice. A diabetic state was induced by streptozotocin administration. Also, MIOX-KO were crossbred with Ins2Akita to generate Ins2Akita/KO mice. MIOX-TG mice had worsening renal functions with kidneys having increased oxidant/ER stress, as reflected by DCF/DHE staining, perturbed NAD/NADH and GSH/GSSG ratios, increased NOX-4 expression, apoptosis and its executionary molecules, accentuation of TGF-β signaling, Smads and XBP-1 nuclear translocation, expression of GRP78 and XBP1 (ER stress markers) and accelerated tubulo-interstitial fibrosis. These changes were not seen in MIOX-KO mice. Interestingly, such changes were remarkably reduced in Ins2Akita/KO mice, and likewise in vitro experiments with XBP1-siRNA. These findings suggest that MIOX expression accentuates while its deficiency shields kidneys from tubulo-interstitial injury by dampening oxidant and ER stress, which mutually enhance each other’s activity.




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Necrostatin-1 Mitigates Cognitive Dysfunction in Prediabetic Rats With no Alteration in Insulin Sensitivity

Previous studies show that 12-week of high-fat diet (HFD) consumption caused not only prediabetes, but also cognitive decline and brain pathologies. Recently, necrostatin-1 (nec-1), a necroptosis inhibitor, showed beneficial effects in brain against stroke. However, the comparative effects of nec-1 and metformin on cognition and brain pathologies in prediabetes have not been investigated. We hypothesized that nec-1 and metformin equally attenuated cognitive decline and brain pathologies in prediabetic rats. Rats (n=32) were fed with either normal diet (ND) or high-fat diet (HFD) for 20 weeks. At week 13, ND-fed rats were given a vehicle (n=8) and HFD-fed rats were randomly assigned into 3 subgroups (n=8/subgroup) with vehicle, nec-1 or metformin for 8 weeks. Metabolic parameters, cognitive function, brain insulin receptor function, synaptic plasticity, dendritic spine density, microglial morphology, brain mitochondrial function, Alzheimer’s protein, and cell death were determined. HFD-fed rats exhibited prediabetes, cognitive decline, and brain pathologies. Nec-1 and metformin equally improved cognitive function, synaptic plasticity, dendritic spine density, microglial morphology, brain mitochondrial function, reduced hyperphosphorylated-tau and necroptosis in HFD-fed rats. Interestingly metformin, but not nec-1, improved brain insulin sensitivity in those rats. In conclusion, necroptosis inhibition directly improved cognition in prediabetic rats without alteration in insulin sensitivity.




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Maternal Obesity and Western-Style Diet Impair Fetal and Juvenile Offspring Skeletal Muscle Insulin-Stimulated Glucose Transport in Nonhuman Primates

Infants born to mothers with obesity have a greater risk for childhood obesity and metabolic diseases; however, the underlying biological mechanisms remain poorly understood. We used a Japanese macaque model to investigate whether maternal obesity combined with a western-style diet (WSD) impairs offspring muscle insulin action. Adult females were fed a control or WSD prior to and during pregnancy through lactation, and offspring subsequently weaned to a control or WSD. Muscle glucose uptake and signaling were measured ex vivo in fetal (n=5-8/group) and juvenile offspring (n=8/group). In vivo signaling was evaluated after an insulin bolus just prior to weaning (n=4-5/group). Maternal WSD reduced insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and impaired insulin signaling at the level of Akt phosphorylation in fetal muscle. In juvenile offspring, insulin-stimulated glucose uptake was similarly reduced by both maternal and post-weaning WSD and corresponded to modest reductions in insulin-stimulated Akt phosphorylation relative to controls. We conclude that maternal WSD leads to a persistent decrease in offspring muscle insulin-stimulated glucose uptake even in the absence of increased offspring adiposity or markers of systemic insulin resistance. Switching offspring to a healthy diet did not reverse the effects of maternal WSD on muscle insulin action suggesting earlier interventions may be warranted.




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The Effects of B1344, a Novel Fibroblast Growth Factor 21 Analog, on Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis in Nonhuman Primates

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis has emerged as a major cause of liver diseases with no effective therapies. Here, we evaluate the efficacies and pharmacokinetics of B1344, a long-acting PEGylated FGF21 analog, in a nongenetically modified nonhuman primate species that underwent liver biopsy, and demonstrate the potential for efficacies in humans. B1344 is sufficient to selectively activate signaling from the βKlotho/FGFR1c receptor complex. In cynomolgus monkeys with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, administration of B1344 via subcutaneous injection for eleven weeks caused a profound reduction of hepatic steatosis, inflammation and fibrosis, and amelioration of liver injury and hepatocyte death as evidenced by liver biopsy and biochemical analysis. Moreover, improvement of metabolic parameters was observed in the monkey, including reduction of body weight and improvement of lipid profiles and glycemic control. To determine the role of B1344 in the progression of murine NAFLD independent of obesity, administration of B1344 were performed in mice fed with methionine and choline deficiency diet. Consistently, B1344 administration prevented the mice from lipotoxicity damage and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis at a dose-dependent manner. These results provide preclinical validation for an innovative therapeutics to NAFLD, and support further clinical testing of B1344 for treating nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and other metabolic diseases in humans.




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Erratum. Multiethnic Genome-Wide Association Study of Diabetic Retinopathy Using Liability Threshold Modeling of Duration of Diabetes and Glycemic Control. Diabetes 2019;68:441--456




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Glucolipotoxicity, {beta}-Cells, and Diabetes: The Emperor Has No Clothes

Reduction of β-cell mass and function is central to the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes. The terms glucotoxicity, lipotoxicity, and glucolipotoxicity are used to describe potentially responsible processes. The premise is that chronically elevated glucose levels are toxic to β-cells, that elevated lipid levels in the form of circulating free fatty acids (FFA) also have toxic effects, and that the combination of the two, glucolipotoxicity, is particularly harmful. Much work has shown that high concentrations of FFA can be very damaging to β-cells when used for in vitro experiments, and when infused in large amounts in humans and rodents they produce suppression of insulin secretion. The purpose of this Perspective is to raise doubts about whether the FFA levels found in real-life situations are ever high enough to cause problems. Evidence supporting the importance of glucotoxicity is strong because there is such a tight correlation between defective insulin secretion and rising glucose levels. However, there is virtually no convincing evidence that the alterations in FFA levels occurring during progression to diabetes are pathogenic. Thus, the terms lipotoxicity and glucolipotoxicity should be used with great caution, if at all, because evidence supporting their importance has not yet emerged.




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The FKH domain in FOXP3 mRNA frequently contains mutations in hepatocellular carcinoma that influence the subcellular localization and functions of FOXP3 [Molecular Bases of Disease]

The transcription factor forkhead box P3 (FOXP3) is a biomarker for regulatory T cells and can also be expressed in cancer cells, but its function in cancer appears to be divergent. The role of hepatocyte-expressed FOXP3 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is unknown. Here, we collected tumor samples and clinical information from 115 HCC patients and used five human cancer cell lines. We examined FOXP3 mRNA sequences for mutations, used a luciferase assay to assess promoter activities of FOXP3's target genes, and employed mouse tumor models to confirm in vitro results. We detected mutations in the FKH domain of FOXP3 mRNAs in 33% of the HCC tumor tissues, but in none of the adjacent nontumor tissues. None of the mutations occurred at high frequency, indicating that they occurred randomly. Notably, the mutations were not detected in the corresponding regions of FOXP3 genomic DNA, and many of them resulted in amino acid substitutions in the FKH region, altering FOXP3's subcellular localization. FOXP3 delocalization from the nucleus to the cytoplasm caused loss of transcriptional regulation of its target genes, inactivated its tumor-inhibitory capability, and changed cellular responses to histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors. More complex FKH mutations appeared to be associated with worse prognosis in HCC patients. We conclude that mutations in the FKH domain of FOXP3 mRNA frequently occur in HCC and that these mutations are caused by errors in transcription and are not derived from genomic DNA mutations. Our results suggest that transcriptional mutagenesis of FOXP3 plays a role in HCC.




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Proline-rich 11 (PRR11) drives F-actin assembly by recruiting the actin-related protein 2/3 complex in human non-small cell lung carcinoma [DNA and Chromosomes]

The actin cytoskeleton is extremely dynamic and supports diverse cellular functions in many physiological and pathological processes, including tumorigenesis. However, the mechanisms that regulate the actin-related protein 2/3 (ARP2/3) complex and thereby promote actin polymerization and organization in cancer cells are not well-understood. We previously implicated the proline-rich 11 (PRR11) protein in lung cancer development. In this study, using immunofluorescence staining, actin polymerization assays, and siRNA-mediated gene silencing, we uncovered that cytoplasmic PRR11 is involved in F-actin polymerization and organization. We found that dysregulation of PRR11 expression results in F-actin rearrangement and nuclear instability in non-small cell lung cancer cells. Results from molecular mechanistic experiments indicated that PRR11 associates with and recruits the ARP2/3 complex, facilitates F-actin polymerization, and thereby disrupts the F-actin cytoskeleton, leading to abnormal nuclear lamina assembly and chromatin reorganization. Inhibition of the ARP2/3 complex activity abolished irregular F-actin polymerization, lamina assembly, and chromatin reorganization due to PRR11 overexpression. Notably, experiments with truncated PRR11 variants revealed that PRR11 regulates F-actin through different regions. We found that deletion of either the N or C terminus of PRR11 abrogates its effects on F-actin polymerization and nuclear instability and that deletion of amino acid residues 100–184 or 100–200 strongly induces an F-actin structure called the actin comet tail, not observed with WT PRR11. Our findings indicate that cytoplasmic PRR11 plays an essential role in regulating F-actin assembly and nuclear stability by recruiting the ARP2/3 complex in human non-small cell lung carcinoma cells.




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The cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP24A1 increases proliferation of mutant KRAS-dependent lung adenocarcinoma independent of its catalytic activity [Cell Biology]

We previously reported that overexpression of cytochrome P450 family 24 subfamily A member 1 (CYP24A1) increases lung cancer cell proliferation by activating RAS signaling and that CYP24A1 knockdown inhibits tumor growth. However, the mechanism of CYP24A1-mediated cancer cell proliferation remains unclear. Here, we conducted cell synchronization and biochemical experiments in lung adenocarcinoma cells, revealing a link between CYP24A1 and anaphase-promoting complex (APC), a key cell cycle regulator. We demonstrate that CYP24A1 expression is cell cycle–dependent; it was higher in the G2-M phase and diminished upon G1 entry. CYP24A1 has a functional destruction box (D-box) motif that allows binding with two APC adaptors, CDC20-homologue 1 (CDH1) and cell division cycle 20 (CDC20). Unlike other APC substrates, however, CYP24A1 acted as a pseudo-substrate, inhibiting CDH1 activity and promoting mitotic progression. Conversely, overexpression of a CYP24A1 D-box mutant compromised CDH1 binding, allowing CDH1 hyperactivation, thereby hastening degradation of its substrates cyclin B1 and CDC20, and accumulation of the CDC20 substrate p21, prolonging mitotic exit. These activities also occurred with a CYP24A1 isoform 2 lacking the catalytic cysteine (Cys-462), suggesting that CYP24A1's oncogenic potential is independent of its catalytic activity. CYP24A1 degradation reduced clonogenic survival of mutant KRAS-driven lung cancer cells, and calcitriol treatment increased CYP24A1 levels and tumor burden in Lsl-KRASG12D mice. These results disclose a catalytic activity-independent growth-promoting role of CYP24A1 in mutant KRAS-driven lung cancer. This suggests that CYP24A1 could be therapeutically targeted in lung cancers in which its expression is high.