A combination of a particular HLA-DP beta allele and an HLA-DQ heterodimer confers susceptibility to coeliac disease

Coeliac disease is an autoimmune disease of the intestinal mucosa, elicited by ingestion of wheat gluten in genetically susceptible individuals. Susceptibility to coeliac disease has been associated with the serologically defined variants DR3 and DR7 of the class II antigens encoded by the HLA-D region. Three related class II antigens, each consisting of an alpha and a beta glycoprotein chain, have been identified and are designated HLA-DR, HLA-DQ, and HLA-DP. These highly polymorphic transmembrane proteins bind peptides derived from the processing of foreign antigens and present them to T lymphocytes; they also influence the specificity of the mature T-cell repertoire. The role of HLA-DP polymorphism in susceptibility has not been as fully explored as that of the other class II antigens because of the complexity of the primed lymphocyte typing (PLT) method for determining DPw specificities. Here we use a new DNA-based method of HLA-DP typing to analyse the distribution of DP beta alleles in a group of coeliac disease patients and healthy controls. Two specific DP beta alleles (DPB4.2 and DPB3) are increased in the patient population. Comparison of the DP beta sequences suggests that the polymorphic residues at position 69 and at 56 and 57 may be critical in conferring susceptibility. Further, the contribution of the susceptible DP beta alleles appears to be independent of linkage to the previously reported DR3 and DR7 markers for coeliac disease. The distribution of DQ alpha and beta alleles in patients suggests that a specific DQ heterodimer may be responsible for the observed DR associations. Individuals with both this DQ antigen and a specific DP beta allele are at increased risk for coeliac disease.     

The AdS/CFT Correspondence and Holographic QCD

Holographic QCD is an extra-dimensional approach to modeling QCD resonances and their interactions. Holographic models encode information about chiral symmetry breaking, Weinberg sum rules, vector meson dominance, and other phenomenological features of QCD. There are two complementary approaches to holographic model building: a top–down approach which begins with string-theory brane configurations, and a bottom–up approach which is more phenomenological. In this talk I will describe the AdS/CFT correspondence, which motivates Holographic QCD, and the techniques used to build holographic models of QCD and to calculate observables in those models. I will also discuss an intriguing lightcone approach to Holographic QCD discovered by Brodsky and De Teramond.     

Chaotic Expansion of Elements of the Universal Enveloping Algebra of a Lie Algebra Associated with a Quantum Stochastic Calculus

The functional Ito formula, in the form df() = f( + d ) –f(),is formulated and proved in the context of a Lie algebra L associatedwith a quantum (non-commutative) stochastic calculus. Here fis an element of the universal enveloping algebra U of L, andf() + d() – f() is given a meaning using the coproductstructure of U even though the individual terms of this expressionhave no meaning. The Ito formula is equivalent to a chaoticexpansion formula for f() which is found explicitly. 1991 MathematicsSubject Classification: primary 81S25; secondary 60H05; tertiary18B25.     

Analysis of enzymatically amplified beta-globin and HLA-DQ alpha DNA with allele-specific oligonucleotide probes

Allelic sequence variation has been analysed by synthetic oligonucleotide hybridization probes which can detect single base substitutions in human genomic DNA. An allele-specific oligonucleotide (ASO) will only anneal to sequences that match it perfectly, a single mismatch being sufficient to prevent hybridization under appropriate conditions. To improve the sensitivity, specificity and simplicity of this approach, we used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) procedure to enzymatically amplify a specific segment of the beta-globin or HLA-DQ alpha gene in human genomic DNA before hybridization with ASOs. This in vitro amplification method, which produces a greater than 10(5)-fold increase in the amount of target sequence, permits the analysis of allelic variation with as little as 1 ng of genomic DNA and the use of a simple 'dot blot' for probe hybridization. As a further simplification, PCR amplification has been performed directly on crude cell lysates, eliminating the need for DNA purification.     

Application of inductively-coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry with an internal reference to the determination of sulfate and calcium in waters and brines

A method is described for the determination of sulfate and calcium in waters and brines; an inductively-coupled plasma is used with a multichannel vacuum spectrometer. Study of the behavior of the line-to-background intensity ratios for the S I 180.734, Ca II 317.933, Sc I 402.04 and Sc II 361.384-nm lines as functions of the observation height, aerosol carrier gas, power, and concentration of an easily ionized element shows that Sc II 361.384 nm can be used as an internal reference for sulfur and calcium. In the presence of high salt concentrations, the efficiency and quality of nebulization are degraded and at high aerosol gas flows in the presence of sodium, the line-to-background ratios for the ion lines are depressed and those of the atom lines are enhanced. However, under compromise conditions, the S I 180.734-nm and Ca II 317.933-nm lines exhibit significant freedom from interference caused by an easily ionized element. With the Sc II 361.384-nm line used as the internal reference, short-term precision is improved by a factor of 1.5–4, and long-term precision is improved by a factor of 2, producing data for sulfate and calcium that compare favorably with those obtained by gravimetry, titrimetry, and atomic absorption spectrometry. A detection limit of 70 μg l^?1 and a linear dynamic range of 1 g l^?1 were obtained for sulfate.