The rare hereditary disorder Fanconi anemia (FA) can be caused by mutations in components of the FA core complex (FancA / B/C/E /F/G/ L/M), a key regulator FancD2, the breast cancer susceptibility protein BRCA2/FancD1, or the newly identified FancJ/BRIP1 helicase. By performing yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) screens using N-terminal chicken (ch) FancD2 as a bait, we have identified chFancL, the likely ubiquitin E3 ligase subunit of the FA core complex. We also found that ectopically expressed FancD2 and FancL co-immunoprecipitated in 293T cells, and this interaction was dependent on the PHD domain of FancL. FANCL -disrupted chicken DT40 cells displayed defects in both FancD2 monoubiquitination and focus formation. Importantly, cell lines lacking the FANCL or FANCD2 genes, or carrying a "knock-in" mutation of the FancD2 monoubiquitination site (where the Lys 563 residue is changed to Arg), displayed quantitatively identical defects in the repair of I-Sce I-induced chromosomal breaks by homologous recombination (HR). These data establish the role of FANCL and FancD2 monoubiquitination in HR repair.

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The pixel values in fat/water suppression magnetic resonance (MR) images were measured for the thigh muscles of 18 healthy volunteers to investigate age-related changes in muscle water and fat content. Prior to the human studies the reproducibility of the data was confirmed using phantoms. The standard deviations (SDs) of the pixel values for one of the phantoms examined five times were found to be within a relatively narrow range. Both the pixel values in the fat suppression images (PV1) and the pixel values in the water suppression images (PV2) of all muscles tended to be higher in the oldest group. The results indicate that the water and fat content of skeletal muscles is higher in aged persons. Moreover, the PV1 in the non-dominant limbs was found to be increased in the extensor muscles of the knee joints, while the PV2 in the non-dominant limbs did not show a significant difference, except for the rectus femoris.

Objective: To determine the relationship between electrode position and hyoid movement for effective surface electrical stimulation in the treatment of dysphagia. Methods: Surface electrode pairs targeted on the suprahyoid muscle group were placed in mesial, distal, or pervasive placement patterns on the skin anterior to the suprahyoid muscle group of five healthy subjects, and the vertical and horizontal movements of the hyoid induced by electrical stimulation in the three pattern groups were measured and compared. Results: The mesial electrode-pair pattern induced significant anterior movement of the hyoid. The distal pattern showed a tendency to induce upward hyoid movement. The distance of hyoid movement induced by the electrical stimulation was about half of that found for actual water swallowing. No significant difference in electrical stimulus intensity was found among the electrode patterns. Conclusion: Surface electrical stimulation with mesial electrode-pair placement anterior to the hyoid presumably induces contraction of the digastric muscle anterior belly and the geniohyoid muscle, and was found to pull the hyoid forward. This information and further elucidation of the relationship between surface electrode position and hyoid movement is expected to increase the range of clinical applications.