NOD‐like receptor family protein 3 (NLRP3)‐mediated inflammasome activation promotes caspase‐1‐dependent production of interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β) and requires the adaptor protein ASC. Compared with the priming and activation mechanisms of the inflammasome signaling pathway, post‐translational ubiquitination/deubiquitination mechanisms controlling inflammasome activation have not been clearly addressed. We here demonstrate that the deubiquitinating enzyme USP50 binds to the ASC protein and subsequently regulates the inflammasome signaling pathway by deubiquitinating the lysine 63‐linked polyubiquitination of ASC. USP50 knockdown in human THP‐1 cells and mouse bone marrow‐derived macrophages shows a significant decrease in procaspase‐1 cleavage, resulting in a reduced secretion of IL‐1β and interleukin‐18 (IL‐18) upon treatment with NLRP3 stimuli and a reduction in ASC speck formation and oligomerization. Thus, we elucidate a novel regulatory mechanism of the inflammasome signaling pathway mediated by the USP50 deubiquitinating enzyme.
It has been recently emphasized that comprehensive understanding of students' cognitive activities in the process of writing as well as final product is needed in order to develop an effective strategy for science writing. In this study, we investigated the characteristics of writing process in the situation that students wrote a composition in solving the application problem on a science topic. Seven eighth graders selected in the consideration of their science achievement and communication skills were asked to write a composition using think-aloud method. They were also interviewed after their writing work. The analyses of the results indicated that students' writing processes consisted of six distinctive components: generating, organizing, setting, translating, evaluating, and revising. It was also found that the patterns of process components for each student were different in terms of the frequency and the sequence. The patterns of process components were categorized into four types: systematic, tacit planning, trial and error, and random strategies. Educational implications were also discussed.
In this study, we developed an analogical experimental design strategy emphasizing understanding and checking stages and applied it to four groups consisting of 7th grade science-gifted students. We classified the patterns of experimental design processes and analyzed the verbal interactions among the science-gifted students at the levels of turn and interaction unit. The analyses of the results reveled that three groups were relevant to reinitiated motion and the other to backward-divergent motion. In the analyses of turn and interaction unit, the frequencies of the statements related to the task were high, especially 'making suggestion' and 'elaborated symmetrical interaction.' The analyses for each stage of strategy indicated that the frequencies of 'explain,' 'question,' and 'cumulative interaction' at understanding stage were high. At designing stage, the frequencies of 'making suggestion,' 'cumulative interaction,' and 'disputative interaction' were found to be high. At checking stage, 'making suggestion,' 'receiving opinion,' and 'disputative interaction' were high. In the comparison of the patterns, the qualitative differences among interaction unit were found at all the stages, whereas there were differences only between designing and checking stages in the turn cases. Educational implications of these findings are discussed.
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