ALBERT

Description: Deletions and gains of chromosomal segments detectable cytogenetically have long been recognized as valuable tools for AML classification and prognostication. Segmental amplifications and deletions can be reliably detected at the whole genome level using array-based CGH. In this study, we utilized a novel dense tiling path array consisting of 386,165 unique isothermal (Tm=76°C) oligomers (average length 51 nt) spaced evenly at ~6Kb intervals across the genome. We analyzed 144 adult de novo AML samples: 64 had normal karyotypes, and 80 had 1 or 2 clonal, balanced or unbalanced abnormalities (samples with ≥3 clonal chromosome aberrations were excluded). Similar numbers of FAB M0/1, M2, M3, and M4 cases were included, and all samples had 〉30% blasts. Bone marrow-derived tumor DNA or control DNA derived from the blood of 23 normal individuals (matched for age and ethnicity, and with no history of cancer) was co-hybridized with a control pool of DNAs derived from the blood of 4 healthy young males. Of the 23 gains and losses detected cytogenetically in 〉20% of metaphases, 22 (96%) were also detected by CGH. Of the 20 copy number changes present in ≤20% of metaphases, CGH detected only 7 (35%). CGH identified X chromosome number correctly in all samples. Further, a number of previously described segmental copy number polymorphisms (CNPs; Sebat et al, Science2004;305:525) were identified in both the AML samples and the normal control population. Using very stringent criteria to define abnormal segments (≥8 consecutive oligomers with log2 values of at least +/− 0.5), we identified 47 independent loci in the AML samples that had abnormal segments that were not apparent cytogenetically (mostly due to small size). Thirteen of these were present in multiple AML samples (range 2–22), but were also present in at least one cancer-free control sample, or were previously identified in normal individuals. These clearcut CNPs tended to be small (

Description: Atmospheric particle pollution is a serious environmental issue in China, especially the northern regions. Ambient air loadings (ng m−3), pollution sources and apportionment, and transport pathways of trace (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn) and major (Al, Ca, Fe, and Mg) metals associated with inhalable particulate matters (PM10 aerosols) were characterized in urban, rural village, and rural field areas of seven cities (from inland in the west to the coast in the east: Wuwei, Yinchuan, Taiyuan, Beijing, Dezhou, Yantai, and Dalian) across northern China by taking one 72 h sample each site within a month for a whole year (April 2010 to March 2011). Ambient PM10 pollution in northern China is especially significant in the cold season (October–March) due to the combustion of coal for heating and dust storms in the winter and spring. Owing to variations in emission intensity and meteorological conditions, there is a trend of decrease in PM10 levels in cities from west to east. Both air PM10 and the associated metal loadings for urban and rural areas were comparable, showing that the current pattern of regional pollution in China differs from the decreasing urban–rural-background transect that is usual in other parts of the world. The average metal levels are Zn (276 ng m−3) ≫ Pb (93.7) ≫ Cu (54.9) ≫ Ni (9.37) 〉 V (8.34) ≫ Cd (2.84) 〉 Co (1.76). Judging from concentrations (mg kg−1), enrichment factors (EFs), a multivariate statistical analysis (principal component analysis, PCA), and a receptor model (absolute principal component scores-multiple linear regression analysis, APCS-MLR), the airborne trace metals (Zn, Pb, Cu, and Cd) in northern China were mainly anthropogenic, and mostly attributable to coal combustion and vehicle emissions with additional industrial sources. However, the Co was mostly of crustal origin, and the V and Ni were mainly from soil/dust in the western region and mostly from the petrochemical industry/oil combustion in the east. The accumulation of typical "urban metals" (Pb, Zn, Cd, and Cu) showed a trend of increase from west to east, indicating their higher anthropogenic contribution in eastern cities. The winter northwestern monsoon and westerly jet stream were the dominant forces in the long-range transport of airborne PM metals in northern China, with potentially global implications.